Mums saying NO to morning after pill shame

FeministCat apologies, I was confused by the what you were asking as the previous poster didn't mention misoprostol.

Mifepristone is a slightly different class of medication (same class as ulipristal that is in EllaOne) that isn't used as EC.

Yes, that was my very point. I know what the difference is, that is why I explained what MAP is and asked what the poster I was responding to was referring to.

Viagra gets abused doesn't it? I read some men slip it to their partners in the hope it makes them frisky

I have never needed the MAP but I've had medication reviews with pharmacists who've been quite bossy. Maybe more training is needed.

I would guess that unlike Viagra it could be abused by someone who is obtaining it for someone who is abused/trafficked/very underage.

So can plenty of other drugs - this one would be at least beneficial for that abused woman.

It's interesting reading that the side-effects I had were rare (horrible - I felt sick for days, my periods didn't settle for 3 months). Perhaps that's why I don't understand this idea that women would abuse it, because I can't imagine anyone's going to go through taking it just to avoid standard contraception.

It's not absurd. Of course it reduces the risk of ectopics if it reduces pregnancy ffs. It reduces the chance of miscarriage and still born with that logic too.

The issue is that for those women with risk factors caution must be taken. Therefore is isn't completely safe like you we saying. My issue was you making dangerous claims that can be easily refuted. If we want MAP to be more accessible we need to avoid untruths that can make us look stupid when they're easily refuted.

What an absurd thing to say.
Here you go.
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3903002/

That's like saying MAP reduces child abuse because it reduces children ffs.

If a woman has a higher risk factor for ectopic pregnancy MAP should be used with caution. I'm not arguing about this, it takes literally 2 seconds to find resources on this. It is dangerous for people to come out with comments like there are no circumstances when levonelle is unsafe when it just isn't true and to be honest is so easily reputable it makes arguments for easier access easier to attack and demean.

Sorry but it is widely accepted now that map reduces the risk of ectopic pregnancy by reducing the risk of pregnancy. Map is far safer with far fewer contraindications than many things in the shelf, and the risk of pregnancy is a far greater risk for women with certain health conditions. This is why it is on the shelf in many countries and available to buy without consultation.

For example, the risk of ectopic pregnancy in some women, the risk of ciclosporin toxity if taken with MAP.

There's no absolute contraindications but there are situations in which we need to be cautious. They does not mean 'there are no situations in which it is unsafe'

there are no circumstances in which levonelle is unsafe

I'm sorry but noone should say this about ANY drug especially when it's false. I completely understand about people wanting it to be more freely available but it's not good to purposely ignore potential risks.

This is why it needs to be on the shelf. There are no circumstances where Levonelle is unsafe, merely Ed it may be less effective eg if you are taking epilepsy meds or it is more than 72 hours, but if you are pregnant it can’t affect that. It just doesn’t need gatekeeping in this way and it puts women off using it.

It's free round here, I've taken it twice and fully expected to pay but was told not to worry

And FWIW I've only had it twice in my life (I'm 30) both times it was because of condom splitting and I was in long term relationships..... so I do not for the life of me see why they had to have such a stern chat with me like I was some kind of raging idiot.
I dont like using hormonal contraception long term and I felt massively judged for that...they really really tried quite aggressively to get me to make an appointment to have an IUD and I even left with a box of contraceptive pills that I was never going to take just to shut them up and get out of there.

Not that I agree with being able to buy viagra over the counter (it can be scary stuff!), I will say that you can't 'just buy it' either. It can only be sold to the patient (not their representative) after a consultation with the pharmacist to make sure they're suitable. If it's ok they're given a slip that they can show at pharmacies to buy it without the consultation for the next 6 months (this slip can't be given to their representative still) until they're re-assessed for suitability.

Whilst they're not questioned every time, I don't think it's quite the same as being questioned for EC. Even with the same person, circumstances surrounding the unprotected sex can mean what was suitable previously may not be this time around.

I've had it twice. Once in the sexual health clinic for free and once paid for it in boots.
Both times I was asked questions. The clinic was awful, they really gave me a stern talking to and even commented on some old self harm scars I had... they tried to push the coil on me, which I didnt want.. I felt like a criminal.
The pharmacist in boots was really lovely. He just took me in the consultation room, asked me when my last period was and why I wanted the map. He just accepted my answers and then sold it to me. No banging on like the world was ending. It was deffo worth 20 quid to avoid all that awful chat.

FeministCat levonorgestrel is a type of synthetic progestogen that is indeed used for birth control and emergency contraception. Mifepristone is a slightly different class of medication (same class as ulipristal that is in EllaOne) that isn't used as EC.

I've thankfully never felt judged when getting the MAP. I do wish it was more accessible for free though. It's a shame sexual health clinic provision has been decimated.

It's an interesting subject. See, buying it off the shelf sounds good but the client consultation can also be really important. Pharmacists have to undertake training (online and face to face in our area) to ensure that the consultation results in the appropriate drug being prescribed, any safeguarding concerns are addressed and clients can be signposted to other services eg STI testing or a SH clinic for the copper coil instead. If it's over the counter, I could easily see a scenario where people buy Levonelle, but actually need a coil or ellaOne to have the best chance of preventing pregnancy. Unless you have an algorithm on the wall in the pharmacy for people to work through, how would clients know which they need?

It's impossible to square that risk with the decision to either make pregnancy an even bigger risk for anyone in the situation you suggest, or with the ObGyn recommendation that it should be as ubiquitous as paracetamol in every bathroom cabinet.

Heck, for that matter, paracetamol is significantly more dangerous, and the consequences of not having emergency contraception easily available are significantly worse than not having paracetamol.

So the MAP is comparable with addictive street drugs like methodone? And this whole swallow it in front of me ethos is applied with lots of drugs, that compare with the MAP? Men frequently have to step into the booth to swallow their Viagra etc?

I would guess that unlike Viagra it could be abused by someone who is obtaining it for someone who is abused/trafficked/very underage.

*mimics progesterone

MorrisZapp

The MAP is not really “potent” medicine in the sense it is higher dose birth control, the effective incredient is a progestin (mimics porgesterone) found in many combined oral birth control pills, in the Mirena IUD, and implant birth control. Indeed if you have a birth control pill pack using it as an ingredient in some cases it can be taken in certain doses as MAP.

Levonorgestrel is a hormonal medication which is used in a number of birth control methods. In pill form, sold under the brand name Plan B among others, it is useful within 120 hours as emergency birth control. It becomes less effective the longer after sex and only works before pregnancy has occurred

Are you thinking of Mifepristone/Misoprostal? That is the drug used for a medical abortion; not the same thing at all.

This area is covered by UK Department of Health.

Sexual health charities have put together a Just Say Non campaign website here: www.justsaynon.org.uk/

Relates to this:
www.bpas.org/about-our-charity/press-office/press-releases/emergency-contraception-needs-urgent-review/

(the whole thing on this link is absolutely eye opening but I pasted some of it below)

Emergency Contraception needs urgent review
29 November 2016

Emergency contraception must be reclassified and made available to buy straight from the shop shelf, bpas urges

Women in the UK pay up to £30 for the most basic form of emergency contraception (EC), up to 5 times more than in other European countries
One reason for the high price is the mandatory yet unnecessary and embarrassing consultation women must endure before being sold EC, which is kept firmly behind the counter
As sexual health services providing free EC face cuts, more women will have no choice but to purchase EC to avoid unplanned pregnancy
The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (bpas) believes EC should be reclassified as a General Sales List drug to enable it to be sold straight off the shelf without consultation, at a price women can afford
#justsaynon campaign launched today highlights the outrageously high price of EC in the UK compared to France and calls on women to reject what is the ultimate sexist surcharge
It is now 15 years since the progestogen-only emergency contraceptive Levonelle One Step (now also sold as Boots Emergency Contraceptive and Consilient) was first made available to women to buy from behind the counter in pharmacies after a consultation with a pharmacist. The price was deliberately inflated and a mandatory consultation introduced, apparently to prevent women from using it as a regular method of contraception. Since its introduction, the use of EC in the UK has barely changed and remains low,[1] despite the fact that most women rely on user-dependent methods such as condoms and daily pills and should feel able to use EC when these methods fail or are forgotten.

Research has found that around one third of British women have had unprotected sex in the last 12 months, and the majority (67%) did not use EC.[2] bpas regularly sees women experiencing unplanned pregnancy who were deterred from seeking EC because of the obstacles to access, including the price. bpas is calling for EC to be reclassified as a General Sales List medication so it can be placed on pharmacy selves for women to buy without consultation.

12 years ago I went to a large London boots for MAP and they had run out! Had to wait until after work to find another.
That pharmacist gave me Levonelle which didn't work (i'm happy to say DD now 11 😄).
They don't really know how effective Levonelle is tbh but I wish this was made clearer to women at point of sale.
Refusing to sell it on religious grounds is horrific.

*EC as a whole, which MAP (which is being discussed here) is just one type