Healthy Woman's Battle To Have Fallopian Tubes Removed at Age 26

"I want my tubes out. I'm done." That was what 26-year-old Samantha Martinez decided after the birth of her fourth child.

The mom, from Washington State, embarked on a life-altering journey to revolutionize her reproductive health by removing her fallopian tubes.

After relying on a copper IUD as her primary form of birth control for years, Martinez made a pivotal decision following the birth of her fourth child, transforming her relationship with her body.

Martinez told Newsweek: "I had on a copper IUD from 16 to 26, and I would take it out to get pregnant and then have a baby, put it back in, continue on about my life."

However, the new hormonal shifts she encountered post-pregnancy prompted her to seek a more reliable solution.

After careful consideration, Martinez approached doctors to remove her fallopian tubes. But getting a professional to perform the procedure was a different matter.

"I talked to my original doctor and said, 'I'm done. I want my tubes out. I know I don't want any more kids,'" she explained. Yet, her decision faced resistance. "She was like, Are you sure? And I was like yes I'm f****** sure. I was very clear."

Since the U.S. Supreme Court formally released the ruling that overturned the nearly 50-year-old decision of Roe v. Wade in 2022, reproductive rights have been at the center of many minds.

While the abortion rate has historically centered on fetal rights, the overturning of Roe v. Wade has prompted discussion about contraceptive access and a person's right to make choices about wider elements of their own reproductive organs. In July 2022 it was even reported that people were rushing to be sterilized following the Supreme Court ruling.

"I had to go through this entire lengthy process to get them to even talk to me about my tubes," said Martinez. "Even though I have four children, I still had to go through two different assessments. My husband didn't have to sign off in other states. He didn't in this one, but I did have to plead my case to my doctor."

The infographic above, which shows how the world uses contraception, was provided by Statista.

Tubal ligation, commonly known as tube tying, was another option to prevent pregnancy by blocking the fallopian tubes. However, Martinez was unwavering in her desire for complete removal. "I didn't want them tied because I wanted there to be no chance," she explained. "My husband is a baby of a tube tied mother."

She was also keen to prevent future cancer risk, knowing that she had cervical cancer in her family.

Despite encountering challenges, Martinez eventually found a team willing to perform the procedure, and she credits it with transforming her life: "Surgery was super simple. It was very easy. And then the healing process—I was reorganizing my furniture within like 48 hours; it wasn't super intense."

In addition to the surgery, Martinez embraced the opportunity to better understand her body, hormones and menstrual cycle. She started exploring holistic methods of understanding and managing menstrual symptoms. These included seed cycling, a dietary practice believed to balance hormones and alleviate menstrual symptoms, and cycle syncing, aligning various life activities with menstrual phases.

Martinez expressed her initial surprise: "I didn't even know I had four phases in my cycle or what was going on. So that opened up a door for me in learning about cycle syncing and how our hormones work."

Now 29 years old, Martinez attributes the removal of her fallopian tubes to a significant shift in her life. "Well-being wise, I think removing my tubes has made my anxiety go down so I don't have to deal with the aftermath of being on birth control. I don't have to worry about being pregnant because, unless there's a second coming of Jesus, I'm not getting pregnant," she said.

She elaborated further: "I'm also a bajillion times more in control of what my body is doing because having the copper in there, it wasn't just repelling the sperm, it was also causing longer periods, heavier periods; my periods are only five days long now, and I don't cramp at all."

Empowering With Education

Reflecting on her journey, Martinez emphasized the need for women to have more information about their bodies: "I think there's a narrative that if women understand what they do, or what their bodies do, then they become in control of fertility."

She highlighted the contrast between men's and women's health education, stressing that men are often empowered with detailed knowledge while women receive overly simplified explanations. Martinez feels this knowledge gap leaves women struggling to understand and connect with their own bodies.

She lamented: "So instead, I'm left to educate my children, knowing damn well that they're not going to teach them what they need to know—both my boys and my girls—in health class."

Martinez's journey has inspired her to educate others about their bodies and hormones. As a business coach and cycle syncing expert, she supports women in business who want to harness the power of hormonal knowledge to enhance their health and productivity.

"I structure my entire business around each phase of my cycle. I do different things in each phase of my cycle to move my business forward, and I teach my clients to do it too," Martinez explained.

Above all, she aims to empower women with the knowledge she has gained through her journey. "I feel like a very empowered female because I am 100 percent in control of my fertility, and I'm not lacking in knowledge," she concluded. "We would be able to make such better decisions for our body—what we eat, how we exercise—just by knowing your body is doing XYZ at this time."

Is there a health issue that's worrying you? Let us know via life@newsweek.com. We can ask experts for advice, and your story could be featured on Newsweek.