About abortion...........?

Question

You all know by now how vehemently opposed to abortion that I am. But unfortunately, it remains legal in our country (the US).

My question is this:
Do you feel that counseling of some sort should be made mandatory once a woman decides to take the unfortunate step of terminating her baby?

I only ask this because from what I've heard, abortion can have long-term psychological effects as well as physical.

Thanks,

Primo

Answer 1

Having talked to a woman who is desperately hurting because everyone told her it was OK. Counseling NEEDS to be available... my preference would be Christian Counseling. But this woman told me she dreamed every night about the baby she killed (her words not mine.) Just someone telling her that her life had value and was worth something would have been a big help. I agree with Schaub that they need to see the baby before an abortion but almost as important is having a support group that they can talk to of women who have gone through the same thing that they can relate to.

Answer 2

Well, first of all, counseling rarely works if the person doesn't volunteer for it, so I'm a little dubious about the "mandate." You can mandate "making it available" but that's about it.

Now, then, are you suggesting counseling after the decision but before the abortion or are you suggesting post-abortion counseling?

It certainly is possible for a woman to change her mind between deciding to abort and actually going in for the abortion. I personally believe women should be given a lot more biological FACTS than they are: yes, the heart is organized and beating, yes, the brain is organized and there may be brain waves that are too small to measure, yes the baby's eye color, gender, etc. are all determined and the body is generating cells for each, yes the baby is a unique and separate human being from the mother and definitely meets the scientific standards for "human life" even if a fetus doesn't meet some secular or religious standards for human life.

One must bear in mind, however, that most women don't choose abortion because they have a choice -- they choose it because they think they DON'T have a choice. There is a partner or parents pressuring them...there is the fear of not having money, an education, a job, friends, a home, etc.

If you ever were to sit in on a post-abortive support group (they do already exist), you would hear a lot of, "I would have had the baby if..."

...my parents would have agreed to help out...
...my parents hadn't dragged me down to the abortion clinic and made me do it or else...
...my boyfriend would not have threatened to leave me (and the boyfriends always leave anyway)...
...my church had not shunned girls for being single and pregnant....
....I had the money...
...I wasn't going through a divorce...
...I had a home of my own...
...I hadn't been in school...
...I hadn't been afraid of losing my job...
...I would have known where to go for help....
...my friends had not convinced me that adoption is worse than abortion...
...I hadn't been out drinking after getting pregnant, because I was frightened the baby might have fetal alcohol syndrome...

...and on and on. Most of these situations can be 'fixed'. All of these situations can be handled with a lot of help and emotional support.

Answer 3

Yes Primo I do agree. A woman should have some counseling. I don't know that it should be mandatory though. I think maybe a mandatory one visit for the Dr. to determine the stability of the woman making the decision. After that it should be a womans choice. There are surgeries such as Hysterectomies and mastectomies where counseling is given once and the woman is assessed for her frame of mind and then if it is determined she needs more counseling to adjust to her body changes and situation, then it is offered and encouraged for continued counsel for a few more sessions.. I think this should be handled the same for abortion cases.
****ann

Answer 4

Not mandatory. Mandatory counseling is not likely to have a positive effect on anyone. But it is already offered and recommended at clinics.
In Japan, women make small "dolls" representing the terminated pregnancy. They don't really look like people. They are hard to explain. They believe they have caused another soul to have a hiccup in their reincarnations. It is a way to atone and move on. Some western women write poems about their choice. Some write letters to the would be child. I think it is healthy.
I know women who never regretted their choice to terminate for a moment, others who've always wished they'd have been in a different situation or had been able to parent a child at that time, and still others who were forced into the abortion by parents and are still grieving to this day. It depends on the woman and the situation as to how the process the abortion emotionally.
EDIT: The answer previous to mine shows some good insite. I agree whole heartedly. I know far more women who are emotionally scared from motherhood than from abortions. For some it is a mixed blessing, for others, not a blessing at all.

Answer 5

In Ohio, you do see a counselor, but the counselor works for the clinic so unfortunately has a biased opinion. I think that you have a great idea though!!
Also the woman choosing abortion also gets information about the baby's development and information about other "options" unfortunately it is given in an envelope and you are not required to read the information once it is given to you. Abortion does have many psychological effects and I think it would be a good idea that the women is properly informed before she chooses to terminate. Many women that choose abortion initially are given the impression that it will remove the problem, but they are not informed of the lasting emotional response that their body will go through!!

another thing in Ohio is that each woman has a sonogram to determine how far along they are. They are not required to view it, but they are offered that option, as well as a picture to take with them.

Answer 6

The screeches heard around the world if it were even seriously approached (The abortion clinics don't want to lose money!)...........although it would be an excellent idea because an abortion can and does cause long-lasting emotional and physical scars for some.

I help found a Crisis Pregnancy Center and we counsel, obviously for a life choice (because we love the woman and her preborn child............I wish everyone opposed to counseling had to sit for awhile with a person agonizing over the abortion they wish they hadn't had...............it's excruciating. And.................don't think the baby doesn't suffer untold agony as well..............

Abortion will remain legal - unfortunately...................the only answer I can see is a great revival.

Answer 7

Yes, this should be mandatory


But knowing America I know this will never happen.


One of my best friends in high school went on with her decision, God bless her soul she past away after a few months after the abortion. Nothing due to the procedure, but emotionally she ended her life. She felt hollow and not right. Till this day I stand against abortion. Its not only physically removing someone from you its also mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

She did not receive counseling....and if she was aware post abortion suicide and why it happens...I think she would be still alive.

Abortion is not another ballot to vote on or another issue politics bring up

Its lives!

There should be pre-counseling, it should be filled with facts of what there gonna do, what are the side effects, and possible complications. Educating is the best thing to do
and if I may add

Since I was a little "ZYGOTE" in my mothers body
I thank her for making the right decision for not having to pop a pill or suck me out to get rid of me.

Love yah mom!

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4768323811269101871&q=nick+cannon+pro+life+song&total=7&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0

Answer 8

You will not stop abortions. If you outlaw it, then they will go back to the ways before the laws and have anyone perform the job. Sometimes killing the baby and the mother.
But I do agree with you that abortions should include counseling to make sure that this is appropriate for the mother and that she makes the right decision. The difficult thing is to have people do the counseling without judgment and blame. They also need to talk about prevention later.

Answer 9

Personally, I think it would be good to have PRE abortion counseling along with POST abortion counseling. Maybe if there were counseling for a woman to go through BEFORE she had an abortion, there would be more thought put into the decision than "I don't want a baby right now".


It should be part of the price of the abortion. If the woman chooses to go that route, why wouldn't she have to foot the bill for the counseling that would go along with it?


Without a male, it wouldn't be possible to have a baby to kill in the first place, so why wouldn't it be his business just because he is a male? The day a woman can make a baby without the assistance of a man, is the day abortion will no longer be a man's business.

Answer 10

From what I've heard, giving birth and raising a child can have long-term psychological effects as well as physical.

Do you feel that counseling of some sort should be made mandatory once a woman decides to take the step of having her baby?