Abortion is Harmful

Surgical and Chemical Abortion Harms the Woman

A recent study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health examined medical claim records for more than 1.9 million women and found that induced abortion of a first pregnancy increases the risk of postpartum mental health problems by 10-35%, kills the baby, and also:

  • Aggravates:
    • Pre-existing mental illness
    • The onset of problems for women with no history of psychiatric disorders
    • Pregnancy loss prior to a first live birth:
      • Increases the risk of postpartum psychiatric disorders by 10-35%
      • Postpartum psychiatric care requiring hospitalization increased by 83%
      • Risk is most elevated for women who have given birth within 90 days
    • Marked the onset of problems that did not previously exist
  • In unresolved memories/emotions and feelings about pregnancy loss:
    • Psychosis during a subsequent pregnancy
    • Left them shattered with:
      • Sadness
      • Heartache
      • Guilt
      • Shame, and
      • Anger
  • In traumatic cycles of abandonment, rejection and learned to numb themselves with:
    • Alcohol, Drugs, Repeat Abortions, Eating disorders
    • Depression, Anxiety, Suicidal tendencies
    • Permanent physical and reproductive damage
    • Inability to have children
  • Pregnancy loss is a death experience, the demise of a human:
    • Potential
    • Relationship
    • Responsibility
    • Maternal Attachment
    • Connectedness
  • Loss is rarely experienced without:
    • Conflict
    • Ambivalence
  • When it comes to abortion; many women will not want to talk about it, even in mental health settings because:
    • Abortion is legal
    • Presumed to be safe
    • Identified as a woman’s “right”
  • Problems that occur when women are assaulted by their own natural reactions to their loss cause many women to go into treatment for:
    • Anxiety
    • Suicidal ideation
    • Emergency Room visits are common due to pain and blood loss caused by infections from baby body parts retained in the uterus
    • Don’t understand the root of their pain
      • Abortion was their choice
      • There is no social norm for dealing with an abortion
      • Abortion is a deeply private and complex experience
  • Women and men have a right to know the risks they face when making an elective decision for abortion before suffering the loss of a child:
    • A profound array of complicated mourning may follow
    • Counselors and mental health professionals are familiar with the risk factors that predict trauma after an abortion. There are programs that address this specific grief:
      • She is not alone
      • Her pain or regret is legitimate
      • She has a right to heal
    • Rachel’s Vineyard: http://www.rachelsvineyard.org/
      • Is a psychological and spiritual journey for healing after an abortion
      • Is active in more than 80 countries and available in dozens of languages

Dr. Theresa Burke, Ph.D., March 5, 2021

"Every single one of our mothers chose life."

Diego Wendt

"I gave them your word, and the world hated them."

Jn17:11b-19

“The idea of abortion as ‘the right to choose’, the choice they’re talking about is that — something so barbaric. They choose this barbarity. There’s a lot of reasons why, and they’re all horrible.”

Rosanna Barr

“The Right to Life is the Lens to view all Issues.”

Bishop Strickland

“As people of faith, we know that peace in the world begins with peace in the womb.”

Cordileone

"For all the thousands that do help mothers and children in need, we need thousands more, millions even. We all share in this ongoing tragedy. We can all share in its resolution."

Lila Rose

“We want people to have the fullness of Jesus’ promise, ‘I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.’ John 10:10”

Cardinal Luis Ladaria Ferrer

“In our current situation, we choose to pray for the restoration of respect for the sanctity of all human life which is the most urgent need of our day.”

Knights of Columbus

“I am pro-life for the most essential reason: That’s a baby in there, a human child.”

Peggy Noonan

“Every 30 seconds a baby’s life is taken by abortion.”

Human Coalition 

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