(Updated) "Have you thought about sterilization?"

When I saw the NP yesterday, that's the question she asked me. Which, was a very pertinent question and something I have been thinking of. She wasn't being rude, mean or uncaring. But gah. "Sterilization". What a word.

I'm going to talk to my OB next week at my 6w postpartum checkup, but me and the NP chatted a bit. I think I've got it figured out. I'm going to get my tubes tied.

I want permanent birth control. I'm 36 years old and have what I consider a full family for us. She offered up some other "easier" types of permanent birth control, but the Ensure thing (where they put little spirals of wire up your fallopian tubes and your tissue grows around them, blocking your tubes) has some things up front I don't want to do.
1) it's in office and would be uncomfortable, even painful.
2) it takes 3 months for the tissue to grow around the wires and during that time, i'll have to use another form of birth control.
3) i would have to get an HSG to verify my tubes are blocked. Ack. First off, HSGs are outrageously painful for me. Some people don't have a problem, but I have had 4 HSGs and each one sucked. The worst was when I had a blocked tube - so I do ~not~ want to go in there with 2 blocked tubes for another one. This one causes me all kinds of anxiety.

The tubes tying thing ~is~ a surgery. I will have to go through that uncomfortable phase of recovery. I'll most likely have the shoulder pain from the carbon dioxide they pump into your belly. But it will be over lickety split compared to 3 months with the other option.

My big worry is the aspect of continuing to get cysts if my LUF syndrome continues. If it does, I can go on a low dose birth control pill, but I won't have to worry about that as my only form of birth control.

I ~really~ wanted Tom to get snipped (too) because after all I went through, I felt he should contribute in some way. But I can't figure out a way to rationalize him getting a vasectomy if I'm getting my tubes tied. Anyone have any ideas? (yes, it's completely due to spite.)

Update - The above statement looks like Tom isn't agreeing to a vasectomy, but he was completely on board. Tom WILL get snipped and has agreed. But I don't want to rely on that alone, so I'm getting something done myself. But now that I'm getting it done, he doesn't see why he should too. See what I'm saying?