Actress and playwright Rachel Diamond never intended to be the “Poster Child” for sterilization. What she knew was that she didn’t want to have children. But in spite of a copper Intrauterine device (IUD), a back-up form of birth control, and a fertility-challenged partner, Rachel became pregnant. The pregnancy was ectopic; a potentially fatal condition in which the embryo implants, and can begin to grow, in an area other than the uterus. Finding herself in the Emergency Room, Rachel asked for doctors to perform a surgery involving her fallopian tubes to ensure she wouldn’t become pregnant again. When they refused, it sparked a lengthy process of Rachel taking on a mission of medical advocacy.

While many people are familiar with the reference of women who don’t want to become pregnant and “have their tubes tied,” Rachel’s request was to have her “tubes” “cut.” Her story was featured in a recent New York Post article (linked at www.ImFriendsWithYouNotYourBaby.com) examining a growing number of women telling their doctors they’re certain they don’t want kids.