I don't often get all riled up about political issues, but the whole uproar about access to women's healthcare and changes to insurance in regards to birth control availability has really gotten me frustrated with the way that women are viewed and I believe it's actually hurting us as women. I chose to write about this topic on this blog because, while it has very little to do with children, babies, and raising them, it does have to do with women as reproductive beings which leads to children, babies and raising them. Of course, since it is a personal blog, I feel the need to express my personal views on the subject. =)
People everywhere are getting worked up about the access women have to "healthcare," a euphemism that is commonly being used as a substitute for "birth control." While it seems that there weren't very many people upset about the inconsistent coverage of birth control before, since the mandatory changes to national standards of insurance coverage, the topic is huge. Now women and men alike are very opinionated about the topic, most of the loudest individuals are those insisting that coverage of birth control is a women's health issue and every woman needs access to be able to have control over her body and reproductive health, nay, her health in general. Despite the fact that the changes actually support this view, the loudest arguments reiterate how important it is.
I find the whole situation demeaning and rather than empowering women, I feel it does far more to suppress them. I can't deny the large number of women that use chemical or other pharmaceutical means to regulate periods and prevent pregnancies. I also don't understand why the push for coverage existed when millions of women have free access to contraceptives through government assistance programs. As far as I'm aware, the lack of coverage never was a concern - until coverage became mandatory. Now, that doesn't make much sense, does it.
But I said that it was demeaning and suppressive. How on earth can that be? Many of the arguments that are pro-coverage state ideas such as "women can control their reproduction/reproductive health," "it's empowering for women to be able to decide if/when they want to conceive," "it's a necessary part of life that all women need access to," etc. As I understand it, all of these arguments mean that by controlling if and when women start or add to their family, they are free to explore other opportunities, be it career, vocation, hobbies, whatever. Women can hold a job without being "tied down," they have freedom (another argument I've heard) and can participate in society as productive members. Again, how is this suppressive? It sounds liberating.
The fact is, our society is terrible about educating women about how their bodies work and has somehow convinced women that the only way they can control their reproductive health is by pharmaceutical intervention. To a certain extent, women aren't really to blame, they aren't taught about how their bodies work in terms of reproduction (with the exception of the most basic of concepts - why they bleed, how often, and that babies come from sex) because the people that are supposed to teach them don't know how reproduction works. Wait, what? Right. Female reproduction is presented in a cookie cutter format - anything that doesn't fit is fixed by pharmaceutical intervention. The problem is that if women actually understood what is going on with their bodies, they would realize that no fix is necessary in many of these cases because variation is normal. They are suppressed by the belief that perfect cycles are mandatory for reproductive health and therefore, they must be fixed. They are not given adequate education and they don't even know it.
So many people believe that women can't function without pharmaceutical intervention in regards to their reproductive health because the alternative is either being completely at the mercy of "luck" or so insanely time consuming and complicated that they are bound by charts and paperwork. A pill or IUD will just "fix" it and make everything predictable and easy. Here is where it is again suppressive. The belief that the only way that women can function as a productive member of society (and on the same level as men) is by artificial means, because the alternative is too volatile and unpredictable and therefore distracting or disruptive to the maintenance of careers - because a pregnancy means leaving work if even for a short time. Women believe they must implement intervention in order to control their bodies, which is in fact, tying them down - all while they believe differently. They are trapped by the "need" for these tools, because to them, the alternative is too uncertain.
So, all the while, women think they are controlling their reproductive health when in reality, they are being controlled by societal pressures, pressure and advertising from pharmaceutical companies, and lack of education. As a result, many women find that controlling their reproductive health actually can end up suppressing, limiting, or damaging it. Sometimes permanently.
So, what is the alternative? Take charge (there is an actual book entitled "Taking Charge of Your Fertility"). Natural Family Planning (NFP) training or a selection of in-depth books on reproductive health can teach women how the body works, how to monitor, and how to respond appropriately according to what they want in their life. The are educated to detect variances, what they mean, and how to respond. As a result, they aren't controlling their reproductive health, they are learning about it and how it fits in with their current life. The workings of the female body no longer are seen as a burden that is getting in the way of life, but as an adjunct to a healthy personal and family life. Women who know their body and how it works are educated and can make better (and faster) decisions about their life, career, and family without the (often harmful) side effects of intervention. This elevates women, rather than leaving them convinced that the only way they can go about life is by being tied to a pill (or other form of intervention). Sure, this education takes some time and attention - but most things in life that are worth anything do. It isn't a matter of control, it's a matter of embracing the female body and how truly amazing and awe-inspiring it is. And that, is truly empowering.
It is not a need or a women's right issue to have birth control provided. It is a need and a women's right issue to have the education provided.
