Abortion as Your Option
Editor’s Note: Please visit our home page for a full listing of abortion facts.
What you should know before you choose.
If you’re thinking about getting an abortion you probably have a lot of questions. Here are the questions most frequently asked by women who are considering abortion:
“What will the Doctor do to me during my abortion?”
During the first three months of pregnancy, called the first trimester, there are two common types of abortion. In a suction-aspiration abortion the opening to your womb (cervix) must be stretched open wide. This is difficult because the cervix is closed tight and is hard. Sometimes the abortionist uses long cylindrical rods. Starting from the smallest and moving up in size, he inserts them into your cervical opening, stretching it as he progresses. When the cervix is open wide enough, he will put a hollow plastic tube, with a knife-like edge on its tip, through your cervix up into your uterus. The suction it creates is 29 times more powerful than a vacuum cleaner. It tears the baby’s body into pieces, and sucks it through the tube into a canister. The knife edge is used to cut the deeply rooted placenta from the uterine wall.
In a Dilatation and Curettage (D & C) abortion, first the cervix is stretched open. Then, abortionist inserts a loop-shaped knife (curette) into the uterus. He cuts the placenta and baby into pieces and scrapes them out into a basin. This usually produces a large amount of bleeding.
During the second three months of pregnancy, or second trimester, the Dilatation and Evacuation or (D & E) method is used. The cervix is stretched open using pencil lead sized sticks of highly absorbent material inserted into the cervical opening. Over 24 hours they absorb body moisture and swell, opening the cervix. A long pliers-like instrument is inserted into the uterus. Because the baby is too large to fit through the cervix, the abortionist uses the instrument to grab hold of the baby’s leg or arm and twists until it is torn from the body. That part is then pulled through the cervix. This is repeated limb by limb until the baby has been totally torn apart. The spine must also be snapped, and the skull crushed to remove these pieces. The nurse’s job is to lay all the body parts out to make sure they got the entire baby out of the uterus.
During the last three months, or third trimester, a method called Dilatation and Extraction (D & X), also known as Partial Birth Abortion may be used. The abortionist inserts forceps into the stretched cervical opening. He grabs a leg of the unborn baby and turns the baby into a breech (feet pointing toward the birth canal) position. He then pulls the baby out, except for the head that remains in the birth canal. The baby is alive and moving. The abortionist inserts a sharp scissors into the base of the skull. A tube is inserted into the wound and the brain is sucked out. The now-dead infant is then pulled out.
“Will my abortion be painful?”
Unless you are put to sleep for your suction abortion, yes, it will be very painful. The cervix is closed and hard and not prepared to open. The instruments are sharp and the sucking or pulling action is violent in the womb.
“Is abortion dangerous to my health?”
Any surgical procedure has risks. This is especially true of abortion. In a paper put out by the Family Planning Associates Medical Group, a group of abortion clinics in Southern California, the following risks are described:
“However, it is clear to us that even when the surgeon is highly skilled and experienced in the method of dilation and extraction (D & E abortion) that there is a risk of perforation of the uterus either by the instruments or by the fetal tissue itself.”
What this means is that the instruments the doctor puts through your cervix and into your uterus can make a hole through your uterine wall. It also means that the crushed bones of your baby can cut , slash or puncture your uterus while being removed. Often times the abortionist is not aware that he has done this because he cannot see into the uterus while he works. If this should occur, you would bleed through the hole into your abdominal cavity or vagina. If you do not get into the hospital quickly you could die from loss of blood.
The paper goes on to say that hospitalization is required if the uterus is punctured. Damage to the bowel and bladder, blood transfusions and even a hysterectomy (removal of the uterus) can result.
The greatest risk involved in an early abortion is when the doctor performs an “incomplete abortion”. The paper explains it this way, “…the most common problem encountered in termination of early pregnancies is infection and retained tissue (incomplete abortion). ” What this means is that parts of the baby are left behind in your uterus. As they rot they cause a severe infection that can cause permanent damage to your female organs. You could become sterile (unable to become pregnant) or miscarry your next baby.
Third trimester abortions are extremely dangerous. The D & X procedure (Partial Birth Abortion) has been denounced as dangerous to the mother by many doctors and medical professionals. Joseph DeCook, Fellow, Am. College of Ob/Gyn has stated:
“There is no literature that testifies to the safety of partial birth (D & X) abortions. It’s a maverick procedure devised by maverick doctors who wish to deliver a dead fetus. Such abortions could lead to infection causing sterility. Drawing out the baby in breech position is a very dangerous procedure and could tear the uterus. Such a ruptured uterus could cause the mother to bleed to death in ten minutes.”
“Is it really my baby or ‘just a blob of tissue’?”
Years ago scientists did not know. Now, however, with ultrasound and other methods, they can actually “see” the unborn baby inside of the mother’s womb. Doctors can now open the womb, do surgery on an unborn baby, and close up the womb for the pregnancy to continue normally. One now famous photo shows an unborn baby 21 weeks old reaching out of the womb and grabbing the finger of the surgeon. The surgery was completed and the baby was born healthy months later. There is now no question that it is a living, growing, feeling human being long before birth.
“It’s ‘your choice’, ‘your body’, ‘your life’ “
From the photo on the reverse side you can see for yourself that this is a perfectly formed human being. At this stage, even though you feel nothing, your baby is kicking, clenching his fists, curling and fanning his toes, and is generally very active and comfortable inside you.
“Will my baby feel pain during abortion?”
In the past few years, medical research has shown that unborn babies can feel pain. Dr. H. M. Liley, the leading authority on the study of babies before birth, stated, “When doctors first began invading the sanctuary of the womb, they did not know that the unborn baby would react to pain in the same fashion as a child would. But they soon learned that he would.”
Many women in this country have suffered both physically and emotionally from their abortions. They will always regret their decisions. Below, two women share their experiences with you hoping you won’t make the same mistake they did.
When I returned home I had very heavy bleeding and severe cramps for two days. I was so afraid something was wrong that I called Planned Parenthood who referred me for my abortion. They said I was OK without suggesting an exam. At my after-school job at a dime store, I went to the restroom. It was then I found my baby on my sanitary pad. He had arms and legs with tiny hands and feet. I could make out his little nose and a dark spot that I know was his eye. Even after 10 years, it’s still hard for me to think about it.
– Kathy Barlett, Waco, TX
Planned Parenthood suggested only an abortion. No other options were ever discussed. They never said the word ‘baby’ – only ‘fetus’. You can’t imagine my shock and horror when I saw my dismembered baby after my ‘nice and easy’ abortion. They deceived me. I’ve suffered severe emotional problems.
– Karen Sullivan-Ables Taylor, AZ
If you still feel abortion is your only solution you need to know the answers to the following questions. Be sure to ask the clinic or hospital these questions. It’s your body, your life. You have the right to know.
1) Have other women sued your chosen abortion clinic because they have been injured by an abortion?
2) Can you be permanently damaged by abortion?
3) Were any of the risks outlined in this brochure mentioned to you when you asked the question above? If not, ask why.
4) Will you be asked to sign a paper releasing the doctor and clinic of all responsibility in case you suffer physical or emotional damage because of your abortion?
5) If you sign a release form and then have physical problems will the clinic or the doctor pay for medical costs to repair the damage?
Do you have doubts? Do you wonder if you are making the right decision? Are you scared? Do you want to talk to someone who cares and can help you?