M
MamaGeek
Guest
As a spinoff from the Planned Parenthood article thread, I thought I’d start a discussion on how to discuss birth control with our children. If we don’t talk to them about it, they will hear about it eventually from someone else who may not give them a morally sound perspective, so I believe it is imperative to discuss it. The question is when and how. Should we wait until they ask? Should we wait until a certain age, or maturity level? How should the discussion of pregnancy and STDs enter into it?
I haven’t gotten to this point yet (my daughter just turned 1!), but I think a basic approach would be to first talk about what birth control is, its purpose, and why it is immoral. I imagine saying something like “people use artificial means to interfere with the process of life,” then talk about some of the specific means and the moral differences between them, like how both “the pill” and condoms are ABC, but “the pill” may be an abortive as well as contraceptive.
How much detail is appropriate? Popular media has references to condoms all over the place. I remember the first time I saw one was in the movie “Howard the Duck.” I was watching with my parents. I guess they assumed it was a kid-friendly movie, but Howard had a condom in his wallet, and when I asked what it was, my parents had to explain it to me. Should we tell our kids what it looks like and how it’s used? Where is the fine line between instruction and education?
I haven’t gotten to this point yet (my daughter just turned 1!), but I think a basic approach would be to first talk about what birth control is, its purpose, and why it is immoral. I imagine saying something like “people use artificial means to interfere with the process of life,” then talk about some of the specific means and the moral differences between them, like how both “the pill” and condoms are ABC, but “the pill” may be an abortive as well as contraceptive.
How much detail is appropriate? Popular media has references to condoms all over the place. I remember the first time I saw one was in the movie “Howard the Duck.” I was watching with my parents. I guess they assumed it was a kid-friendly movie, but Howard had a condom in his wallet, and when I asked what it was, my parents had to explain it to me. Should we tell our kids what it looks like and how it’s used? Where is the fine line between instruction and education?
