STERILIZATION: SENSIBLE CHOICE OR SERIOUS TROUBLE? – A SUCCESSFUL OUTCOME? (REGRETING THE OPERATION)
Now is the time to be particularly aware of the possibility of marital stress, and to watch for any sign of one partner being manipulated by the other. Counselling in depth is not needed by all couples, but there is a much higher incidence of regret among those who are sterilized at a younger age, or at a time of emotional stress. These problems are considered in more detail in the sections that follow.
Perhaps as many as 10% of women regret the operation, and the concept of good care must include an attempt to identify those people at risk of regret before the operation is undertaken. When sterilization is being discussed it is wise to ask both partners to consider how they would feel if their marriage broke down, or if they lost a child, although the reply is almost invariably that they feel they could never replace that particular child. Such a reply may make the doctor feel rebuffed, but it may help the couple to look again at the irreversibility of the operation. Another approach is to enquire how each will feel when their partner is sterile, and to consider which partner might grieve least for their fertility.
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