METHODS OF ABORTION
Before you decide to abort your child, it is important that you understand what the process will involve.
...you should be
fully aware of what will happen...so you can be sure you're
making the right decision.
Understandably, health professionals and organisations are often very careful in the language they use to describe the abortion process. They may focus on describing what the woman will feel, missing out details which the mother might find distressing, like what actually happens to the baby during this time, what is done to the baby's body afterwards, or some of the serious potential side effects for women post-abortion.
However, if you are going to make such a big decision in an informed way, you should be fully aware of what will happen during and after your abortion, so you can be sure you're making the right decision.
Several methods can be used to abort a baby, depending on factors such as the stage of pregnancy and the state of the mother. Below are the main methods, with a description of the process involved.
Suction Aspiration (Vacuum Curettage)
This technique is often used in the first trimester of pregnancy. A cannula is inserted into the uterus, attached via a tube to a suction machine. The force of the suction, together with sharp edges near the opening of the tube, pulls the baby apart - dismembering it in order to allow the body parts to fit through the tube and into the collection jar.
Understandably, you will not be shown the contents of the jar. If you are willing to look, an image of the results of suction aspiration can be seen here, including tiny but clearly formed arms and legs: www.spuc.org.uk/education/abortion/abortion-images/vacuum-aspiration.
Some women who have been through this process talk about the machine "sucking the life out of them", and of still being able to remember the noise of the machine in later life.
Examples of potential health risks from this procedure include problems such as punctuation of the uterus (which can lead to hemorrhage) and infection (if any of the baby is left in the womb afterwards).
Mifepristone (RU486)
Mifepristone is a common abortion drug, used in the first half of pregnancy. Some women may opt for mifepristone because they see it as a more private, less invasive method of abortion when compared to surgical methods.
However, there are a number of problems involved with using this method.
For a start, some women are not allowed to take mifepristone for a variety of reasons, such as age (being under 18 or over 35), smoking, or health concerns (such as asthma or obesity).
The process itself typically involves various stages spanning several days or more. After an internal examination, mifepristone is administered, followed two days later by a dose of prostaglandin. Theoretically, the womb lining should start to break down a few hours later.
...the mother will
deliver the dead baby herself, often on her own, as it exits the
womb...
A significant problem with the use of an abortion drug such as mifepristone is the fact that the mother will "deliver" the dead baby herself, often on her own, as it exits the womb along with the womb lining via bleeding. While the baby will be small, it will often have clearly formed human features and be recognisable to the mother as a small baby. This in itself could prove very traumatic, both then and in later life, as testified by women who have been through it.
There is also a very wide range of potential side effects
associated with this method, some of which you may not be warned
of beforehand. It should also be noted that, since
mifepristone is a relatively new drug lacking in long-term
studies, the full implications of the drug for women in later life
(including how it may affect future pregnancy) are not yet known.
Further details about this drug, together with quotes about its risks, can be found here: www.spuc.org.uk/education/abortion/ru486.
Dilation and Evacuation
This procedure, generally used from the 15th week of pregnancy onwards, requires the use of forceps rather than simply suction, as the baby's bones are better developed. The person performing the abortion must use forceps to dismember the baby, using a combination of twisting and pulling to remove parts of the baby's body and pull them out piece by piece.
As the skull has grown and hardened by this point, it will often need to be crushed by force with the forceps before it can be removed from the uterus.
Great care has to be taken to avoid scratching or piercing the uterus wall with pieces of bone which are being removed; even without this occurring, heavy bleeding may follow.
A series of medical diagrams for this procedure, together with a leading abortion practioner's frank description of the process, can be found here: www.abort73.com/abortion/abortion_techniques/.
Sources of information can be found here:
www.nrlc.org/abortion/medicalfacts/techniques/
www.spuc.org.uk/youth/student_info_on_abortion/methods
www.spuc.org.uk/education/abortion/ru486