An unplanned pregnancy can feel overwhelming. The timing is usually terrible. The situation is wrong. Perhaps a young lady just started a new job or is still in school. Maybe she isn’t married and her parents will be disappointed. Sometimes infidelity or medical problems factor in. There are so many variables, stresses and pressures created by an unplanned pregnancy.
Let’s Just Erase the Pregnancy
Can’t we just erase the pregnancy? Pretend it never happened? It isn’t really that easy. A woman can’t undo her pregnancy. Once that test is positive, not only is there a tiny unborn life within her womb, but she knows it. How do you erase knowledge? The knowledge of her pregnancy will stay with her over her entire lifetime. She can end her pregnancy through abortion and that may seem like an escape from all the pressures. No one has to know about it. She can pretend it never happened, but ultimately, she still knows. She knows that her child will not continue to grow within her. Some women do find relief from the fears and anxiety surrounding their pregnancy after an abortion, but often at the cost of adding another stress/loss. If a woman is honest with herself, she will recognize that she has been changed by her pregnancy whether she chooses to carry or to abort.
Hope for Post Abortive Women
Women need to grieve and reconcile their thoughts and feelings regarding an abortion. As with any other deep loss, certain times of year and or life events can trigger painful thoughts and emotions. Due dates, abortion dates, marriage and future children, and even seeing other children on a playground or hearing about a relative’s pregnancy can lead a woman to wonder about the child she aborted. Abortion involves losing a child, and the loss of a child is known to be one of the most difficult losses to navigate. Factor in guilt and ambivalence about the abortion into the grief equation and it can get kind of messy. Woman struggling after an abortion can work through their grief and find hope by attending an abortion recovery retreat or class. True Care offers abortion recovery classes and can connect women with the resources they need to start the healing process. If you or someone you know is struggling with a past abortion, contact Terry Winship at True Care by phone (307-473-2275) or email (info@truecarecasper.org). Our next abortion recovery group will begin Feb. 4th.