FDA eases limits on morning after pill

Hooray!!!
Hooray!!!
I can't believe it. Wow. Amazing.
Of course now the debate about a pharmacists responsibilty to stock and sell the medication will get underway, but this is great news.

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Not quite unfettered I'm afraid. The battle continues with the pharmacies. Some states are passing laws allowing pharmacists to decide which prescriptions they will not fill (which leads some pharmacists to refuse to sell any female contraceptives at all).

And the people who didn't want this available with or without a prescription and regardless of age managed to get the age limit in there; therefore making the FDA an arbiter of their moral values.

The age limit is unenforceable of course; most teens have an 18 year old friend who will be happy to do them a favor.

At least it's a start.

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I love being canadian somedays, and not having to worry QUITE as much.

I'd like to jump for joy for everyone in the states, but I'm sure this is just the prelude to bigger fights over it. Sigh...

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ok, I guess I'm the one who's going to get the fight started. I have mixed feelings about this - not because it's "birth control - horrors!!", but because I've heard that it can have some pretty dicey side effects, and taking it without a doctor's knowledge can screw a person up pretty badly.

I am one who applauds the age limit, and I also understand that some 14-year-old with an 18-year-old boyfriend will get her hands on it. I applaud the age limit because I feel that a child (and in this country, you are not considered "adult" until you're 18) does not have the maturity to make a decision like this on her own. And no, I'm not so naive as to think they're not out there having sex. But in a country where kids are not allowed to take cough drops to school because they're "drugs", we're fighting for them to take birth control without their parent's or their doctor's knowledge? wierd.

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Ok, I don't know about horrible long term side effects. I will tell you that it will likely make you very sick to your stomache and should be taken with gravol (because you do not want to throw it up because that gets into a BIG problem. Obviously this is NOT medical advice and you should NOT take gravol if you are allergic)

Most sites list the following side effects:
Nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, dizziness, breast tenderness, tiredness and weakness, headache, menstrual changes, and diarrhea may occur. If any of these effects persist or worsen, notify your doctor.

Tell your doctor immediately if any of these serious side effects occur: low stomach/abdominal pain If you notice other effects not listed above, contact your doctor or pharmacist.

Planned Parenthood says:
Side Effects

Side effects associated with the use of EC usually taper off within a day or two.


* Half of the women who take the combination pills feel sick to their stomachs, but only for about 24 hours. Less than one out of five women vomit with combination pills.

* The risk of nausea and vomiting is much lower with progestin-only EC — less than one in four women feel sick to their stomachs.

* Breast tenderness, irregular bleeding, dizziness, and headaches may also occur.


There have been no reports of serious complications among the millions of women who have used EC.

Frequent use of EC may cause periods to become irregular and unpredictable.

The side effects of anti-nausea medication may include drowsiness. Please follow the precautions on the package insert.
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If it made you as sick as it made me you wouldn't be taking it as a "regular form of birth control"... though if the FDA is really worried about that happening they would make the regular birth control pill available without a prescriptions (because forcing women to be sexually assaulted by a doctor to get the birth control pill is WRONG!

I blogged about this today if you would like to read more:
http://preoptimism.blogdrive.com/archive/25.html

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I took these pills as a precaution once when the condom broke and never experienced the side effects. However, I would caution repeat use of this because a friend of mine got pregnant even though she took the morning after pills. I believe it didn't work for her at that time because she took it so many times. The pills obviously had an effect on the baby because she miscarried at 7 weeks. (She went on to have a healthy baby nearly a year and half later.)

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"I believe it didn't work for her at that time because she took it so many times. The pills obviously had an effect on the baby because she miscarried at 7 weeks. (She went on to have a healthy baby nearly a year and half later.)"

This is only speculations... and the "obviously" part has no bearing. The only thing obvious would be that she lost the baby -- not that the pill caused it. At all.

If your body starts having resistance to hormones.. then we are all in trouble! LOL.

The pill reduces the chance of pregnancy if taken in a specific time frame. It is not even close to 100% and the time frame is stringent.

As for the cough drops thing.. well that is a whole other issue. I personally think the cough drop thing is ridiculous, too...

This is a HUGE win for women. FINALLY after years of back tracking...

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"a child (and in this country, you are not considered "adult" until you're 18) does not have the maturity to make a decision like this on her own. And no, I'm not so naive as to think they're not out there having sex. But in a country where kids are not allowed to take cough drops to school because they're "drugs", we're fighting for them to take birth control without their parent's or their doctor's knowledge? wierd."

Really, I do not mean this personally to previous poster, just my 2 cents! This seems to the common take on this issue. I personally think that what is wierd is saying kids aren't mature enough to take an OTC drug, but they are mature enough to raise a child. The drug is most effective within 24 hours. If a girl has to talk to her doctor or parent before getting the pill, she will most likely miss the window and be forced to choose between an abortion (if it's available to her), parenthood, or adoption which are all far more traumatic than the potential side effects of the drugs. I think if we stopped trying to control a teen's every move and started treating teenagers like responsible human beings (which they have the potential to be), they might start acting like them but I think I am in the minority on that.

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Here, Here VL! My daughter is 9 and is well informed on these subjects in advance...

Im with you 100% treat them as responsible human being from the start.. instead of pulling the bate and switch and expect maturity after years of shielding...

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In a perfect world, all parents would be compassionate and understanding. Communication lines would be open between parents and children.

Rape and incest would be unknown.

Parents would never use the threat of pregnancy as a club over a child's head or consider it a punishment for sin and then be surprised when their child doesn't come to them.

It's not a perfect world.

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The scariest comment is the part about "men purchasing for their partners." That worries me. What if some pervert is abusing my daughter and buys her Plan B to "cover up the evidence?"

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That worries me a little as well and I don't know the answer. That same pervert could, I suppose, do even greater harm. It's one reason the lines of communication should be open even though it's difficult with teens. They should be able to come to us with anything without fear.

Then again, if we want to wander afield, there's always the chance that the parent and the pervert are one and the same. Then what?

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What perfect timing -- yesterday was the first time I had a need for Plan B. Because even though it's not a fertile time of month for me, a condom broke and I'm not taking any chances. I love my son, but DO NOT want any more kids at this point.

And yet, even though I had a prescription from my doctor, Wal-Mart turned me away.

Thus, Wal-Mart has officially lost my business permanently. Sam Walton has no business in the state of my uterus.

Rite Aid gladly filled my prescription, with no judgements and a kind smile. I took the second pill about an hour ago, and so far, no bad effects.

I paid $13 for Plan B -- more than a box of condoms, so I can't really see people as using it as their preferred method of birth control.

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Lisa,

Wal-Mart is well within its rights when they decide not to stock Plan B. It was probably not the pharmacists decision to turn you away. You can't force a pharmacist to dispense any prescription they're morally oposed to, just as you can't force a doctor to participate in an abortion procedure. There are plenty of other pharmacies out there, as you've already pointed out.

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