On Wednesday morning, gynecologist Deborah Ottenheimer went to work determined not to talk about the election. “I never do that,” she says. “You just never know where people are at.” But as her doors opened, she quickly realised she wouldn’t have a choice. “Every single patient that walked in burst into tears,” she says. “Women and girls were sobbing. Just sobbing. Everybody was wrecked.”
Ottenheimer’s New York City clinic treated nearly 40 patients the day after Donald Trump was elected, and the only thing more unusual than their tears was that so many of them had the same question: “Should I get an IUD?”
This tiny T-shaped plastic-and-copper coil, designed to stop an egg and sperm from surviving in the womb, has become an unlikely weapon on the frontline of women’s rights. “These are not people who were thinking about it already – or were unhappy with their current method,” Ottenheimer says. “These people were afraid.”
In fear of what a Trump presidency might mean for reproductive rights, thousands of women have taken to social media to urge each other to seek out access to IUDs, a form of birth control that can last anywhere from three to 12 years. Trump has promised to defund Planned Parenthood, the reproductive health organisation that provides contraception to many women around the US, and dismantle the Affordable Care Act, which guarantees access to contraception. Depending on the brand, an IUD inserted before Trump’s inauguration guarantees that a woman is protected from unwanted pregnancy for the duration of his presidency and beyond. “It’s a ‘fuck you’ to this president to get birth control that will outlast him,” said Margot Judge, a 25-year-old from New York who is considering getting an IUD this week.
Since the election, Ottenheimer says she has continued to be overwhelmed with requests about the device, and she is not alone. Planned Parenthood has reported a spike in inquiries while Google reported a “massive peak” in searches for “IUD” this week. And while this step towards self-protection is a measure of reassurance, plenty of women remain deeply uncertain about what the future holds.
“For me, my motivation is fear,” says Jennifer, 35, from Maryland. “For the past eight years, we’ve seen expanded healthcare and more acknowledgement of reproductive rights – but I remember how tense things were under George Bush. So, for me, there’s a sense that I need to protect myself because I don’t think lawmakers will.”
Jennifer has thought about getting an IUD before, but feels urged to get one now. She says that the panic she has noticed among women after the election has left her feeling unsettled about making a decision. “I don’t like the feeling of being painted into a corner. I feel like I am being rushed, like I’m having to make a decision right now that I would like to be more thoughtful about.”
Even without the threat of a pussy-grabbing president, IUDs make a lot of women anxious. They are the third most popular form of contraception in the US – and the most effective form of reversible contraception available – but it requires a medical procedure, and tales of perforated uteruses, heavy bleeding and painful cramps have long sent women running to the pill instead.
However, gynaecologists insist complications are rare. Ottenheimer says that, while there are other forms of long-term birth control such as the implant (inserted in the arm, lasting up to 3 years), IUDs are a “really good option” for most women. Clare Lyons, a registered nurse who urged women to get an IUD on the night of the election, says that IUDs are “incredibly safe” and that women should get informed about whether it might be a good option for them. “Ultimately, my message is to make an appointment with a provider; figure out what is best for you.”
Ayelet Bitton, a 25-year-old software engineer from San Francisco, has read a few horror stories about IUDs, which have always held her back from getting one. But now she is re-evaluating. “I used to say I didn’t want to deal with getting it inserted, or the fear that it might be dislodged. But now I want to reconsider all of that,” she says. “Because the stress of something going wrong with my IUD is a lot less than the stress I’ll have if this other stuff happens.”
Hannah Weinberger is also reconsidering the downsides. The 26-year-old from Amaeus, Pennsylvania, is an avid cyclist. She was once put off having the procedure to avoid physical side-effects that could stop her from cycling. But now that has changed. “My strong feelings about being able to take control of my body mean that temporary discomfort doesn’t [matter] very much to me any more.”
Most women cite two reasons for wanting to get an IUD: wanting to take advantage of their current right to free contraception, and uncertainty about rising costs of contraception in the future. But there’s another reason, too.
“Contraception is a feminist issue,” Weinberger says. “Getting an IUD means I have a tool in my body that the government can’t touch. Making my own choice about what my body can and cannot do in the face of an administration that wants to change that is a political act.”
And let’s be clear, this administration does very much want to change that. Although Trump has flip-flopped on abortion and has seemingly softened his perspective on Obamacare, Mike Pence, his beady-eyed running mate, has been vehemently opposed to reproductive rights throughout his political career. He signed a whopping eight anti-abortion bills into law in fewer than four years as governor of Indiana, including one that mandated women hold funerals for their aborted foetuses and allowed hospitals to deny abortions to women even if they would die without care.
So, while an IUD is a form of armour that women can use to shield themselves against Pence and Trump’s crusade to control their bodies, there’s still reason for women to be anxious about their future in Trumpland.
“Even if I decide to get an IUD today,” Jennifer says, “how do I know that in a few years I’ll be able to see someone to get it taken out?”
"Birth control is a political act": the pre-Trump contraception rush starts now
