A new study shows that over 70% of women describe their abortions as “inconsistent with their own values and preferences,” and nearly one in four consider their abortions to have been “unwanted or coerced.” This reaffirms once again that the abortion agenda does not support the health and welfare of women or promote their best interests.
“This study confirms earlier findings that the hidden epidemic of unwanted abortions is real, and far larger than most people imagine. We need to discard the dangerous assumption that ‘freedom of choice’ reflects the reality behind most women’s experiences with abortion,” lead author David Reardon wrote. “Only the minority of abortions are freely chosen absent outside pressures.”
Prior research found that over 60% of women who consented to an abortion experienced high levels of pressure to abort from one or more sources. Abortion is rarely a mother’s first choice or her ideal resolution to an unplanned pregnancy. Planned Parenthood and other pro-abortion organizations purport to help women in crisis, but in reality they are enabling women to be coerced into a medical procedure they will likely regret for the rest of their lives.
“Mail-order abortion pills remove the doctor from the room and make it easier than ever to force abortions on women and girls who do not want them – their distress compounded by the sight of their baby’s clearly human body. Countless women suffer in silence under the guise of ‘choice,’ when they never felt like they truly had one,” senior research associate and a co-author of the study Tessa Longbons said.
Abortion advocates want to talk about everything but the fact that the majority of abortions are unwanted, coerced and harmful to women. They refuse to acknowledge the reality that the vast majority of abortions are performed on healthy, viable babies and the impact it has on the mother is life-long and deeply traumatic. Additionally, the risk of chemical and surgical abortions are rarely disclosed to women in full before the procedures, and countless abortions every year result in hospitalizations and serious side effects. There are no safe abortions.
“The morning after (the abortion) was done, I immediately felt empty. I felt like something was missing. I cried myself to sleep every night after. I could not get out of bed. I know God has forgiven me but I can’t seem to forgive myself,” one woman said of her abortion experience.
Abortion is never the answer – no sane woman wants to destroy a life that is growing inside of her. There are viable alternatives to abortion that many women in crisis are unfortunately unaware of.
There is a strong need in our community to reach out and care for women who are struggling with an unplanned pregnancy and considering abortion. If you are in a position to minister to these women, consider partnering with local pregnancy centers to help mothers with their unplanned pregnancies. No woman should feel alone, abandoned or hopeless for making the right decision to bring her child into the world.
