About
Women’s Wellness
Woman’s New Life Clinic offers low-cost well-woman care.
Well-woman care refers to the practice of supporting the health and proper functioning of the female reproductive system by a medical professional. Any medical provider who has been trained in this area can provide this care.
Woman’s New Life Clinic is unique in our approach as we make a promise to our patients to not provide any medication or treatment that would intentionally harm the function of a woman’s reproductive system.
For this reason, we will not prescribe hormonal contraceptives such as birth control pills, IUD, implants, etc. as a part of our gynecologic care. All of these medications are harmful to women and do not truly treat any disease process. If you feel that you have been given this medication to treat another medical disorder, please make an appointment with us to discuss better treatment options. We encourage our patients to become familiar with their bodies and to appreciate the importance of their reproductive health. Reproductive health is a measure of overall health.
When Do I Need to Start Receiving Wellness Exams?
Once you are sexually active, you need to start seeing a provider once a year for pelvic exams as recommended by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). If you are not sexually active, you should see a provider by the age of 21 or sooner if needed for another reason.
Breast self-examination (BSE) should be performed at the same time each month. The best time in your cycle to perform a BSE is just after your menstrual period has ended. This takes very little time, costs nothing, and can help you become more aware of how your breasts normally look and feel. Breast self-exams should be started when you are 20 years old. If you discover any changes, report it to your provider immediately. Regular breast exams by your provider should also be initiated at age 20.
Mammograms should be started annually once you turn 40 and continued until age 70. After that, it is between you and your provider as to whether or not you should continue receiving mammograms.
Healthy Sexual Practices
Sexuality is much more than sex itself. It is emotional, physical, social, intellectual, and spiritual. The fear of getting pregnant, contracting an STD, going against your values, and being abandoned by your partner is real. These fears decrease when sexual activity is delayed.
Abstinence is the only 100% effective way of preventing pregnancy and eliminating the fears previously mentioned. If you decide to practice abstinence, you decide to delay having sex until you are married. Complete abstinence means avoiding all types of genital contact (vaginal, anal, and oral). By practicing complete abstinence, you can be positive that you will not become pregnant or contract a sexually transmitted infection.
Data has shown that teens who delay sex until marriage are less likely to contract a sexually transmitted infection, to have children outside of marriage, to live in poverty and welfare dependence as adults, to become depressed and attempt suicide, to be expelled from school, and to drop out of school. Teens practicing abstinence are more likely to attend and graduate from college. They are also more likely to have a stable and enduring marriage as adults.
By understanding and interpreting your body’s natural cycle, you are in control of your fertility.
This is where Woman’s New Life Clinic can help! Our medical staff are all professionally trained in the knowledge of fertility and healthy sexual practices.
To learn more about the natural Fertility Awareness Methods offered at Woman’s New Life Clinic, click here.
Give us a call to schedule an appointment:
In New Orleans: 504.496.0214
In Baton Rouge: 225.663.6470
REFERENCES:
– Rector, Robert (2005, October). Teenage sexual abstinence and academic achievement. Retrieved January 23, 2009, from The Heritage Foundation website.
– Lowdermilk, D., & Perry, S. (2003). Maternity nursing. St. Louis: Mosby.
– (2008, April). Mammogram facts and guidelines. Retrieved January 9, 2009, from National Women’s Health Resource Center website.
– (2008). Breast awareness and breast self-exam. Retrieved January 9, 2009, from Frequently Asked Questions at the womenshealth.gov website.