Help, Healing, Research, Education and Advocacy
Dear Friend: How can we convince people that abortion will make their lives worse, not better? And how can we help those whose lives have already been devastated by abortion? The path will be long and hard, but we have a good start with Hope and Healing. You probably already know that abortion hurts not […]
Some people seem to come through an abortion unchanged. Others struggle for years with feelings of grief, guilt, shame, anxiety, low self-esteem, anger, or depression. Still others have problems with nightmares, eating disorders, broken or abusive relationships, substance abuse, and even suicide. It is possible for any woman to unexpectedly have a bad emotional reaction […]
Q1: Do you find yourself struggling to turn off feelings or memories related to your abortion(s)? Do you need to keep reminding yourself to just forget it or put it behind you? Do you become uncomfortable around reminders of the abortion, such as being around babies or pregnant women, being in a doctor’s office, or […]
I feel like I’m speaking for all mothers. I want to say to my daughter and to every daughter who ever felt pressured to abort by her mother, I’m sorry. I had no right to ask that of you. I had no right to insist that you choose between your love for your baby and […]
“I now live my life with a deep joy and gratitude.” “Through my healing I have learned how to have more compassion and mercy for others. I am careful not to judge, because I know where I have come from and how much I needed compassion and mercy.” Like Theresa, thousands of women and men […]
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Judith Evans My childhood was brutal. I was abandoned by my father when I was two-and-a-half. Then when he reappeared in my life again at the age of eight, it became worse. I survived incest, starvation, and beatings. I clung to life. It was my two abortions that nearly destroyed me. When I became pregnant […]
Beverly McMillan, M.D. Dr. Beverly McMillan is an ob/gyn. In 1975, she became the first woman to open an abortion clinic in Mississippi. She ceased doing abortions in 1978 when she became convinced that the abortions she was performing were causing everyone involved far more harm than good. What are the physical complications of abortion? […]
To Those Who Mourn, When I was seventeen years old I underwent a second trimester, saline abortion. Although I wanted to have my baby, my parents pressured me to submit to the abortion. After many hours of labor, I gave birth to a dead baby boy. To say that this had a major impact on […]
Do you realize that you can promote post-abortion healing without ever talking to people about their past abortions? You don’t even have to know if someone has had an abortion. And you certainly don’t have to become a trained counselor or an expert in post-abortion issues. All you have to do is sow a few […]
92% Emotional deadening (Reported either feeling less in touch with their emotions or feeling a “need to stifle their emotions”) 86% Increased tendency toward anger or rage (48% reported they became more violent when angered) 86% Had a fear of others learning of the abortion or a greater sense of fear for unknown reasons 82% […]
Theresa Karminski Burke, Ph.D. For some women, abortion is the result of an outright threat of abandonment if the woman won’t “do the right thing” and abort. Other times, the pressure is more subtle: “It’s your decision, but….” Unfortunately, all the evidence shows that abortion to “save a relationship” almost never works. Many relationships between […]
Clearing the Air About the Psychological Effects of Abortion by Martha Shuping, M.D. Why do women have abortions? At least 70 percent of women having abortions say they believe it is immoral.(1) But they choose against their conscience because of pressure from others and their circumstances. Most women choose abortion out of fear–fear of not […]
(The copyright for this article is held by the Washington Post. It originally appeared in The Washington Post, February 3, 1995. It was reprinted with permission in Hope and Healing, but that permission does not extend to publishing on the Internet.) For other articles and testimonies about abortion’s impact on men, visit here.
Front Page Text Beyond the Politics of Abortion Testimonies We’re Sorry Remembering Thomas Trying to Survive Understanding Who Is Most at Risk? Can Relationships Survive After Abortion? How Safe is Abortion? Dr. Beverly McMillan was the first woman to open an abortion clinic in Mississippi. The Emotional Effects of Abortion Are Later Children Affected by […]
1. Recognize that you are not alone. Others have been through the same experience and the same trials. Their experiences and understanding can help you. They want to help you, just as you may want to help others after you have finished going through the healing process. (See “Don’t Go It Alone.“) 2. Recognize that […]
Martha Shuping, M.D. Can an abortion affect one’s parenting skills? Obviously, if women and men are having emotional problems because of their past abortions, this is going to have an impact on their families. For example, women who have had an abortion are more likely to report subsequent substance abuse. Clearly, alcoholism and drug abuse […]
David C. Reardon, Ph.D. Everyone has an opinion about abortion. That’s fine–up to a point. The problem is when these political and moral views get in the way of efforts to help those who are hurting because of a past abortion. Just for the moment, set aside the question of whether or not abortion should […]
When looking for a post-abortion counselor or support group, keep in mind that many of these groups have different philosophies and approaches. Many are run by women who have had abortions themselves. Some are run by licensed psychiatrists, psychologists, or social workers. Others are extensions of churches or crisis pregnancy centers. Be sure to ask […]
By Connie Nykiel “Sorrow makes us all children again.” –Ralph Waldo Emerson I teach childbirth education to pregnant teenagers. My job is to prepare young parents for parenthood. This includes the possibility of parenting a baby with a birth defect or being the parent of a baby that is miscarried, stillborn, or dies soon after […]
