In case you missed it late last week, several major outlets – including U.S. News & World Report and USA Today – wrote features on the birth control pill’s 50th anniversary. I thought the irony of the pill turning 50 on Mother’s Day was really striking. These articles cited many ways the pill has changed lives, but perhaps none so much as the many reproductive options and choices women now have, including using, or even being, an egg donor or surrogate. The advances in the field of infertility likely would not have come this far without the greater demand that resulted from women being inspired to take control of their own destinies. The pill helped women realize there were options and want to pursue them.

With those advances, women have more control over when they will become mothers. They can choose to pursue careers first before settling down. In fact, according to one story, “more babies today are born to women over 35 than to teenagers, according to a study released on Thursday by the Pew Research Center–a clear sign we’re taking measures to delay reproduction.” This choice certainly comes with other considerations and is not the right one for everyone, but the option is there.

Women now have more options for family building and are more aware of those options. The simple truth is that it does become more difficult to get pregnant as a woman gets older. By being educated about her choices down the line, a woman can decide whether waiting is the right option for her.

As the pill delivered control to women on many levels, it also drove technical advances and education around reproduction – all contributing in a woman’s increased ability to make better life decisions for herself and control her own destiny.

-provided by guest blogger, Kate Palm, Program Coordinator at ConceiveAbilities

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