A mother is outraged after medical professionals refused to allow her to have her tubes tied. Every woman deserves the right to choose when she feels her family is complete, but for an Australian mom, the road to tubal ligation has been obstructed by numerous hurdles. Sarah Thompson, who already has two young children and is expecting her third, has been told by multiple doctors that she is “too young” at 22 to make this decision.
In a heartfelt Facebook post, Thompson shared that all three of her pregnancies resulted from contraceptive failures. “I’m currently 27 weeks pregnant with my third contraception baby,” she wrote. “It’s frustrating to hear people claim I’m not using contraception and that I want three kids in three years. That’s simply not true.”
Earlier this month, Thompson approached her general practitioner for a referral to a specialist who could perform the procedure of tubal ligation, which involves blocking or cutting a woman’s fallopian tubes. While her GP was supportive and provided her with several names, each specialist declined to perform the surgery.
“The specialist at my hospital made several comments that brought me to tears, leaving my husband to comfort me,” Thompson told ABC News. “I understand I might regret the decision to have a tubal ligation later, but it’s a risk I’m willing to take.”
To complicate matters further, her husband, Mark, also attempted to get a vasectomy but was denied due to Sarah’s age. Although Mark is 30, his choice about his own body seemed to be influenced by the limitations imposed on his wife.
Thompson is understandably upset by her treatment and has initiated a petition directed to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, urging him to advocate for women’s rights to make their own reproductive choices at any age. Her petition, along with her social media post, has garnered significant attention and even reached the head obstetrician at Cairns and Hinterland Hospital in Queensland, who is now reviewing her case.
A spokesperson from the hospital confirmed that Thompson will be meeting with a senior obstetrician but cautioned, “Tubal ligation is considered a permanent procedure. It is quite rare to conduct this surgery on a 22-year-old, as studies show a high likelihood of future regret.”
While it’s true that some women may regret undergoing sterilization—a 2010 CDC study indicated that up to 26 percent experience feelings of regret—Thompson’s situation underscores a crucial issue in women’s healthcare: often, women are not trusted to make informed decisions about their own bodies.
At 27, my own mother faced a similar situation when she was denied a tubal ligation despite having three children, including newborn twins. Doctors told her she would regret her choice and suggested she return after turning 30. In our discussions about Thompson’s case, another colleague shared that her mother also faced rejection for a tubal ligation at 27, leading to an unexpected little brother. One commenter on Thompson’s Facebook post noted that she, too, was told she had to wait until turning 30 and needed consent from her husband.
Healthcare providers may fear the potential for regret, but their hesitance often infantilizes women, treating them as incapable of making their own reproductive choices. Women should not have to rely on the approval of healthcare professionals or spouses to decide what is best for their bodies. Not every mother desires more children, and some women choose to have no children at all. As long as a woman is healthy and understands the implications of her choices, she should have the autonomy to make those decisions.
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Summary:
Sarah Thompson, a 22-year-old mother of two, is fighting to have her tubes tied after being repeatedly denied by doctors due to her age. Despite having experienced multiple contraceptive failures, she believes in her right to make decisions about her own body. Her petition to the Prime Minister has brought attention to the need for greater autonomy in women’s reproductive healthcare.