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Babies: 3 - 6 Months
Controversial Topic: Abortion
Have your views changed on abortion now that you've become a mom?
If so, how have they changed? Pro-choice before, pro-life now (or vice versa)? Why?
I was reading this article and found it pretty interesting. I personally can't believe that it is legal for some states to be doing abortions up until the end of the 2nd trimester.
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Controversial Topic: Abortion
I was strongly pro-choice before I got pregnant and am even more so now. Pregnancy is so hard both emotionally and physically and if you aren't in a position to have a child/aren't prepared to have a child and take on the challenge of pregnancy I think you have every right to be able to choose not to.
My views haven't changed, I am still pro-life.
Respectfully, it is medically unethical and unconstitutional. Murder for selfish reasons is deplorable.
The majority of people getting abortions in the late 2nd trimester aren't getting them because they up and decided they don't want to be pregnant. They are getting them because their baby has a condition that is incompatible with life and they would like to spare their child immense pain upon birth.
And I am still pro-choice but it did change my views on when life began.
This.
This.
DD february 2010 | DS october 2011
*please excuse my typos, bumping from my iphone*
I was pro-life before and I'm even more so pro-life now. I am the mother of 2 children and have three step kids. I do understand having to make that decision if it's a life changing thing. LIke the child will face terrible consequences or has really no chance of life or if the mother is facing those things. I still don't like it then but I understand it. Other than that, It's a disgusting act.
I know a girl that uses abortion as birth control. 9 abortions in all. She has finally decided to get her tubes tied.
I was pro-life before her, she strengthened my opinion, and now that I'm a mother, I can honestly say that I'd take the risk of losing my own life to give the gift of life to my child. But that's just me. I will never critisize someone else for their decision, I just won't do it myself.
This
I am pro choice as I was before. Could I ever have an abortion myself? I really do not think I could. But I also realize that I might end up in a situation in my life where I need to do so, and I am glad I have that choice available to me.
And even more so, it's my opinion that those who are pro-life should invest their energies in effective pregnancy prevention measures, like comprehensive sex ed and readily available and covered birth control options, as well as allowing gay parents to adopt and simplifying the adoption process for those who wish to do so.
I don't understand what this has to do with being pro-life. I think everyone should do this anyway, whether they be pro-life or pro-choice. I especially agree with the adoption part: adoption in the US is ridiculously difficult. Which is terrible because there are so many children without families and so many people wanting to adopt.
Prochoice. Always.
People generally don't get late-term abortions just for fun. And even if they did - the government has no business deciding that a fetus should override the life of the mother.
Agree 100%
Mommy loves you Eevee!
<a href="http://s834.photobucket.com/albums/zz270/cpali/?action=view
Pro-choice then, pro-choice now. Pregnancy changed my perception of when I would be comfortable terminating a pregnancy. I've never had an abortion and probably never will, but before I got pregnant I had no idea how much development occurs by the end of the first trimester.
However, my personal comfort level has nothing to do with my belief that women should be the only determiners of their fertility.
The abortion rate has barely moved in the last century. All Roe v. Wade did was make abortion safe. Overturning it would only drive it back underground and cause women to get hurt unnecessarily, especially young and poor women.
Mainly that I get so disappointed when I see the regular crew picketing outside our local Planned Parenthood office, when really they should be inside volunteering! I just feel that if you really want to prevent abortions from happening, banning abortion is not really the most effective (or even the safest!) way to do that.
I have always been pro-choice and always will be. No one has the right to tell a woman what she can and cannot do with her own body. I find it deplorable that anyone would believe otherwise.
I would have an abortion if I needed to save my own life or if I was pregnant with a child who would live a short, painful life. It's none of anyone's business what choices I make for my own body.
If you want to lower the abortion rate, work to lower the rate of people living in poverty.
The only thing picketing outside of PP accomplishes is shaming women.
(but honestly, I think the shaming is more their goal)
I'm one of those 'picketers' you're referring to, and our goal is never to shame women, but to help those in crisis pregnancy situations. At least in our area, women go to PP because they feel like they have no other choice, not because they want to exercise their 'freedom of choice'. Also, our beef isn't with the women but with PP as an organization.
I agree that lowering the abortion rate is to help those in poverty, and encourage personal responsiblity of fertility!
Thanks for answering. For some reason I have been thinking about this topic a lot lately. I will say I am pro-life. I used to be in the pro-choice camp but have changed. I think there are a LOT of gray areas on the subject as far as medical reasons go. As for the black & white issue of killing or not- it is what it is- killing a baby. And for that reason I will always be pro-life. I also agree about promoting preventative measures, free birth control, sex-ed classes, etc. Especially in impoverished communities that couldn't afford these things otherwise.
ETA: When I say I used to be in the pro-choice camp, I meant to say I was always pro-life personally but thought it was a woman's right to choose. But now I will say I am in no way comfortable with that. On the other hand, I wouldn't want the government regulating it to push it into an underground/black-market type business either.
You have your right to this opinion and I appreciate the opinion you voiced. I'm not saying this to point you out or even cause a heated debate but what I often wonder when I hear this argument is this:
If no one has a right to tell a woman what to do with her own body then why does the woman have the right to make the choice for a child to live or die when THAT is not the womans body? Doesn't it seem just common sense that even though the child is living in the womans body, you are actually invading the childs body when you abort?
Has anyone ever watched abortion videos? I had to do a huge presentation on abortion in college. It was a topic picked for me. At the time, I was pro-life as in the sense of I didn't want to take the life of a child but I didn't know what it entailed. When you watch an abortion in progress or see the pictures of what is done to these children, it will chill you to the bone and may change your thinking a little. Out of 65 people in my class, at the beginning of my presentation it was surveyed that 63 of them were pro-choice. At the end when they re-evaluated, only 7 of them still were pro-choice. When you see it in detail, it hits a nerve.
Again, I'm not attacking. I'm just stating what I personally believe.
I personally am grateful to PP. No, I never went there for an abortion, but I received free BCP, condoms, the Depo shot and annual exams while I was in college from them. Again, BC is against my religion, but it is something that I chose to do anyway. I did not need to get KU in college with the lame ass BFs I had.....
The fact is, there is a no easy answer here. There is differing opinion on when life begins. But, like it or not, legally, she is a person and a fetus isn't. She's the one who has rights.
I think personal feelings about the morality or ethics of abortion is a completely separate issue from the choice debate. No one likes abortion. To me, being pro-choice means that I think abortion should be legal for any woman who doesn't want to continue a pregnancy, regardless of her circumstances. I don't have to agree with her reasons, or with her decision. I just want her to have access to safe, legal abortion. Just because we may disagree doesn't mean she should have to risk her life in order to regain control of it. History has shown that legality isn't much of a deterrent. Desperate women will have their abortions, safe or unsafe.
Furthermore, the issue of fetal "personhood" doesn't just affect women seeking abortion. It affects anyone planning to have children. If fetus' are people, the balance of power between pregnant women and their doctors changes. It means the state could have a say in your prenatal care and in how you choose to labor and deliver.
Personal responsibility of fertility is very important, I agree. What is also important is sex ed for young people. I teach teenagers and you have no idea how many of them have no idea that sex leads to pregnancy. They don't learn it at home and they don't learn about it at school. These are girls that have already had sex! I know it might sound unbelievable, but it is true. Until we start talking honestly about sexuality in this country, abortions will continue due to uneducation. And no one wants that.
On top of all of this is the fact that some young women are sexually abused and/or coerced in to sex by people that they know or trust. Until women are more empowered to stand up for themselves, there will continue to be unwanted pregnancy. The issue of "personal responsiblity of fertility" is not cut and dry.
BTW- I'm pro-choice, always have been. The thought of abortion is horrifying to me, especially since I had DD, but I believe we have to trust women to make decisions for themselves.
Pro-choice. Nothing will change that. I have no business caring how other people deal with their reproductive and fertility issues. I do think better sex ed and contraceptive access, especially in rural and poor communities, would reduce the rate of abortion.
Saying "put them up for adoption, lots of people want babies" is nice, but look at the foster system. It is overburdened and underfunded, in some part because of people who had babies they didn't want/couldn't care for (for a variety of reasons). How in the world would we, as a country, handle more unwanted babies? And I cannot even imagine what people who give their babies up for adoption go through in terms of mental anguish throughout the pregnancy and adoption process. Explaining over and over you won't take that baby home, for one. What a nightmare. Deciding to terminate a pregnancy isn't a simple decision (for the vast majority of rational, moral people anyway - and in regards to second tri abortions - those are nearly always due to health issues), but I strongly believe it has less lasting effects on a person's mental health than giving up a baby for adoption.
Of course, adoption IS a terrific option for someone who can't care for a baby and doesn't want to or cannot terminate for whatever reason.
I really struggle with what I think is right. I see both sides. I feel so incredibly blessed to have a baby and I can't imagine not having her. I also see so many couples unable to have a baby and I think "why are we allowing this?" THEN I think of all the people who don't believe in abortion and won't let someone adopt their baby, but are not good parents. All of that said, I'm not sure what the answer is, and I don't want to be the one deciding for others what the right choice is. So in the end I'm pro choice.
My views have become nothing but stronger. I was pro life before and still am.
I have faced the argument of incest, rape, even a non viable fetus but I don't believe in abortion at all. How I look at it, is God started that babies heart, who am I/you to stop it. I hate the argument that it's a woman's body and she has the right to choose. I believe you do choose when you decide to have sex. (I understand that won't be the case in some situations but I still don't believe abortion is the answer).
I also believe we need more help for the moms that choose life. (even those that don't) I know there are several programs available but I would like to continue to see more, and also get more involved myself.
Please note that while I may hate abortion, I'm not condemning or judging the mothers. I can't imagine having to be in such an unfortunate situation and I have no desire to be the one to judge them for their decisions.
This in its entirety! Well said!
Oh settle down. She clearly said this is how she views abortion, and that she doesn't judge women who get abortions. She just thinks it's wrong.
And you should research where the phrase "separation of church and state" comes from. It originates from a letter written by Thomas Jefferson where he advocates it is an idividuals right to practice a religion, not influenced by the government. Read the First Amendment if you're confused.
I don't feel that it's fair to expect a 14 year old who was raped to go through with a pregnancy, but I also think that the decision to abort needs to be made very early, because a 12 week old fetus does seem like a real life to me. Seeing my LO squirm around on the ultra sound for the NT scan certainly had an affect.
I do think that later term abortions need to be kept available for babies with devastating conditions that would not be compatible with life - I would hate to make the little thing suffer if in fact they are suffering. And if the mother is in danger, I think it should be her choice what to do.
When it comes down to it, to protect those who really do have good reason for an abortion I probably fall in the pro-choice camp. Some pro-life individuals are extreme enough that they would require a mother who was at high risk of dying to continue on with the pregnancy - and I can't get behind that!
I was prochoice before LO and remain prochoice now. Especially after being pregnant, I can't imagine forcing someone to go through the entire process unwillingly.
It isn't proabortion. It's not like I want everyone to go out and terminate pregnancies. I'd love people to be better educated so that there are fewer unplanned pregnancies and, therefore, fewer abortions.
Burned by the Bear
I was pretty in the middle before, which probably makes me pro-choice. I believed that life begins at conception and while I believed that every life should be lived, I also didn't think that it was up to the government to decide. Now, I am pro-choice.
I found out that my daughter had a birth defect, and we honestly considered whether or not it was right to bring her into the world with a condition that would make her life difficult. Obviously we chose to have her and now just the thought of terminating makes me want to throw up. But we were given the choice. And that choice was made with our doctors, and could have been done in a safe and respectful way. Ironically, it was reading a story about another woman who terminated a pregnancy whose baby had the same condition that made me realize I couldn't do it.
I have always felt that every woman has to live with her own choices and should be free to make them. However, I personally would never be able to choose an abortion now that I've been through the experience with my son.
Oh, I forgot to mention this.
Before being pregnant and having my son, I used to fee that the father should have a say in the matter. That he should be able to voice his opinion on whether he was ready to be a parent and that he could even say that he wanted to be a parent even if the woman wasn't ready.
I no longer feel that any man has any way in the matter. Simply put, even the most involved father plays such a minor role in the process that I no longer feel that men should be allowed to voice any thoughts on the matter. As nutty as it may seem, I don't even feel that men or woman without children should be allowed to make legislation regarding woman's health and abortion. There truly is no way to understand it without experiencing it.
This is how I feel. It should definitely be an option for all women, I don't think I could have an abortion now that I've had a child.