The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends IUDs as the first choice for teens

It took quite a bit of time to get around to it, but the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has finally gotten around to making "the recommendation that the first-line contraceptive choice for adolescents who choose not to be abstinent is a Long Acting Reversible Contraceptive (LARC), which is an intrauterine device or a sub-dermal implant."

Here is some history, and today's new recommendation.

In 2011 The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists released the following statement:

IUDs Implants Are Most Effective Reversible Contraceptives Available 

June 20, 2011
Washington, DC -- Long-acting reversible contraceptive (LARC) methods—namely intrauterine devices (IUDs) and implants—are the most effective forms of reversible contraception available and are safe for use by almost all reproductive-age women, according to a Practice Bulletin released today by The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (The College). The new recommendations offer guidance to ob-gyns in selecting appropriate candidates for LARCs and managing clinical issues that may arise with their use. 

"LARC methods are the best tool we have to fight against unintended pregnancies, which currently account for 49% of US pregnancies each year," said Eve Espey, MD, MPH, who helped develop the new Practice Bulletin. "The major advantage is that after insertion, LARCs work without having to do anything else. There's no maintenance required." 

More than half of women who have an unplanned pregnancy were using contraception. The majority of unintended pregnancies among contraceptive users occur because of inconsistent or incorrect contraceptive use. LARCs have the highest continuation rates of all reversible contraceptives, a key factor in contraceptive success. 

IUDs and contraceptive implants must be inserted in a doctor's office. Two types of IUDs—small, T-shaped devices that are inserted into the uterus—are available. The copper IUD, which effectively prevents pregnancy for 10 years, releases a small amount of copper into the uterus, preventing fertilization. In addition, copper interferes with the sperm's ability to move through the uterus and into the fallopian tubes. The device can also be used for emergency contraception when inserted within five days of unprotected sex. 

Women using the copper IUD will continue to ovulate, and menstrual bleeding and cramping may increase at first. Though data suggest that these symptoms lessen over time, heavy menstrual bleeding and pain during menstruation (dysmenorrhea) are main causes of discontinuation among long-term copper IUD users. Women considering IUDs should be informed of this adverse effect beforehand. 

The hormonal IUD releases progestin into the uterus that thickens cervical mucus and thins the uterine lining. It may also make the sperm less active, decreasing the ability of egg and sperm to remain viable in the fallopian tube. The hormonal IUD may make menstrual cycles lighter and is also FDA-approved for the treatment of heavy bleeding. The hormonal IUD prevents pregnancy for five years. 

The contraceptive implant is a matchstick-sized rod that is inserted under the skin of the upper arm and allows the controlled release of an ovulation-suppressing hormone for up to three years. It is the most effective method of reversible contraception available with a pregnancy rate of 0.05%. 

Despite the many benefits of LARC methods, the majority of women in the US who use birth control choose other methods. Fewer than 6% of women in the US used IUDs between 2006 and 2008. According to The College, lack of knowledge about LARCs and cost concerns may be to blame. "Women need to know that today's IUDs are much improved from earlier versions, and complications are extremely rare. IUDs are not abortifacients—they work before pregnancy is established—and are safe for the majority of women, including adolescents and women who have never had children. And while upfront costs may be higher, LARCs are much more cost-effective than other contraceptive methods in the long run," Dr. Espey said.

In 2012 the American Academy of Pediatrics issued this statement:

AAP Recommends Emergency Contraception Be Available to Teens 

11/26/2012 For Release:  November 26, 2012
Teen pregnancies have declined over the past few decades, but the United States continues to see substantially higher teen birth rates compared to other developed countries. A new policy statement by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) discusses the use of emergency contraception and how it can reduce the risk of unintended pregnancy in adolescents. The statement, “Emergency Contraception,” will be published in the December 2012 Pediatrics and released online Nov. 26. According to the AAP, adolescents are more likely to use emergency contraception if it’s prescribed in advance.  

Many teens continue to engage in unprotected sexual intercourse, and as many as 10 percent are victims of sexual assault. Other indications for use include contraceptive failures (defective or slipped condoms, or missed or late doses of other contraceptives). When used within 120 hours after having unprotected or under-protected sex, selected regimens for emergency contraception, such as Plan B, Next Choice, etc., are the only contraceptive methods to prevent unwanted pregnancy.  

According to the AAP, pediatricians can play an important role in counseling patients and providing prescriptions for teens in need of emergency contraception for preventing pregnancy. Patients should also know that emergency contraception does not protect against sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and pediatricians should discuss the importance of STI testing, or treatment if needed. The AAP also encourages pediatricians to advocate for better insurance coverage and increased access to emergency contraception for teens, regardless of age.

And today tthe American Academy of Pediatrics issued this statement: 

AAP Updates Recommendations on Teen Pregnancy Prevention 

9/29/2014
Over the past 10 years, a number of new contraceptive methods have become available. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) continues to review and update its recommendations on contraceptive methods to provide pediatricians with the information they need in order to counsel and prescribe contraception for adolescents. 

 In an updated policy statement and accompanying technical report in the October 2014 Pediatrics, “Contraception for Adolescents,” (published online Sept. 29), the AAP recognizes the pediatrician’s role as a trusted advisor and source of sexual health information, and supports adolescents and their families to discuss and ask questions about sensitive issues such as sexual health and relationships. 

According to AAP recommendations, pediatricians will conduct a developmentally-targeted sexual history, assess risk for sexually transmitted infections, and provide appropriate screening and/or education about safe and effective contraceptive methods. 

Regardless of which method of contraception is chosen, pediatricians should stress that all methods of hormonal birth control are safer than pregnancy, allow adolescents to consent to contraceptive care, and become familiar with state and federal laws regarding disclosure of confidential information in minors. 

New in this report is the recommendation that the first-line contraceptive choice for adolescents who choose not to be abstinent is a Long Acting Reversible Contraceptive (LARC), which is an intrauterine device or a subdermal implant.  

The past decade has demonstrated that LARCs, which provide 3 to 10 years of contraception, are safe for adolescents. Pediatricians should be familiar with counselling, insertion, and /or referral for LARCs. Additional updates to the policy statement focus on patients with special health care needs, including physical or developmental disabilities, medically complex illness, and obesity.  

It is important for pediatricians to regularly update patients’ sexual histories and allow sufficient time for follow up appointments when needed. Pediatricians are also encouraged to promote healthy sexual health decision-making, such as abstinence and proper condom use.  

Toothpaste, socks, t shirts, all this is needed after the rape kit

Imagine yourself in the second paragraph of the flyer below.

Then return to the first Paragraph.

Then Donate.

Click here for Milford Bank locations.

This is about 50% of us

Statement from Permanent Commission on the Status of Women

FROM: Christine Palm, Communications Director

 RE: Supreme Court Decision on Hobby Lobby Case

DATE: 6-30-14

“This appalling decision by the Supreme Court further erodes a woman’s autonomy over her own body and healthcare. To invest corporations with the power to be a regulating force over private matters sets a very bad precedent, and it cannot be overlooked that this decision affects women, not the full spectrum of the workforce.”

About the PCSW: The Permanent Commission on the Status of Women was formed in 1973 under Sec. 46a-1 of the Connecticut General Statutes to study and improve Connecticut women’s economic security, health and safety; to promote consideration of qualified women to leadership positions and to work toward the elimination of gender discrimination. As a non-partisan arm of the General Assembly, the agency monitors, critiques and recommends changes to legislation in order to inform public policy, and assesses programs and practices in all State agencies for their effect on the state’s women. The PCSW serves as a liaison between government and its diverse constituents, and convenes stakeholders, including the business, non-profit and educational communities, local governments, and the media, in order to promote awareness of women’s issues. 

For Victims of Rape

The Milford Bank to Sponsor a Collection Drive for the Rape Crisis Center of Milford

"When a victim goes to the hospital after an assault, they can participate in an evidence collection procedure which requires them to leave their clothing. Victim Support Packages are brought by an advocate of the Rape Crisis Center so the victim can leave the hospital with dignity. 
This serves as a stepping stone to healthy recovery."

Items needed are:

•  light weight pants
• sweat pants
• elastic-waist shorts
• sweat shirts
• t-shirts
• white low cut socks
•  underwear all in sizes, especially large and extra-large
•  flip flops
• comb/brush set
• toothbrush/toothpaste set
• water
• Gatorade
• individual tissue packs
• mall hand sanitizer
• individual snacks like granola bars or crackers. No nut products please. 

Here are the locations for drop-offs of supplies:

33 Broad Street, Milford, CT 06460 (203) 783-5700
259 Merwin Ave., Milford, CT 06460 (203) 783-5770
205 Bridgeport Ave., Milford, CT 06460 (203) 783-5780
1455 Boston Post Road, Milford, CT 06460 (203) 783-5790
295 Boston Post Road, Milford, CT 06460 (203) 783-3017
And, In Stratford:
2366 Main Street, Stratford, CT 06615 (203) 386-9176
ShopRite Office 250 Barnum Ave Cutoff, Stratford, CT 06614 (203) 378 – 2260

Thank you for your generosity in donating, and Thank You to Milford Bank for sponsoring this collection.

Women's Equality Day

Take Note:
Women are NOT equal in law or civil discourse. Women are barely-released indentured servants, slaves, war-brides, underpaid and disrespected teacher/nurse/mothers. Women are elder-care givers, perpetual clerks, mourners of the dead and givers of Life. Women are cultural memory. Women are NOT EQUAL. 
 

FROM: Teresa Younger
Executive Director, Permanent Commission on the Status of Women

DATE: Monday, Aug. 26, 2013 

RE: Women’s Equality Day

“Women’s Equality Day raises so many issues beyond the 19^th Amendment – beginning with pay inequity, which hurts women’s long-term economic security, retirement assets, and quality of life. We must also ask the critical question: If women are still battling for their full rights every day – even after 93 years of voting rights – how many more generations of capable women will be routinely eliminated from positions of power, elected office, and the “tables” at which real decisions are made? Why does 51 percent of the population hold just 18 percent of Congress and 4 percent of Fortune 500 CEO positions? And why is women’s healthcare – most noticeably reproductive rights – continually under assault, after a century of earning – not “being given” as is often said – working for and earning the right to vote?”

Senator Blumenthal "Gets It"

BLUMENTHAL DELIVERS FLOOR SPEECH ON ANTI-ABORTION LEGISLATION
PASSED YESTERDAY BY HOUSE

Video of Blumenthal’s floor speech is here.
 

(Washington, DC) – Today, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) delivered a floor speech on an anti-abortion bill passed yesterday by the House of Representatives. The bill – H.R. 1797 – would prohibit all abortions beyond 20 weeks with very limited exceptions.

I come to the floor today to discuss H.R. 1797. A number of my colleagues, Senators Murray and Boxer, have been here this morning to talk about the bill passed yesterday in the House of Representatives that would prohibit all abortions beyond 20 weeks with very, very limited exceptions. This topic is critically important to the women of Connecticut and our country, and the bill is yet another example, lamentably and regrettably, another example of legislation that feigns concern for women's health when actually it would endanger the lives and well-being of women across this great country.

The bill would take decisions regarding health care away from women and their doctors and would force the doctors to decide between incurring criminal penalties and helping their patients. That choice is unacceptable –professionally and morally. The decision to have an abortion is a serious decision that a woman should make in consultation with her doctor. When those decisions are made later in a pregnancy, they are most often the result of serious health risks to the mother or the discovery that the fetus is not viable.

Political interference is abhorrent and unacceptable in these personal and private decisions, and it violates the constitutional right of privacy. The other scenario in which a woman may seek an abortion later in a pregnancy is due to an inability to access such services earlier – whether due to financial restrictions or lack of access to health care or other extenuating circumstances.  In fact, 58 percent of abortion patients say they would have preferred to have an abortion earlier. Low-income women were more than twice as likely than their wealthier counterparts to be delayed because of financial limitation and difficulty in making arrangements. As politicians, we should not be placing additional restrictions on women in these circumstances.

The House bill blatantly ignores constitutional protections that are vitally necessary to protect the health of women as decided in Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey because these kinds of restrictions place limitations that interfere with constitutional rights and have no place in these personal and very private decisions. The limited exceptions in this bill would require a woman to report a rape or incest to law enforcement or a specific government agency when she is seeking much-needed health care services. Those restrictions affect women when they have been the victims of a crime or face serious health risks and will have no effect on reducing abortions.

That's their purported purpose, to reduce abortions, but that purpose will be in no way served by these restrictions. Victims of incest or rape may be too young or too fearful of retaliation to report to a law enforcement agency. Why create a needless, lawless obstacle to vital health care? We should be working to ensure that women have the ability to access safe and affordable contraception so there are fewer unintended pregnancies in this country. And yet supporters of this bill would also restrict access to contraception and they're the ones who have tried to make it more difficult to get access to the information and services necessary to prevent unintended pregnancies.

We need to do more. Our nation needs to do better to ensure that women have access to preventive and maternal health care so they can be prepared to face the responsibility of pregnancy and parenthood. This bill would do very little, if anything, to actually help women to protect their health care and the health care of their families and so I urge my colleagues to reject any consideration of this ill-intended, and I hope also ill-fated, measure that endangers women's health across the country. I urge my colleagues to focus on the real priorities that face this Congress – job creation and economic recovery, for example – and stop this attack on women's health.

###

A Million Things to do This Weekend

Okay....One Million and One:

ICYMI: Shockingly Good Editorial on Reproductive Rights

With other people writing terrific articles, letters to the editor, and (shocking!) editors themselves writing decent editorials, I hardly need to write anything myself. I can just watch, rinse, and repeat.

Ladies and Gents --  I proudly reprint the following Editorial from the Hartford Courant on January 23, 2013:

Abortion Opponents Still Working To Turn Back Clock -   
Roe v. Wade at 40

The Roe vs. Wade decision that the Supreme Court handed down 40 years ago this week gave American women a right that most then did not have: The right to make reproductive medical decisions for themselves. That single right is critical to the ability of a woman of child-bearing age to determine the course of her own life. Roe was a sound decision in 1973 and remains so today.

But consider this paradox: With the passage of time, more and more Americans — 63 percent in a Pew poll, and 70 percent in an NBC/Wall Street Journal survey — believe that the decision should remain law and not be overturned. Yet states are passing ever-increasing restrictions on women's abortion rights.

In the last two years, states passed 135 restrictions on when and how women can obtain an abortion. In four states, there is just one clinic where women can obtain an abortion — the Dakotas, Mississippi and Arkansas. Twenty-six states impose waiting periods and eight states restrict abortion coverage available even in private insurance. Other restrictions include forcing women to listen to ideological statements on the alleged greater risk of depression, suicide or cancer from having an abortion, assertions that scientific studies soundly contradict.

It is hard to imagine fundamental male reproductive decisions being the subject of the same level of legislative debate, harassment, patronizing lectures and legal restrictions as women routinely endure. That, unfortunately, shows no sign of changing. What will help lower the incidence of abortion even more is the expansion of the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare, as it makes contraception available without cost sharing. That is all to the good.

Meanwhile, opponents of Roe will continue to attempt to chip away at women's right to an abortion. The majority that supports Roe could use the opposition's tenacity and not, even on this 40th anniversary, take the current right for granted.

Compassionate Care for Rape Victims - McMahon would Turn back the Clock

Linda McMahon Would Block Timely Access to Care
for Rape Survivors

McMahon Called Out for Insensitive Statements

 

NEW HAVEN, CT— Christian Miron, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Connecticut, condemned Linda McMahon for her disregard for certain survivors of rape.  In an interview with the Hartford Courant’s editorial board last week, McMahon said she would side with hospitals over women.  McMahon would allow hospitals that oppose emergency contraception to turn away a rape survivor for the care she requests. 

“It couldn’t make things more clear: Linda McMahon is bad for Connecticut women.  She thinks it okay to send rape survivors seeking emergency care to another hospital in the middle of the night rather than give them the prompt medical attention and compassion they deserve,” Miron said.

 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

In Case You Missed It

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In 2007, Connecticut passed legislation requiring licensed health-care facilities, like hospital emergency rooms, to provide emergency contraception (EC) to survivors of sexual assault upon request.  “This bill passed overwhelmingly with bi-partisan support and was signed into law by then-Gov. Jodi Rell,” Miron said.  “In Connecticut, there is widespread support for this law and the values it reflects. 

Studies show EC is 95 percent effective in preventing pregnancy when taken within the first 24 hours after an assault.  “Linda McMahon clearly doesn’t appreciate that time is of the essence and sending a woman to another hospital to obtain EC reduces the efficacy of the medication,” Miron said.

Miron noted this is the latest in a growing trend of anti-women positions articulated by Linda McMahon.

###

NARAL Pro-Choice Connecticut is the leading grassroots pro‑choice advocacy organization in Connecticut. NARAL Pro‑Choice Connecticut works to protect every woman’s right to access the full range of reproductive health options, including preventing unintended pregnancy, bearing healthy children, and choosing legal abortion.

MI SENOS, MI SALUD, MI VIDA - Wednesday 10/10/12

MY BREASTS, MY HEALTH, MY LIFE EVENT
(MI SENOS, MI SALUD, MI VIDA)
CASA LINDA148 Sylvan Avenue, New Haven
OCTOBER 10, 2012
11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

In observance of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Agency on Aging of South Central Connecticut (AASCC), in collaboration with CancerCare and Project HOPE (Hispanic Outreach Program for Elders), will be holding a breast health event for women, My Breasts, My Health, My Life(Mi Senos, Mi Salud, Mi Vida); at Casa Linda, 148 Sylvan Avenue, New Haven, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Wednesday, October 10.

The event will be conducted in Spanish to serve monolingual and bilingual Latinas/Hispanic women. Diana Velez, RN, Women’s Health Services, Metropolitan Hospital (HHC) NYC; will discuss keywords and phrases to help women understand terms used in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. Zoraida Velazquez, Program Liaison, Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP); will discuss nutrition as a preventative measure. Kathy Clemens, RN, Breast Care Coordinator; and Tina Rodriguez, Outreach Educator, MidState Medical Center, who have provided a breast cancer support group for Spanish-speaking women since 2003, will facilitate a question and answer session at the end of the event.

This event requires registration. For additional information and to register for the event, please contact the AASCC Bilingual Community Educator at (203) 785-8533, Ext. 3157 or the CancerCare Latina Outreach Worker at (203) 663-2188.

NARAL PAC Endorses Chris Murphy for Senate

Press Release - Reproduced in Full, Links added.

NARAL Pro-Choice America PAC
Endorses Rep. Chris Murphy for U.S. Senate

The organization fights to add more pro-choice voices to the U.S. Senate

Washington, D.C. – Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America announced today that her organization’s political action committee endorsed Rep. Chris Murphy to represent the great state of Connecticut in the U.S. Senate.

 “As the U.S. House of Representatives wages a War on Women, we have relied on the U.S. Senate to be the firewall,” said Keenan. “We must elect pro-choice leaders like Chris Murphy to the Senate so that he can help defend the values of freedom and privacy shared by Connecticut’s women and families. We are proud to support his candidacy and will make sure our Connecticut members know that defeating Linda McMahon is essential to protecting the full range of women’s reproductive health choices.”

"Fighting for reproductive choice has always been at the center of my public service,” said Murphy.  “I started out my career defeating the state legislature's leading anti-choice voices, and now I'm proud to stand strong for choice in Washington.  As national Republicans wage an unprecedented assault on choice, birth control, and women's health, it's more important than ever that we send strong pro-choice leaders to Congress.  My wife Cathy and I have been active members of the Connecticut pro-choice movement for years, and I am so pleased and humbled to have NARAL Pro-Choice America in my corner as I head into this Senate election.”

Keenan said NARAL Pro-Choice America PAC has given the maximum contribution of $10,000 to the campaign and will work with Christian Miron, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Connecticut, to organize activists and provide on-the-ground support for Chris Murphy’s campaign.

Miron praised the endorsement and said Murphy would build on his record as an effective leader for reproductive rights. 

"Chris Murphy is a champion for women's reproductive choice," Miron said. "As a member of the House, Chris has shown a steadfast commitment to reproductive health and rights. NARAL Pro-Choice Connecticut holds Chris Murphy in the highest esteem and we are proud that NARAL Pro-Choice America PAC has endorsed his candidacy."

 ###

NARALPro-Choice Connecticut is the leading grassroots pro‑choice advocacy organization in Connecticut. NARAL Pro‑Choice Connecticut works to protect every woman’s right to access the full range of reproductive health options, including preventing unintended pregnancy, bearing healthy children, and choosing legal abortion.

In Case You Missed It: from DailyKos

Unite Against the War on Women

[...]
New Group Poised to Challenge “War on Women”
• Virginia legislators recently tried to enact an invasive, mandatory “trans-vaginal ultrasound” measure for women seeking abortions.
• In Mississippi, lawmakers took a cue from Virginia and are now pushing the same type of regressive, restrictive legislation.
• Texas Governor, Rick Perry, has decided to deny funding to Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers under the Texas Women’s Health Program.
• Some presidential candidates want to end Medicaid funding and turn it into state-by-state bloc grants.
• Personhood legislation and amendments are being actively pushed through state legislatures in attempts to criminalize contraception and family planning.
• State laws regarding voter registration designed to suppress voter turnout especially among poor women, seniors and minorities are already in place and spreading.

A new and growing movement called Unite Against The War On Women is poised to push back on measures like this, with protest marches and rallies across the country on Saturday, April 28.

Join us - Saturday, April 28th as we say NO WAY/NO HOW to these attempts to dictate our personal decisions, our bodies, our health choices, and our families.

The newly-minted organization has garnered almost 20,000 members nationally in less than two weeks in the wake of of Virginia’s “trans-vaginal ultrasound” bill and other pending legislation.

JOIN US - SHARE - PASS THE WORD - WE WILL NOT BE SILENT

 ~ * ~ * ~ *  ~ * ~ * ~ *  ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Questions? send an email to unitewomenconnecticut@gmail.com    or    ctFreeRadicals@gmail.com  
sign up at WeAreWomenMarch.net

In A Nutshell: The War against Women is about more than Reproductive Rights

h/t Christine Bartlett-Josie via facebook