Veronica says she does not regret having an abortion many years ago, but she still vividly remembers seeing her unborn baby’s blood in a jar at the abortion facility.
“Veronica,” not her real name, told her abortion story as part of a project called “Craigslist Confessional” by writer Helena Bala.
The woman, described as in her 40s, said she was young when she discovered she was pregnant. The day before her abortion, Veronica said she and her mother spent the day outdoors fishing and taking photos. Her mother apparently did not know that Veronica was pregnant.
Though she was young, Veronica knew she was aborting her child, a separate, living human being inside her womb.
Recalling the day before her abortion, she said: “There were two hearts in my body now, but I didn’t feel any different. I thought about how weird that thought was—that right at this very moment—I had two hearts, and that the next day, I wouldn’t.”
The next day, she walked to the abortion facility by herself. Apparently, she also “got high” on drugs before leaving the house.
She said the environment at the abortion clinic was the opposite of comforting – it was callous and hostile. The waiting room was a “sickly pink” and all the women looked panicked. In the counseling room, she said the doctor sounded judgmental and hostile.
The abortion procedure itself remains vivid in her memory. She recalled:
The first time I noticed the machine nearby was when it whirred into life—purring silently and reassuringly, as if telling me “I’m good at my job; don’t worry.” I looked at the two little jars connected to it, and braced as I felt a slight pinch. I grabbed the nurse’s hand and looked up at her.
Click here to sign up for pro-life news alerts from LifeNews.com
“You’re okay…you’re okay…” the nurse whispered, giving my hand a quick squeeze.
I kept my eyes fixed on the jars and then suddenly—without warning—a bright crimson splashed against the pristine glass. I stared at the explosion of color, transfixed, until the nurse followed my terrified glance, realizing for the first time that the machine had slid into view.
The bright red blood in that jar was the destroyed body of her unborn child. His or her heart no longer was beating.
Years have gone by since then, and Veronica said she does not regret her abortion. She said she does feel “stigmatized” by society. But stigma is not to blame for the pain and trauma surrounding abortion. In Veronica’s story, her pain stands out the most when she describes what her abortion was – the killing of her unborn child. She knew that her unborn child had a heartbeat and was a separate, living human being inside her body. Her child depended on her for life, but she chose to have her child aborted.
This is the root of her pain, not society’s judgment. Abortion activists’ constant blaming of societal stigma just adds to the damage by pushing women like Veronica to bury their pain and grief, rather than deal with it. Women like Veronica deserve to know that their pain is rooted in their child’s death and their choice. This knowledge can lead to healing and forgiveness.
Across the world, there are compassionate, non-judgmental programs and individuals who are eager to help women work through the pain and regret of aborting their unborn child. These counseling programs tell women that it is ok for them to mourn their aborted child, because he or she was a child.
LifeNews Note: File photo.
