A professor in a college ethics class presented his students with an ethical situation,
"A man has syphilis and his wife has tuberculosis. They have had four children: one has died, the other three have what is considered to be a terminal illness. The mother is pregnant. What do you recommend? After a spirited discussion, the majority of the class voted that she abort the child. “Fine,” said the professor. "You've just killed Beethoven." –HIS magazine, February 1984.
The following presents several true stories related personally to John Samuels,
the writer of this article.
Being "a woman who experienced an abortion, I can tell you that withholding information from women that may affect them for the rest of their lives is both dangerous and demeaning. Doctors may explain more about tonsillectomies or appendectomies than they do about abortions. I really believe that if I had been fully informed, both medically and as to my options, I would have chosen not to abort my baby." Susan N. Terkel in
Abortion - Facing the Issues. (1988).
Abortion Story from the United States
She has six grandchildren whom she sees almost every day. She learned to play beautiful piano when she was only 14 years old. She helped scores of people in her lifetime, and in so many ways, a most loving, kind person—and yet, she almost wasn't born.
Her mother had had several abortions and was going to have another. Because abortions at that time period were risky, she decided not to abort this baby, and she made the right decision.
Abortion Story from India
He was an electrical engineer in California. He and his brother were born in India, but moved to California to study. They became successful in their field, and their parents eventually came to the United States.
The oldest son also almost never made it into the world. Their mother had gone to the doctor for an abortion, but the doctor kindly said to the woman, "Why don't you have the baby?", "You will never know who he could have been if you abort." She decided to have the baby, and was so glad that she did.
Abortion Story, United States
A doctor told a mother in the United States that her baby would most likely be deformed, and that the chances were close to 100% based on her medical history and condition. The pregnant mother was ready to have an abortion. A friend talked her out of it, and she was so happy afterwards. The baby was born healthy—a girl—and the mother and her child became best friends. The little girl followed the mother everywhere and became inseparable. There was nothing wrong with the little girl at all; she was beautiful.
A human fetus - Abortion ends a life that that would have been.
Real Abortion Stories: The Hurting and The Healing
by Barbara Horak
Courageous Women Speak Out on Abortion
Since Roe v. Wade in 1973, there have been more than 45 million abortions performed in the United States. Many post-abortive women suffer from some symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These women, emotionally battered by their symptoms, are often hesitant to talk openly about their ordeal.
Real Abortion Stories: The Hurting and The Healing contains the powerful first-person stories of fourteen women and one man. Dr. Alveda King, the niece of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. who tells her story in this book, says, "These deeply personal stories demonstrate that healing is possible from the traumatic aftermath of abortion."
According to the book's editor, Barbara Horak, many women are afraid to share their grief with friends who may be pro life because they fear being rejected and condemned for their decision. But if they turn to their pro-choice friends, their anguish may not be acknowledged as truly valid, so they suffer silently. As one woman says, "Society may say it’s okay to have an abortion, but when they find out I’ve had one, they think I’m terrible."
Horak, who has spoken more than four hundred times in high schools and middle schools about the risks and consequences of premarital sex and has worked as a volunteer counselor at a Pregnancy Center, has witnessed firsthand the trauma abortion heaps upon women. The books is described as "short, riveting stories" that "explain the desperate situations that drove each of them to choose abortion, describe their abortion experiences, tell of the heartbreaking aftermath of their decisions, and illustrate how they found healing and peace."
This book is a must for women who are suffering as the result of an abortion, for those dealing with pregnant women in crisis, and for everyone who needs to know that ending a life—at whatever stage—is not a casual event.
These short, riveting stories by fourteen women and one man explain the desperate situations that drove each of them to choose abortion. They also describe their abortion experiences, tell of the heartbreaking aftermath of their decisions, and illustrate how they found healing and peace. These captivating first-person accounts reveal a side of the abortion issue that is seldom heard.
Abortion Help References (off-site links)
1. Abortion 'leaves mental legacy', (December 12, 2005). BBC News.
https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4520576.stm
2. Harmon, A., May 9, 2007. Prenatal Test Puts Down Syndrome in Hard Focus. New York Times.
https://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/09/us/09down.html
3. Kalish, S., May/June 2004. Psychology Today.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/pto-20040625-000001.html
4. NJ Supreme Court Strikes Down Parental Notification for Abortion Act, (August 15, 2000). ACLU.
https://www.aclu-nj.org/news/njsupremecourtstrikesdownp.htm
5. Statistics in Adolescent Pregnancy. (Retrieved October 5, 2008). Teen Shelter Org.
6. When Does a
Human Life Begin? (June 2009). Awake!
Other Pages on Abortion
Abortion Psychological effects - Male and female grief - teen abortion - Down Syndrome and abortion
Abortion Help - Moral, psychological and spiritual aspects of abortion
Late-Term Abortion - Information and Procedures
