Month: August 2024

What do you do if you find that you’re pregnant and you don’t think you’re ready to have a baby?  Maybe your first instinct is to rush to an abortion clinic or provider and “fix the problem.”  While the instinct to hurry up and fix things is understandable, here are a few things to keep in mind, from a medical perspective.  For the same reason that you wouldn’t rush into any surgery or medical procedure without having all the information you need, you shouldn’t rush into abortion either.

Most women find out that they are pregnant right after their first missed period, which is early in the pregnancy.  At this point, there is time to have a cautious approach and get as much information as you can.  As many as 25% of early pregnancies end in miscarriage during the first trimester (up to the end of week 12).  With that in mind, it’s important to find out some important things besides just having a positive pregnancy test.  Here are some questions that need to be answered first:

Is my pregnancy where it is supposed to be?  A pregnancy outside of the uterus is called an ectopic pregnancy, and though the risk is small (1 or 2% of all pregnancies), it does happen, and when it does, it can be life-threatening.  Only an ultrasound can tell you if your pregnancy is where it’s supposed to be.  If your pregnancy isn’t seen inside the uterus, you need an immediate referral for further medical evaluation.

Is my pregnancy healthy, or viable?  In other words, does my baby have a heartbeat and can it be measured?  If the answer to that question is no, and a medical professional can’t find a heartbeat on ultrasound, you may be having a miscarriage.  Until the heartbeat can be measured, the viability of the pregnancy can’t be confirmed.

How far along is my pregnancy?  You may think you know how many weeks you are, but until your baby is measured, you don’t know for sure.  What you thought was your last menstrual period may have been implantation bleeding (where the baby implants in the lining of the uterus), or you may have had irregular bleeding early in pregnancy.  Irregular menstrual periods also cause confusion about how far along you may be.  All these things can create confusion about how far along your pregnancy is.  Until the gestational sac (where the baby grows) and the baby can be measured, you really don’t know for sure how far along you are.

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As you are considering what to do, imagine yourself scheduling a surgery with no one telling you all of the risks, or why you need it, nor having all the information about your situation.  You wouldn’t think of doing that, so you should take the same approach when you’re considering what to do about an unplanned pregnancy. 

Here at Two Lines (formerly Advice & Aid), we would be happy to help you navigate this time in your life with compassion, support, and as much information as we can provide.

The information is free, but the peace of mind is priceless!

Also, check out this helpful information: 3 Things You Need to Know Before Deciding on an Abortion

 No woman wants to be in a situation of an unplanned pregnancy!

And most women do not want to abort an unborn baby. But if the situation arises, then the main focus is to remove the problem. Abortion often seems the most obvious  – and the easiest – answer to that problem. However, on closer inspection it may not be that simple. In this two-part blog, we will look closely at the physical and emotional effects of abortion so you can understand it more fully.

Effects of Abortion: The Emotional Aspects

In a past blog article, the physical effects of abortion were discussed. Any person seeking an abortion was urged to be an informed consumer and to be knowledgeable of all the physical risks of abortion. All too often, the emotional effects of abortion are under-reported and down-played.

Emotional reactions following abortion are more common than physical side effects.
It is commonly reported that the abortion affected them more than they ever anticipated.

Abortion can effect each person differently. Some are traumatized and feel violated during the abortion.  Others report feeling little during the abortion and in later years. Because every person is different, one person’s reaction to an abortion will be different from another’s reaction. Some who have experienced negative emotions find that those emotions go away with time. Others find them more difficult to overcome as time advances.

For more information on the emotional effects and the facts stated in the following paragraphs, see the links at the end of this article.
In the immediate period after the abortion, a sense of relief is often reported (as documented in the book “Her Choice to Heal”).  However, studies indicate that the effects can be more profound than simple relief. Compared with women who delivered a child, those who aborted had a significantly higher risk of death from all causes and, most notably, more often from suicide. Higher death rates of women who have had an abortion persist over time and across socioeconomic boundaries. Some of this may be explained by self-destructive tendencies, depression, and other unhealthy behavior brought on by the abortion experience (as reported here).  Those who have conditions (like depression or other emotional disorders) before the abortion and those who have difficult circumstances surrounding the abortion (for example, being bullied into an abortion) increase the risk for major emotional problems after abortion (reported here).

The feelings that can occur after an abortion have become so identifiable that this condition has been named Post Abortion Syndrome (PAS). Moreover, PAS is being recognized as a form of post-traumatic stress reactions (PTSD). PTSD often occurs after an individual has suffered an event so stressful and so traumatic that this person is unable to cope with this experience in a normal manner. Following a traumatic event, victims of PTSD are unable to simply resume their lives where they had left off. Instead, they experience a variety of reactions that do not go away merely with the passage of time.

Below is a list of typical reactions that may be experienced in the months or years following an abortion, including but are not limited to:

> Denial
> Feeling numb (To avoid painful thoughts after abortion, many post-abortive individuals work to shut off their emotions. This may take the form of abandoning friendships and family, particularly if these individuals were part of their abortion experience.)
> Guilt (Abortion can short-circuit the basic human instinct to protect one’s child, leading to feelings of guilt. Additionally, there is survival guilt; the sorrowful resignation that “It’s me or you, and I choose me.”)
> Shame and secrecy
> Acute feeling of grief and loss
> Sadness and depression
> Unexplained anger or rage
> Preoccupation with babies or getting pregnant again
> Avoiding children or pregnant women
> Unable to bond with present or future children
> Fear that future children will die
> Nightmares
> Sexual dysfunction
> Loss of relationships
> Emotional coldness, isolation
> Inability to forgive
> Increased alcohol and drug abuse
> Eating disorders
> Anxiety or anxiety attacks
> Flashbacks of the abortion procedure
> Anniversary syndrome (increase in symptoms on the aborted child’s due date, or the date of the abortion)
> Thoughts of suicide or suicide attempts

Rarely does the post-abortive individual suffer every symptom. However, if someone has endured thoughts of suicide or has two or more of these reactions, it could mean that the pain may be due to an abortion experience.  If that is the case, an abortion recovery program can help bring peace.

FIND HELP

Do you know someone who is suffering from after-abortion grief? Perhaps you would like to talk to someone about your abortion? There is help and support available for you. We will never judge . . . We will never push. We are simply here for you.

You can even schedule your first appointment without having to talk to anyone – simply click the button below and pick a time that works for you. It’s simple, it’s free . . . it’s the step you need to take to talk to someone who cares and can offer confidential help.

References:
RamahInternational.org
PsychologyToday.org
RachelsVineyard.org
Global Library of Women’s Medicine
OxfordJournals.org
If You Are Pregnant – KS Dept Health & Environment
US National Library of Medicine
LifeChoices Health Network
Book: Detrimental Effects of Abortion