Birth Control, Who has say in whether or not todays youth gets it? Options

[MissFits]

A Jr. High School is making headlines about giving birth control to it's students (article is here)What is your stance on providing Jr. High students with condoms and birth control? Should it only be the parents responsibility?

[*Steven*]

OH MAI GOD SOMETHING THAT STOPS THE HOMUNCULUS FROM FORMING! SINNERS!

[MissFits]

I am on the fence about this. Although I agree with you, Uronacid, I also think that parents and some school figures try to ignore the fact young kids are having sex, and making babies. I think the benefit this would have on underage pregnancies would be phenomenal if the kids didn't need their parents permission.

[RAWRstephishere]

I think the students should be more educated in what can happen if you have sex, not 'heres a condom and birth control and you wont get pregnant.'

[jesusisthebestth...]

i think that giving birth control to middle school aged children is dangerous because we don't really know the side effects of birth control use.

however, i think it is a good idea that we teach our children to practice safe sex at an early age. because if we don't want young children having sex we definitely don't want them having children.

but at the same time, middle school aged children should not be able to get birth control without their parents consent.

[MissFits]

But, where I live, we have a lot of teen pregnancies and I know many Jr. High aged kids that get pregnant because they were to scared to ask their parents for birth control.

Young kids have sex and need protection. Sure, you can say they need to be educated (I agree) but that doesn't mean they are going to use what they learn to protect themselves.

In the state of Ohio you can get birth control without your parents permission at any Planned Parenthood. If they also had it at school I think that would be really useful.

[Elba]

Kids are not going to go up to their parents and ask for bc pills or condoms (at least the majority isn't), so I really don't think it is, or should be, up to the parents whether or no their kids are receiving contraceptives. Your children are going to be having sex regardless. I have a nephew who's in middle school and I would much rather he be able to get condoms in case he needs them instead of being too scared to ask his mom. Although I wouldn't be okay with him having sex so young, it's his decision and I'd rather not see him get some little girl pregnant.

[brooklyneast05]

i'm sort of torn on the issue. it depends what we're talking about. i think it's 100% fine for them to give out condoms without the parents consent, but idk about birth control pills. if i was a father, of course i wouldn't want my daughter getting pregnant, however i also don't want her taking anything like that without me knowing. if she was to experience side effects, i'd want to know what was causing them.

and i'm not some expert on birth control pills so..
what if some of the girls are already pregnant but aren't aware of it, and start taking birth control. does that cause problems or something?

[MissFits]

Usually you don't start birth control until the Sunday after you have your period.

[*Steven*]

Also, giving them pills encourages it. Not to say it's a bad thing, but do we need more sluts in middle school?

[Comptine]

I think handing out condoms is perfectly fine but birth control pills are different though. They are hormones and in junior high, some girls haven't went through puberty so the birth control pills might negatively effect them: prematurely making them developing or screwing up their periods when they haven't even have them.

I think the school is taking a very progressive step by starting sexual education so early. Many people think parents are teaching their kids but most of the time, it's not something that's mentioned and thoroughly discussed in a parent-kid relationship.

^ Having pills does not encourage sex. Many girls use birth control to regulate their periods or help them with puberty. Just because they have something that can let women have sex without getting pregnant doesn't mean they'll actually use it like that.

[cyb3r0ptik]

my mom put me on birth control at 15 years old.
and you know what?
it was one of the BEST decisions she'd made for me.

i know that there are several religions that condemn BC, and for the most part, those that are active in those religions don't even need BC because they're not sexually active.

the biggest problem with today's youth isn't lack of knowledge. most high school students know by looking around that having unprotected sex can result in kids. it's the fact of invincibility.
Simply put: Teenagers don't think it can happen to THEM. Their friends, peers, friends of friends, sure. But not to THEM.
and if it does happen, they don't think it can happen AGAIN.

You can't do anything to stop kids from having sex, but I think it's a damn good idea to provide them with the steps AND the advantage of taking precautions if they choose to have sex.

[brooklyneast05]

^ so u are for or against the school giving birth control pills to ur daughter without u knowing it?

[MissFits]

^Parents sign a form allowing their children permission to use the schools facility. If they don't sign the form, their kids don't get birth control.

So, parents know it's a possibility that their kids are getting birth control. If they are really against it, they can opt to not sign the forms.

[brooklyneast05]

eh
i duno, i still don't really think i'm for that. i'd just wanna be in charge of that stuff myself. but i don't think my children would ever have the problem. my parents have been stuffing condoms in my pockets since i was like 13 and i plan on doing the same.

[jesusisthebestth...]

i'm just not so sure that young girls between the ages of 11 and 15 are old enough to decide that they need BC pills for themselves, it's a life changing decision...just like drinking alcohol or smoking cigarettes, both of which require an ID...so why shouldn't something as important as BC be regulated too? at least by a parent, guardian or adult over the age of 18 who has the child's best interests at heart, like a counselor or something

[Elba]

i'm just not so sure that young girls between the ages of 11 and 15 are old enough to decide that they need BC pills for themselves, it's a life changing decision...just like drinking alcohol or smoking cigarettes, both of which require an ID...so why shouldn't something as important as BC be regulated too? at least by a parent, guardian or adult over the age of 18 who has the child's best interests at heart, like a counselor or something

So they don't get pregnant... Are you going to deny someone birth control because you don't think they can decide for themselves if they need it?

If they're having sex, THEY NEED IT. Same, if they're planning on having sex.

[xtwitchyx]

I think the students should be more educated in what can happen if you have sex, not 'heres a condom and birth control and you wont get pregnant.'

I agree with you on that. Not only that, but condoms and bc aren't 100% affective. So if the school would happen to hand out one of the two, something could go wrong and a student could end up pregnant anyway. Then the parents would have to know. Which is why it would be a good diea that these schools tell the parents about what they are doing. If the paraent agrees with it or not, they should still know just in case something does go wrong. I also thin kthat parents should take on more of a role to paying attention to what their kids are doing. That would help a little too. If they really don't want schools stepping in, they should be up for doing their part on the issue. It shouldn't just be up to the kids to come to their parents with the issue.

[sadolakced acid]

I think the students should be more educated in what can happen if you have sex, not 'heres a condom and birth control and you wont get pregnant.'

which is only marginally better than "condoms suck birth control sucks if you have sex before you're married you will get AIDS and you will die"

they taught me every STD, told me condoms did shit to protect against them, and that was that.

oh, the lies.

[xtwitchyx]

which is only marginally better than "condoms suck birth control sucks if you have sex before you're married you will get AIDS and you will die"

they taught me every STD, told me condoms did shit to protect against them, and that was that.

oh, the lies.

Well they shouldn't be lying like that. That's stupid. Nobody learns anything then. They could explain that condoms do prevent an STD. They could explain a lot without having to be morons about it. You can still tell someone not to do something and still give them information about what prevents what. Some kids will listen and others won't, but at least they would be maybe a little wiser.

[jesusisthebestth...]

So they don't get pregnant... Are you going to deny someone birth control because you don't think they can decide for themselves if they need it?

If they're having sex, THEY NEED IT. Same, if they're planning on having sex.

there is something wrong with society if a middle school aged girl, which is anywhere from 11 to 15 in some states, can get birth control without the consent of her mother or father. that's that.

im not saying that they don't need it. im saying they should be required to have the consent of a parent, guardian or adult over the age of 18 who has the child's best interest at heart.

[brooklyneast05]

im not saying that they don't need it. im saying they should be required to have the consent of a parent, guardian or adult over the age of 18 who has the child's best interest at heart.

yea but if they have the childs best interests at heart then they are going to agree to it anyway, because their best interest is not to get pregnant

but yea, in general i'd want to know what my kid was taking while they're taking it.

[jesusisthebestth...]

yea but if they have the childs best interests at heart then they are going to agree to it anyway, because their best interest is not to get pregnant

but yea, in general i'd want to know what my kid was taking while they're taking it.

im not walking around with blinders on. i know that there are young children having sex. any adult should work overtime to discourage a young child from having sex. that's what should be done. we shouldn't have this debate because young children shouldn't have sex. when i was in middle school i was not thinking about sex. the problem is that there are young children who are. instead of handing out birth control, adults with authority should hand out knowledge.

[brooklyneast05]

im not walking around with blinders on. i know that there are young children having sex. any adult should work overtime to discourage a young child from having sex. that's what should be done. we shouldn't have this debate because young children shouldn't have sex. when i was in middle school i was not thinking about sex. the problem is that there are young children who are. instead of handing out birth control, adults with authority should hand out knowledge.

yes yes i agree 100%

HOWEVER
what should be done isn't what is being done
and there's no reason for us to think that what should be done is going to magically start being done.

im so confused
im arguing both sides here
ok im for giving out condoms, im not for giving out pills without consent. even if it was signing something at the beginning of the year saying that i give them permission to hand it out if my kid asks, im still not for that just because i wanna know WHEN my kid is taking it.

[*CowerPointyObjects*]

I'm okay with giving out condoms, because it's promoting safe sex, and denying them to kids is of course not going to stop them having sex. Birth control pills, however, should most definitely not be given out with parental permission. It really shouldn't even just be given out; a prescription is required for it for a reason. Birth control has very possible negative side effects, so they should be monitored, especially at that age. Plus, the pill isn't exactly a one size fits all kind of thing. I have plenty of 18 and 19 year old friends who are having to go off the pill after just a few months due to some of the side effects (weight gain or blood clotting, mainly). But to give out birth control pills without sufficient medical examination- let alone without parental permission- would not be encouraging responsible sex at all.