Click on the links below to read stories from women who've experienced abortion, including unwanted and coerced abortions.
"I was totally unprepared for the pain."
I had more "counseling" when I went to have breast implants than when I went to have an abortion. (At least the plastic surgeon had me fill out a personality and family history questionnaire to determine "suitability" for the procedure.) ...
...There were no warnings of possible risks, i.e. perforated uterus, hemorrhaging, sterility, breast cancer, depression. I was told that an abortion was safer than carrying a child full term. I was totally unprepared for the pain, both physical and emotional, that I would endure."
Anonymous
"...I felt this gripping pain -- it hurt so bad that I cried out. The doctor told me "shut up" because there were 'other girls' and the "walls were thin."
Carol St. Amour, in Aborted Women, Silent No More
(Carol later died of cervical cancer)
Janet’s Story: “I cannot think why the gun did not fire.”“With quiet deliberation, I took my handgun from under my pillow … I chambered a round, walked into my living room, sat in a chair, put the gun to my head and pulled the trigger. To this day, I cannot think why the gun did not fire … I find it amazing in retrospect, how we can function so well in front of others, while suffering like that.”
Janet, in Forbidden Grief
"We could have saved Sheryl's life!" my mind screamed.
"But he had a date and the margaritas were waiting." |
Carol Everett and her abortionist partner had what they felt was "the Neiman-Marcus of the abortion industry" in the early 1980s. They had a record of no complications--until they decided to go for the big money by doing late abortions. Operating on one woman who was about twenty- two weeks pregnant, the abortionist perforated her uterus and pulled out the lining of her colon. Instead of calling an ambulance—which could have given the clinic bad publicity—Everett drove the woman to a hospital, where she had a colostomy. The abortionist persuaded a colleague to reverse the colostomy later at no charge; he also arranged for the hospital to write off bills for both surgeries. There was no lawsuit.
Another abortionist at an Everett clinic perforated a woman's uterus and also severed her urinary tract. Again Everett drove the woman to a hospital instead of calling an ambulance. "We were maiming at least one woman a month" at one point, she recalled. read more
Other resources with women's stories |
Fact Sheets and Booklets
Portraits of Coercion Flyer – Quick overview this issue, with facts and poignant quotes
Forced Abortion In America: A Special Report -- a 21 page special report that includes women's stories. For statistics only, see the Forced Abortion fact sheet.
Books
Giving Sorrow Words: Women's Stories of Grief After Abortion
Forbidden Grief: The Unspoken Pain of Abortion
Aborted Women, Silent No More
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