How confident are you in the advice that you don't need contraception after 55?

[Gelatibon]

GP (and written NHS advice) says it's not required, even if you're still having some periods, after 55th birthday...

I know pregnancy is unlikely and a successful one even less so, but....

You can push all you like but if hormonal contraception is unlicensed or contraindicated over 55 you’re not entitled to it.

By all means have a discussion with your health care provider but “I want it” isn’t a reason to get it.

I think the chance is so low that it’s a sound cut off point as general medical guidance. I imagine that the small minority of women whose periods are still relatively regular will just naturally choose to take precautions if they personally think the risk is too great. There’s little about medicine which can work as totally absolutes in all circumstances, some aspects do just come down to making your own decisions about your health.

Well if its unlicensed it obviously isn't going to be prescribed is it 🙈
There are many types of bc out there for the reasons of some not being suitable for some people.

But 'I want' is the whole idea behind autonomy in health care.

Obviously saying I want opiods isn't going to get you what you want, but this is something that is reasonable, and yes they have guidelines but guidelines are not hard restrictions.

My mother in law was telling me she had her very last period in her mid 60's

I was shocked and googled if she could have got pregnant and it said that,no,the egg wouldn't have been viable

It's rare apparently but can happen

Well, twins and triplets so far! 😂

She misunderstood the advice then, because it's over 55, not early fifties.

We can prescribe off licence where appropriate. Saying “I want it even though I don’t need it” isn’t appropriate.

Women don’t get pregnant naturally at 55+. They just don’t.

Your friend had twins at 50. The advice on contraception is that you can stop at 55, not 50. That five years makes a massive difference to the likelihood of conceiving.

It’s already exceptionally rare to have a baby naturally at 50, but it’s much, much rarer to have a baby at 55

Comparing a 50-year-old having a baby to a 55-year-old having a baby is a bit like saying ‘There’s nothing surprising about starting your periods at the age of 5 because I started mine at 10.’ It’s ignoring the fact that five years makes a massive difference in these contexts.

Again: if she’s in her late 50s with a 7-year-old she was well under 55 when she conceived. The advice isn’t to stop contraception at 50. It’s 55. There is a big difference in fertility terms.

I don't think I'd want to take the risk. Low chance isn't zero chance. A miscarriage or abortion is not something I want to go through in my 50's.
52 and still have regular periods. Definitely not a case of not accepting, I would never want a child at this age! I was one and done a long time ago.

I had a prem dc at 43.2...mmc at 45.. Dr told me unlikely I would have another dc... Never used contraception since. Passed an intact foetus around 8 weeks gestation aged 48!!
Shocker..
Never used protection since.. Now 53 with 4 periods a year for the past 2 years....

Yeah, but who wants to run the risk of getting pregnant and having a traumatic miscarriage?

And my GP told me that "over 55" meant 56+.

Yes, that's true, even if it's quite early it's definitely something to be avoided.

I'm 49 this year, had my first at 23 and my second at 37. I've already spent over 25 years raising kids so I'm not taking the bloody chance. I'm definitely still having symptoms of ovulation as well as periods.

Also fairly sure our local Primary school headteacher would cry if he saw me waddling in pregnant to pick up DS from his last day before secondary.

• ring GP for appointment tomorrow

😂

I would have risked it at that age but let others make their own choices . Who cares, really.

😂quick!

My Aunt is an OBGYN with 30+ years experience and the oldest Mum she's known to deliver a naturally conceived full term baby was 48. And that happened once. In 30 years.

I'm 50 & have had 4 periods in the last year. I don't use contraception.

Just my 2 cents.

The other thing is that due to imminent menopause, one might only discover one was pregnant quite late on in the pregnancy, which would be a complete disaster!

I haven’t needed contraception since I was 30 because DH got the snip.

I had a full checkup the other week and my doc said that at 49 I’m showing absolutely no signs of perimenopause. I have regular periods and always notice the ovulatory signifiers as part of my cycle.

I had both my kids in late 30s, fell pregnant first cycle both times. No chance would I risk coming off contraception in the next few years; the last thing I want to have to deal with is a miscarriage or abortion.

Would you rather use contraception or take a small chance of needing an abortion

There’s an utterly astonishing story of a woman here in Berlin who has just given birth to her 10th child - 8 of those in the last 13 years - at the age of 66. And she claims that the conception was entirely natural, without any medical assistance (although she did need a CS for the birth). There was a story in the Irish Times on Wednesday if you want to read about it in English. People here are deeply sceptical about the natural conception (the hospital obviously refused to comment), but there’s no doubt about her current age and the fact that she’s had 8 kids over 50.

I stopped using contraception in my late 40s, I read somewhere the chances of conception were absolutely tiny. I am now 51 and periods
stopped about 16 months ago so definitely no need for me to use it now