Had an Abortion? Here's an E-Card!
My fiancee heard on Rush Limbaugh today that there is a new service out there for women. It goes by the name Exhale, and it is billed as a counseling talkline for women who have had abortions.
I'm at a loss. On the one hand, I cannot seem to trace the
development of this movement. For decades the push has been to
relegate the status of the fetus to no more than a glob of
tissue. Why should a woman be any more upset over an abortion
than she would be for getting a cancerous mole removed? It seems
that this organization is out of step with most abortion advocates in
that it admits the level of trauma a woman can experience from the
procedure. That is, mental and physical trauma. Feminists for Life have been on the ball with that for a while, but they somehow came to different conclusions than the women over at exhale.
Here comes the other hand: What does this say about the people
who get abortions or advocate them? These folks are admitting
that women need counseling and often have extreme guilt or sadness
following an abortion, yet they don't see that it is abortion itself
that is the problem. No, they say that
...abortion, and having feelings afterward, is normal in the reproductive lives of women and girls.
WHAT? Now I understand that
miscarriages (spontaneous abortions) are often natural or out of the
control of the mother. But to say that poisoning the child with a
saline solution (or dismembering it and then vacuuming it from the
mother's womb[or delivering it partway and then ripping out its brain])
is normal is something a bit more than ill-thought. That's
downright stupid.
No, what this service says to me is that these people fully understand
the guilt and remorse women feel after these procedures and attempt to
minimize it by the same old lies.
I just can't wrap my mind around this, except to say that the best lies
always have some truth to them. "Feeling guilty? Well don't
bottle it up! Talk about it, and remember, you didn't do anything
wrong so eventually you'll get over it." That's not
healing. That's amputation of the soul.
Here is a card with a picture of mountains that
your child will never see. A cloud that your child will never
imagine to be shaped like a whale. A tree your child will never
climb. Air your child will never breathe.
Let's be sure that you've dealt with this grief by next month, okay
honey? After all, life goes on. Whoops, I mean for us it does.
Comments
Man, that card would sure lift my spirits! But I don't understand why any woman who had an abortion would need counseling?
Except maybe after reading that card?!?
Although, I'm sure some would need counseling if they were forced into having the abortion by parents or their spouse, or even the dire conditions of their lives.
I don't believe in the act of rubbing it in their faces if they show remorse over the act, though.
Ok...I'm not going to comment on the act of abortion itself. Cuz it's such a hot topic and it's not my place to judge either way....
However...I will comment on the fact that this reminded me of a show I saw on Fox News about how (can't remember her name now) supported women having abortions. Not a few weeks into it. Not even two months into. But HOURS before the baby is born. When the mother starts labor. *sound of Meeshell's heart breaking*
I remember going into labor with both of my boys...and yes...there is that moment of, "What the hell was I thinking...ok...I changed my mind. I don't wanna have this kid." BECAUSE IT EFFING HURTS.
It just blows my mind. Because really, if the hospital had told me of this new way to "not have to push something the size of a watermelon out of my body, but still have the watermelon to take home and enjoy" method - I woulda taken it...along with a jug of tequila. Because childbirth is SCARY, and painful, and to me, offering the option of abortion at that last second is EVIL. Just plain evil.
What was her justification? Because the mom was sad.
WTF??? Yeah, I suffered from PPD, alot of mom's do. But part of being a responsible person is getting help for it.
*Clears throat* Ok. Sorry. I'll stop now.
Peace Out.
I'd like to remind everyone that this group is based in California...the nation's most retarded state (sorry Wes) -- and I mean this in the most unpolitically correct way possible.
But we like to call California "special," honey. :)
I have thought about whether or not to post a comment on this for a few days. Since it is still lingering with me now, I will do so. However, please feel free to disregard my comments as (1) I am from California, (2) I work on behalf of people with disabilities and find "retarded" to be an ignorant word choice, (3) I am no longer Catholic, and (4) I'm about as liberal as it gets.
I think an e-card following an abortion is a terrible idea. However, I think counseling is a good idea. For starters, if you are pregnant, your body automatically begins producing hormones that will cause you to experience a wide fluctuation in emotions and it takes a few weeks for these to clear out of the body's system even after an abortion. This can be confusing for women and difficult to deal with. Second, even for women who choose an abortion and do not believe an embryo is a life at that stage, they are foregoing the opportunity to bring a life into this world. They are rejecting what society says as women we should do. And, frankly, the stigma around abortion makes many women feel shame about it.
I realize none of these arguments will change your, or anyone else's mind. That's not what I am trying to do. However, I do hope you will think about these things.
1) Some of my best friends are from California. 2) Hey, I addressed the "retarded" issue. We call California "special" here. 3) I'm sorry! I hope you come on back sometime. We won't make you pay your back dues. 4) Ooof! That's pretty tough. I'm sorry.
I agree that counseling is a good idea, though the emphasis would probably differ from yours. Regarding hormones, it is not just emotional changes that occur, but physical as well. I don't believe we know enough about pregnancy and what sudden termination of the same will do to a woman's body.
Now here's where we may have a major divergence: That shame attached to the stigma is a good thing! Shame is not always negative. It can prevent us from doing things that are wrong or which would cause harm to others. There should be a stigma attached to abortion.
So what is the solution here? You've pointed out the problem but offered nothing concrete. My solution is to make pregnancy easier for women so that there is less of a push for abortion. This would entail job security, better wages, etc. That's kind of something I thought liberals were into. Check out the Feminists for Life link I put in the blog. They are for equality without giving up womanhood, which is where the radical feminists went wrong.
I have thought about your points, and there is further thinking to be done. Stick around, I'm sure you will add to the discussion of later topics!