sister_raphael | Contraception: When is it permitted?

The general rule of thumb in the medieval world, was that contraception was to be avoided. If God wanted someone to be pregnant, then for certain, one shouldn't be thwarting the wishes of the Almighty. Contraception was for women who sold their services, the vibe was.

This was only usually the case. In a few circumstances, the Church and Medical specialists might both agree that not being pregnant was better for the woman, so that she might not die unnecessarily. Perhaps she was extremely unwell. Perhaps her health was fragile after bearing many other children. Perhaps she was very young, although contraception being needed to prevent pregnancy because of the extremity of her youth feels a bit like we shouldn't be not doing the thing you do to get pregnant to the girl of tender years.

Medieval women did know quite a bit about avoiding pregnancy, through methods handed down to her from friends or wise women and available to her through apothecaries and herbalists. On the whole though, women could be not pregnant if they chose to.

Medieval women. I'm talking 800 years ago. I'll just let that sink in.

More information, quotes and recipes for How Not To Be Pregnant is available in The Very Secret Sex Lives of Medieval Women, available now through your bookshop, or on Amazon or your favourite online book vendor.