Just as the bulge of the pregnant abdomen proclaims that sexual activity has taken place, patients who attend a doctor for contraceptive advice reveal that hey are sexually active or wish to become so. An intensely private matter becomes one of public knowledge and concern. It is not surprising that people find it difficult to acknowledge that they are behaving in a way which may require contraception. Often obtaining birth control advice can seem like an assault course. First finding out where to obtain it, then making an appointment (and having to wait for it – lust and love are impatient emotions), reaching the venue, and then revealing their need to so many people – the receptionist, the nurse, the doctor and perhaps the pharmacist too. It is amazing that some manage to surmount all the hurdles and obtain what they require.
It needs to be realized, too, that patients do not want to use contraceptives at all – nobody looks forward in keen anticipation to using the chosen method – so that a contraceptive method which affects the enjoyment of sexual behaviour may be discontinued. As Robert Snowden said in the foreword ‘Contraception is not normally viewed by users in an objective clinical manner but within the context of an erotic and emotional experience’.
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