To be so annoyed with bloody paternalistic NHS

Frankly, I'd be surprised if a suit against the NHS was successful if the doctor has fully informed a woman of all the risks and made sure she understands them, and that if she intends to have sex with anyone other than her sterilised husband she will need to use a highly effective contraceptive method herself. But then I am not a lawyer!

Really though any form of contraception could fail. Would a woman be entitled to sue because her tubal ligation failed and she got pregnant while on tetarogenic medication?

At a certain point, informed consent along with some form of reliable contraceptive needs to be enough. It's sexist to require women to jump through hoops and undergo invasive procedures entirely unnecessarily.

@Naws The answer is no. Because I would have been made aware of the risks of taking HRT - increased risk of breast cancer etc. So why doesn't the same apply here?

Dunno, you'll have to ask them.

Yanbu, it's revoltingly paternalistic, and the scolds on here have truly drunk the NHS koolaid. If course you should be treated as the responsible adult you are.

@Naws Could I sue my GP if I developed breast cancer if I started HRT?

Right, so the doctors are just assuming that she's going to have an affair, and in doing so, won't take any contraceptive precautions despite being very well informed of the risks.

No, but you know this.

I'm not quite sure why you'd make that up?

No-one is assuming anything, they're simply trying to prevent themselves from being sued.

But I guess you know that too.

It's up to the GP to make the decision to not leave themselves wide open to being sued.

Right, so the doctors are just assuming that she's going to have an affair, and in doing so, won't take any contraceptive precautions despite being very well informed of the risks.

According to the guidelines, having a female sexual partner is considered good enough as 'contraception'...but what if the woman is bisexual, and has an affair with a man? What if a woman's IUD comes out and she doesn't realise until too late? What if her tubal ligation fails? There is no guaranteed 'no-fail' method of contraception aside from hysterectomy or menopause.

At a certain point, with all warnings given and forms signed acknowledging the patient is aware of the risks, doctors need to treat women as though they're not total imbeciles who will leap straight onto the nearest penis and impregnate themselves. It's insulting.

@Naws Not up to her GP to make the decision for her though; just point out the risk if she was to (cheat and) get pregnant. The OP is a grown woman, and can easily avoid pregnancy in this scenario. The GP is treating the OP as if she is stupid.

Yeah because no married person has ever had sex with someone else 🙄

Utterly ridiculous. Her husband has had a vasectomy - she is not going to get pregnant! The likelihood is absolutely miniscule.

She has been given the healthcare she is entitled to.

She's not happy that the waiting list at the hospital is so long to see a Specialist. Not sure how a complaint about the GP will improve the waiting list.

No it's because there have been multiple.court cases regarding this.

Lots of of ladies have had the risks explained to them. But later sued their doctors.

and now the guidelines have changed.

this information a out birth risks has been known for decades. And ladies on the medication have been told about the risks for decades but the doctors were still sued.

If there is court cases about the other situations you described then the same risks would be highlighted.

You cant complain now the rules have changed.

Having had laparoscopic surgery before (albeit not for tubal ligation), it's still a major surgery that carries risk, can be very painful in the aftermath (I had agonising shoulder pains for nearly 48 hours afterwards thanks to the gas used to inflate the abdomen being trapped post-surgery), the incisions still take time to heal and can get infected, and it's massively more invasive and risky than vasectomy. It's great for those who want it, but it's really not a comparable alternative to less invasive contraceptive methods.

There are new studies and medication apart from triptans so worth getting seen by a neurologist.

I had to pay privately as the waiting list was 16 months and I was barely able to function, so it was money well spent.
I've been on candesartan for almost a year, which has reduced the severity and frequency of the migraines in the last few months (took a while to increase the dose to 16mg).
I've still been having 2-3 migraines a week so recently started on rimegepant. It's only been a few weeks but hopeful.

GPs haven't been much help for me at all I'm afraid.

Agree that your circumstances shouldn't mean you can't have the meds. Very frustrating for you.

Just wanted to say that having tubes tied is a day case procedure using keyhole surgery with short recovery time. I'm not suggesting this as an option for you, but it could be an option for others.

You wouldn’t have got anything as a man that is not an approved medication, so you are being VVU. And “these people?” Very unpleasant and utterly high handed.

Maybe you need to ask to go on the pill so your medical notes say you are taking contraception. Don’t take them. And get the migraine medication prescribed. The GP saying you can’t be on the pill after age 37 is talking bollocks. I’m 45 at every annual pill check up I ask the GP (see a different one each time at my practise) and they say there is absolutely no evidence to say it is dangerous after a certain age (assuming you’re not overweight, not a smoker etc).

Ridiculous. Sorry to hear this Op

Conversely, at the age of 59 I'm having to fight not to have a hysterectomy (there's nothing wrong with my womb) and try to get access to the less invasive, equally effective, but longer term treatment given to women of child-bearing age. I'm sure the attitude is I don't need it any longer so I should just do what's easiest for the NHS. Nope.

Having read the pregnancy prevention programme, and considering male sterilisation is considered highly effective and suitable on this site, I'm not sure why OP's only sexual partner having had a vasectomy isn't good enough. Why is it any different to her tubes having been tied, or her only having female sexual partners?

I’ve shared several links - The OP would need to be on a pregnancy prevention programme (highly effective contraception) and have an annual risk assessment.

Well it’s a relief you aren’t the decision maker given the damage these drugs have caused.

I'm sorry, OP, that's ridiculous, and so frustrating. I don't have migraines but did smoke in my 20s (no other risk factors though), and at the age of 38 my GP dissuaded me from going (back) on the combined contraceptive pill after years off it, as she said at my age it was a risk!

What on earth are women in your situation who can't use hormonal contraception, and who find the copper coil gives them untenably heavy periods, supposed to do? Have major surgery and undergo the risks of general anesthesia to have your tubes tied?? And that's hardly foolproof! It has a failure of 3 to 5% in some studies! In fact, anything and everything can fail, especially the pill. So how on earth is a vasectomy not enough? And what about saying you use a diaphragm (so old-fashioned) or condoms?

Surely they should just have a requirement to take two-monthly pregnancy tests and ensure you're fully informed and willing to abort, if they're so bloody worried.

Absolutely change your GP, write a letter of complaint about that one and demand the healthcare you're entitled to. That is not acceptable