aroraborealis

It will come as no surprise to exactly no one who knows me that I don't want to have kids. I've fantasized for years about permanent sterilization, but, of course, I know how much our desires and inclinations can change over time, so I always had age 40 in mind as the point at which I would pursue a permanent solution to the problem of my potential fertility. Since moving into a household with kids, I've been even more sure that that's not a path I want to pursue in life. (I love living with other people's kids. Almost as much as I love not having any of my own.) (Okay, not even close to how much I love not having my own.)

So, even though I'm about 18 months from my 40th birthday, I feel ready to make a longer term decision. So! I met with an OB/gyn this morning to talk about my options. I went in with Essure as my likely preferred option. It's a minimally invasive procedure with good outcomes. The other permanent option is tubal ligation, which is a real surgery.

While I was talking to the doctor, she suggested I consider the Mirena IUD, primarily because the low dose of hormones could alleviate some of my endometriosis symptoms, and most women on the Mirena don't have periods, which is obviously appealing. But it's also appealing to know that pregnancy is totally off the table. So, I'm thinking about it.

I'm interested to hear thoughts and helpful questions, if you have any, but it will make me angry to hear anything along the lines of "But what if you change your mind?" or "Don't you want to keep your options open?", so please skip those!

Today, for Figment, I wore a stripy black and white circle skirt, with silver spangles all over it. Because it's a circle skirt, it flares out a lot, and led to this conversation:

E (age 8): What makes it poof out like that?
Me: Mostly, my butt.
E: Really?
Me: My butt is pretty poofy! Which I like, though some people with poofy butts don't like them.
E: What's not to like?

One of the things I enjoy about talking to kids is their unfiltered comments about people in the world around them. Of course this can lead to the awkward moment when you're with a child who loudly comments on someone who's not part of their party, and sometimes in really inappropriate ways, but in moments like the above, it can be both charming, and, sometimes, a great opportunity to send a body-positive message their way.