Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Len8]

Was an article in the newspaper about the use of contraceptives by Korean women. Seems as though "women avoid taking pills fearing sterility, discoloration of skin or getting fat. Women are not aware of the importance of contraception. Instead they think lightly of abortions and opt to have loops rather than taking pills" quoted by Hong Soo-gi (Gynecologist). I don't know what a loop is.

Women have shunned the pill largely because of ignorance and misunderstanding, according to experts.

In same article. Korean women are known to have qualms about taking birth control pills, often resorting to abortions should they find themselves with an unwanted pregnancy. About 44 percent of women between 15 and 44 have had more than one abortion.

Was a bit shocked to read that Korean women considered abortion as a viable alternative to using contraceptives, and that knowledge of other forms of contraception is so limited. Medical knowledge in most upwardly mobile countries is open and free, so how come there is so little care here for the proper protection for women. Is this another peice of confucian crap being imposed on the general population by harabogies in their ivory towers?

[BTM]

A 'loop' is an IUD or intra-uterine device. Achieves contraception by constantly irritating the the womb, thus preventing implantation of any fertilized egg.

I remember reading stats about the frequency of abortion here - quite surprisingly high, given the social stigma. There are also thousands of foetuses that are brought to term, unwanted, and once born, through into orphanages and put up for adoption, too. Adoption is still rare here (you know, that whole family bloodline thing), so they most often get adopted, if at all, by families in North America...

[Howard Roark]

That makes me so mad. I have to pay over $20 a month at home for birth control pills and go to the doctor to get the prescription. They can just waltz in off the street and buy them for $5 over the counter. And they won't do it cause they might gain a little weight! Ignorance. You gain a lot more weight when you get pregnant.

[Gord]

[ulsanchris]

From what i remember IUDs don't have the same success rate as the pill. that may be why it was never as popular. Maybe it is also cheaper than the pill.
MY korean gf doesn't want to use the pill because it is unnatural.
NO form of birth control is one hundred percent and your taking a gamble no matter which form you use.

Maybe there would be a less of a problem with abortions if the guys in this country were a bit more willing to wear condems and the girls were more willing to tell there boyfriends to wear them.

[peppermint]

Did a little research and found that IUD's are generally more effective than the pill.

Not sure about the cost, but the pill is very, very cheap here ( less than half the cost of Canada), and I suspect that because you need to see a doctor for an IUD they would be substatially more expensive up front. AS well, the pill would require less embarassment. (No insertion necessary)

Lots of my students believe that the pill is bad for them. Yes, Gord, it might lead to some cancers, but it can help prevent others, and it beats the effects of having an abortion anyway.

[Interested]

[BTM]

My wife was against the pill because of (and you know it's propaganda to scare young women away from promiscuity) the myths about the 'unnaturalness' and 'danger' of taking it, much to my chagrin, as I'm not fond of percy plastic. The mix of hormones these days makes nonsense of that argument, and the only real increased health risk is if the woman taking the pill is a smoker.

Recently, though, a doctor (female, and one of the few around worthy of the name) explained not only the potential health benefits of taking the pill (not including the benefit to my mental health of not reproducing), but also fact that there was a very good chance that her nasty PMS symptoms, most notably extreme pain, might well be controlled by going on the pill. Many women do so for that very reason these days in the west.

So she's on 'Mercilon' (inadvertently humorous brand name) now, which is one of the newest and mildest of the new generation of pills. I am pleased, although after years of aversion training, still terrified of doing the marriage mambo without a condom on...

[rowdie3]

Good topic. My roomate and I were just discussing this as she has had bad reactions to the pill and is wondering what to do. Has anyone ever heard of the depo shot being available in Korea? Also, what is the availability of the morning after pill like should a situation arise?
Thanks for your help!

[maxxx_power]

I thought all a girl had to do was jump up and down after sex.

[justagirl]

I did quite a bit of research on birth control and I'd like to suggest that Depro Vera is not a good choice for women. There are risks in loosing future fertility with this shot.

[The Lemon]

Probably best for women to both consult with their doctors and educate themselves through net research. But I don't read anything convincing in the above quote that injections cause infertility. Instead, I sense this woman is getting hyper about possibly not conceiving, though she and her husband have only been trying for 2 or 3 months. Not much solid to go on there.

Injections may well promote fertility problems, but there is nothing in that quote to support it.

[Saxiif]

I guess a lot of korean women don't use pills because they live with their parents until they get married and its a lot easier to hide a very occasional abortion and a daily pill from them

[ratslash]

what suprises me the mose about that th eop wrote is the the percentage of women that have had abortions! isn't that, like, ridicously high?

[Medic]

I saw those stats too in the Korean Herald. Would have down loaded it onto the thread, but you have to frigging paye to access material.