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Vaidah Mashangwa
Today a wide variety of safe, reliable birth control methods are available to the general populace. These vary from the pill, the condom, intrauterine devices (IUD’s) which include the coils, loops, rings, spermicides, diaphragm’s, sponges and so on. When couples decide to use one method in preference to another, they want complete assurance that it will safeguard them from unwanted pregnancies. After all parenthood should begin with planning.
It should be borne in mind too that having several children at short intervals increases the chances of premature birth, infectious diseases and death of the mother or baby. Such risks can be avoided by planning fewer children at longer intervals. This allows too for pacing financial demands of parenthood.
Besides the abundance of family planning methods available, it is estimated that 54 percent of pregnancies worldwide are not planned. At times this places a great burden on governments as they may be forced to subsidise their schooling and general welfare.
While couples can freely decide on the number of children they want, most people are reluctant to have one child and prefer to have at least two. There is also a belief that a single child is spoiled, selfish and lonely yet data suggest that they are bright, happy and socially skilled.
In China for example, the one-child family is strictly encouraged and has resulted in the lower birth rates. In the United States the two-child family is the most preferred.
At times people are forced to have more children in search of a child of the opposite sex. In most African countries men still prefer boys to girls though research shows that it is easier to raise girls than boys as boys can be arrogant and aggressive. In most cases too, men prefer more children and a bigger family than women.
At times women fall pregnant due to pressure from their husbands. It is still not clear whether husbands support and accompany their wives during the prenatal visits to clinics and during labour and delivery of the baby.
Larger families though have complex interactional patterns and values. In a one-child family for example, four interpersonal relationships are possible that is, mother-father, mother-child, father-child and father-mother-child. In a family of four, 11 relationships exist, in a family of five, 26 and in a family of six, 57 relationships are possible.
This means that the larger the family the more interaction and support from family members in future as they value co-operation, harmony and sharing.
Depending though with the upbringing, at times large families can also be characterised by conflict, anger and lack of co-operation and harmony. It is easier for smaller families to be more independent and they value their own personal development.
The age of the mother is to a larger extent related to the baby’s birth weight and risks to the baby’s life. A higher proportion of babies born to older mothers die or have Down’s Syndrome. This is particularly for women who become pregnant after the age of 40. Most physicians recommend amniocentesis to detect the presence of any abnormalities.
The father’s age is also important when deciding when to have children. Down’s Syndrome is also associated with increased paternal age. The other abnormalities related to the father’s age include height, vision and heart abnormalities, facial and limb deformities and bony growth. So it is not the mothers’ age that matters only but both the maternal and paternal age is important in child bearing.
Instead of couples using a sheath or condom every time they have intercourse or a woman having to take a pill each day, more and more couples are resorting to irreversible contraception or sterilisation.
While most people think that that it involves the removal of the testes or ovaries, it does not.
The irreversible operations are termed vasectomy for the man and tubectomy for the woman. Both operations require the use of anaesthetic.
Vasectomy is easier of the two and most doctors if given a choice might prefer operating on the husband rather than on the wife. Of course tubectomy is not dangerous at all but that more time is spent in the operating theatre and a longer time is required for complete recovery.
Women must not worry as the whole process has been revolutionalised by the use of an instrument called laparoscope.
With the use of this instrument, only two small incisions are made in the patient’s abdominal wall and the patient can be discharged within two or three days.
In India for example more and more couples are relying on the vasectomy as generally the safest, simplest and surest method of family planning. In Zimbabwe though most men are reluctant to participate in family planning and it is women who take the initiative. As a result more than half of the sterilisations are performed on women.
In terms of the vasectomy, the physician makes two incisions on each side of the scrotum so that a small portion of the sperm-carrying ducts can be cut out and tied closed.
This procedure takes about 15 minutes and the man can leave the physician’s office within a short time. It should be clear that a vasectomy does not affect the man’s sexual activity or desire in any way hence men should also get involved in family planning just as women do.
The writer is Vaidah Mashangwa, Provincial Development Officer, Ministry of Women Affairs, Gender and Community Development, Bulawayo Province. She can be contacted on 0772111592 or email [email protected].
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