I agree!

I'm an only child too, and my mom was my only parent. My mom IS one of my best friends, but when I was 17 and I needed the Plan B, I could NOT have told her for the same reasons you couldn't have told your mom. I also think when you're THAT close to a parent, the fear of disappointment in you is greater as well.

I think you're seriously underestimating teenagers. Many 16 and 17 year olds are very responsible about having sex, and WILL go to their doctor and ask for the pill (parental consent is not required in the UK, so there is no reason why they would need to discuss it with their parents if they didn't want to). I seriously doubt that very many will go 'oh well, there's always plan B, so I'll just not bother with contraception'. And if that was the case, then we'd be selling HUGE amounts of the morning after pill in the UK, as here it is available over the counter over the age of 16.

Some 17-year-olds might be mature enough to handle certain situations, and some might not be.

THE SAME COULD BE SAID FOR SOME 25-YEAR-OLDS. LACK OF MATURITY DOESN'T MAKE YOU A KID. 17 IS AN ADULT AGE, YO.

Exactly, if the only thing in question is maturity related to age, then surely the only people ever using emergency contraception are those under 18, which we all know is a load of rubbish

Quite honestly, I don't know a single teen out there who has bothered to think "Oh, my parents wouldn't want me having sex." They're kids, you're right... they're not going to stop and think what mommy and daddy want. I did when I first started having sex because my mom told me it was OK to tell her so she could get me on BC. But alot of you girls aren't that fortunate.

Saying they shouldn't be having sex is very easy. But that's not going to happen, I'm pretty sure many of us know that by now. Would you rather these girls be getting pregnant at a young age and having babies? Bringing a baby into this world when you're not financially stable is NOT a good choice. Sure you love them conditionally but if you can't provide food, and clothing for them, you're just harming them.

What age can kids go on BC in America? Do their parents have to know?

A few years ago in England there was a high profile case where a mother was trying to get it made law that the parents should be told if their kids were on BC. It failed, and in the UK you can go on it whenever, without anybody else knowing. Also, it's free here which is lovely.

I'm just wondering because obviously how easily BC is available is going to have wide reaching implications into the use of Plan B.

It all fully depends on the state in the US. Here in Michigan you don't have to let your parents know...but in Texas for instance I think...your parents have to give permission under 18. Personally...I think under 18 you NEED a parent's consent because you are NOT an adult at 15, 16 or 17. You may think you are and think you know it all...but you DON'T. I wouldn't be too happy if my daughter came home at 15/16 with birth control pills...OR like a parent my mom knows...found out her daughter was taking BC when her daughter landed in the hospital for something.

However...I guess my child taking BC would be better than her coming home telling me she was pregnant. I just think that a parent should know what their CHILD is putting into their body.

it is not an abortion pill. I took it and guess what? Got a happy healthy 5 year old now! If your already preg, you stay preg, it doesnt change that!

Here in some places you can it over the internet and in Oxfordshire via text message.

I just feel the pill should be part of a rape kit. Used only for women who have been raped.
I hate the ideal that it CAN be used as a birth control method.
I made the mistake of getting pregnant accidentally at 17 years old, and you know what? MY responsibility! If I couldn't have provided safely for her, than she'd have been adopted out to a family that could have. I think telling your parents you're pregnant should be part of the consequence, since that's what most girls fear. I know that saying 'you just shouldn't have sex' just isn't going to work... I was part of that. But what happened to being responsible for your own actions. Taking a pill AFTER you have sex, isn't being responsible, it's abuse. Get responsible, and get on a daily preventative - rather than abusing something simply because you made a mistake.

Thats the thing though, people like you are saying that the only people using the morning after pill are those who aren't taking other precautions when they are, the morning after pill is just as unreliable as a condom, the pill, a cap etc. Not only that there are a lot of people that cannot take a daily, injection, or implanted medical contraception, if they have an accident with a condom or get spillage over the top, they aren't being irresponsible at all.

Did you go on public assistance after you gave birth?

Me? I was on WIC for a few months at the urging of others, but I stopped going because it wasn't worth it to me. I've never had food stamps, or any other type of assistance thereafter, either. (Parents included.)

I got lucky I guess - and my boyfriend was 20 by the time I had her, working a full time job. And I worked part time until Maternity leave as well. I took on my responsibility.

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/21/20090324/tuk-girls-text-for-morning-after-pill-6323e80.html
i just read that!

Honestly, I don't see what the fuss is about. The morning-after pill has always been available by prescription to women of any age in the UK, and over the counter to over 16s for the last 2 years or so.

It is NOT the same as an abortion pill. The morning after pill prevents ovulation or fertilization and maybe prevents implantation of a fertilized egg, but the abortion pill causes the uterus to actively expell the products of conception AFTER fertilization and implantation. So, NOT the same.

Personally I'd much prefer that a 16 or 17 year old (who I consider to not be a child, but rather inbetween childhood and adulthood... I mean in the UK at the age of 16 you can live alone, and have sex, legally, and at 17 you can drive a car... I think you should be considered responsible enough to take control of your own contraception) take the morning-after pill than later have an abortion (as they can do, again without parental consent at that age).

Of course it shouldn't be used as contraception, but I think very few people use it in that way. The majority of women who take it do so because their normal contraceptive method has failed. I think 16 and 17 year olds should have the same option available to them... particularly since they are the ones who are usually least ready to have a child!

You can get married too!

I just found this story on Yahoo UK. Now THIS is the sort of thing we SHOULD be worrying about...

Girls text for morning-after pill

Schoolgirls will be able to request the morning-after pill by text message in a scheme being introduced later this year.

Any girl at the four schools in Oxford and two in Banbury will be given the opportunity to ask for emergency contraception if they have had unprotected sex, or their contraception has failed.

Child protection staff will step in if any girl aged between 11 and 13 uses the service.

The text message service will be introduced in July by Oxfordshire County Council and the Oxfordshire Primary Care Trust, which have refused to name the schools involved.

Hilary Pannack, chief executive of teenage pregnancy charity Straight Talking, welcomed the move.

She said: "I think it's an excellent idea. But there needs to be more in place - there needs to be good quality sex and relationship education as well.

"Some girls won't want to talk to people face to face, and the process of getting the emergency contraceptive pill should be made easy for them. It's not going to cause promiscuity.

"If it means them not going through the trauma of abortion, then it's valuable."

While I'm not saying teenage girls shouldn't have any access to the morning after pill (I still believe it's a better option than an abortion), I DO think that if they want to take it under the age of 16, they should at least have to discuss it with someone first. I think the fact that under 16s could just send a text message and get given it is pretty shocking!

i think it is a good idea. but remember that the pill doesn't protect you against STDs or HIV. Be safe. Use a condom, I always say. Also, be aware that this drug could mess up your menstrual cycle. i had an experience that i ended up missing a period, which made me believe I was pregnant. Then, it showed up and disappeared, and then appeared again on a different day. But, I'm sure this is a case that happens to different people, not necessarily everyone.

And that can happen when you're not taking anything at all.

yeah i don't get what the big deal is about it... I was 17, the condom broke, and I was able to go and get Plan B... having to talk to my parents would have not been of any help since my parents are huge religious freaks, I mean I was 17 not 14, I was old enough to make my own decisions and I think i did the right one by going and getting Plan B instead of having a child, which is a lot more responsibility than just going and getting a pill.

It's my understanding that it can also be used in the case if a girl/woman is raped by someone. I don't see how it'd be unacceptable. Even minor's get in sticky situations. As it is, kids are having sex before they get to high school, so it's probably a good thing to have back-up or whatever. Clearly not birth control, but you know what I mean. I'm going to shut up now.