Abortions in Taiwan

[Jaboney]

back home I know 18 year olds becoming mothers and fathers ><

this is really frowned upon by the middle classes in the UK. I've totally changed my mind on it. We need young parents, for one. Also, why shouldn't girls have babies? It's natural, it's beautiful and it can help people by happy and grounded.

Obviously not a parent.

Why is that, jabone? I'm sure if I weren't a parent, I'd be a snarky, inconsiderate foulmouthed bastard.

And if I weren't a parent, I probably wouldn't be up all night and frequently covered in puke. Then again, such things were known to happen back when life was less beautiful, happy and grounded.

[SillyWilly]

Are early abortions really a loss of lives? not really. Potential lives, perhaps. But not independent lives, and that's the point.

So you're in car accident and you're severely injured, but with full potential to recover 100%, but you need a respirator to help you breathe...guess what? You're shit out of luck, pal! Now you're no longer an "independent life," capable of fending for yourself, and following your thinking, turning off the respirator and murdering you is not "really a loss of life." Smart.

[urodacus]

Failed analogy. See, before the car crash you were an independent tax payer. Afterwards, perhaps not, but worth trying to recuperate. Embryos, OTOH, are not, and not because they don't pay tax, but because they're not viable. The vast majority of embryos never implant anyway, so where's the hard and fast moral line to be drawn on that one, eh?

life is a lot cheaper than people believe, even after it's paid taxes*.


Of course, I'd rather be dead than quadriplegic, so turn my machine off as you leave, please, if that happens to me.

Does a random post on Forumosa constitute a properly-accredited living will?





* the tax thing is a red herring. Honest. :arse:

There's no smilie for that, so I'll use a cactus and an arse instead.

[Confuzius]

I think it's down to a widely-held belief that the contraceptive pill is poison and will give you instant cancer or make you permanently infertile. Whatever the pros and cons of other methods, the fact is that the pill is almost 100% effective and probably one of the safest drugs known (especially the progestin-only type), if used properly.

I think this is quite a bit of an overstatement.

I have known a number of women whom birth control pills have permanently damaged their chances for having children. I have also known others who have had other complications (high blood pressure, seizures, the list goes on and on...). This stuff is not given much attention because of how lucrative the BC pill industry is, how promiscuous a society much of the modern world has become and the rise of teenage pregnancy in the lower class. Very often, in the US birth control is over prescribed to young teenagers (who are NOT sexually active btw) to help with extremely difficult menstrual cycles.

[Confuzius]

Just another point....

I have heard the high number is due to the taboo against having a child out of wedlock here and is pretty much the same throughout much of East Asia.

[Puppet]

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[finley]

I have known a number of women whom birth control pills have permanently damaged their chances for having children. I have also known others who have had other complications (high blood pressure, seizures, the list goes on and on...). This stuff is not given much attention because of how lucrative the BC pill industry is, how promiscuous a society much of the modern world has become and the rise of teenage pregnancy in the lower class. Very often, in the US birth control is over prescribed to young teenagers (who are NOT sexually active btw) to help with extremely difficult menstrual cycles.

I completely agree that no drug should be prescribed thoughtlessly or without adequate monitoring. Possibly some of the bad reputation is caused by people buying the pills OTC rather than consulting a doctor; and even if they did, doctors here seem to treat drugs like they're M&Ms. Certainly some people react badly, but there are several different types with different modes of action, and often changing to a different one solves the problem. That's where you need a competent doctor to advise you, of course .

The fact that they are so widely used and monitored (usually) has provided an enormous amount of research data. AFAIK, assuming an appropriate prescription, the general consensus is there is a slightly elevated risk of thrombosis but a lowered risk of various cancers. I believe the recommendation is to take a break (at least six months out of 18) to avoid any long-term effects. Sure, we should take the pronouncements of drug companies with a large pinch of salt, but considering that virtually every woman in Europe and the US has used the pill at some point in her life, the number of complications seems to be remarkably low. And remember the whole point of taking the drug is to avoid a life-changing and (presumably) undesirable event, ie., pregnancy (and abortion).

Having said that I've never pressured a gf into using it. I've asked if she might want to, but if she says no, that's the end of the matter, whatever the reason. It's a real pity there is still no effective male contraceptive drug.

[Isha]

No contraceptive pill is free of serious side effects ranging from regular headaches to permanent infertility. It is not an easy decision to take. In a society which is trying to remain conservative while having a free will of maintaining relationships; abortions are going to be high in number. Further, instead of pills a better option is using condoms; it will not only help with pregnancy but will also work as hepatitis blocker which is prevalent here.

[Mr He]

The figure is too high to make sense, 200,000 yes, but 500,000??? We have 12 million women on this island, 3/4 of which are not fertile due to age related issues, with 1/3 of the rest not being sexually active, that means that sexually active women of childbearing age on average get an abortion every 4 years.

Birth control pills are readily available here, and someone must be using the condoms for sale everywhere.

[urodacus]

Very often, in the US birth control is over prescribed to young teenagers (who are NOT sexually active btw) to help with extremely difficult menstrual cycles.

you've obviously never had to live with seriously debilitating menstrual cycles as a teenager.