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1. Are you sure
you are pregnant?
Pregnancy test results can be inaccurate. Only a physician
using a physical exam where he or she feels changes in your
body, hears a heartbeat, or reads an ultrasound image of the
fetus, can "diagnose" a pregnancy.
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Your
pregnancy may not be viable. An ultrasound can confirm if you have a
viable uterine pregnancy and can determine how far along you are.
Some pregnancies develop in one of the tubes leading from the
ovaries into the uterus (ectopic pregnancy). If this is not
discovered, the tube will rupture and a woman can even die from loss
of blood if she is not treated immediately.
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About 10% of women suffer immediate
complications, 1/5 of which are considered life threatening:
infections, excessive bleeding, embolism, ripping or perforation of
the uterus, anesthesia complications, convulsions, hemorrhage,
cervical injury and endotoxic shock. 3 - 5% of women are left
sterile.
 Long term physical complications can include the following:
abnormal development of the placenta in later pregnancies that can
lead to malformation or death of the baby; cervical and uterine
damage from abortion can cause premature delivery and labor
complications in later pregnancies.
28 out of 37 studies
show that having an induced abortion increases a risk of developing
breast cancer. Women who abort their first baby have about a 50%
increased risk in developing breast cancer, and women who are under
18 and have an abortion suffer about a 150% increased risk. Cancer
risks for cervical, ovarian and liver cancer also increase. This is
apparently linked to the unnatural disruption in the hormone changes
of pregnancy when a woman has an abortion.
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No one, not even parents or
a husband, can force any woman to undergo an abortion. You, and only
you, will be asked to sign a consent form at the abortion clinic. If
you do not sign the consent form, the abortion cannot legally be
performed.
If you are seeking an abortion within the jurisdiction of
the United States, you have the right to insist that the abortion be
performed by a licensed physician, and the right to insist that this
physician be insured to protect your interests in case of injury or
death.
Ask for the name of the physician who will perform the
procedure and where his or her hospital privileges are.
Your freedom
of choice gives you the right to change your mind and keep your
baby, even when you are on the table for the abortion. You can
change your mind at any time while you are at the clinic, before the
abortion is performed.
Some abortion providers
insist that all patients sign a statement saying they will not hold
the clinic or the doctor liable for damages which might occur
because of the abortion. This document has virtually no legal
authority. If you are physically and/or emotionally injured, you
always retain your constitutional right to seek financial
compensation in a court of law, no matter what you signed.
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It is important for you to know as much as
possible about the procedure that will be used if you decide to
abort. You should know this about any medical procedure performed on
your body.
The most common abortion procedure is suction . For more
information on late term and chemical abortion, see our Education
Section.
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Day 21 - the heart begins to beat
Day 35 - five fingers can be discerned in the
hand
Day 40 - brain waves can be detected
and recorded
Week 6 - The liver is now taking over the production
of blood cells and the brain begins to control movement of muscles
and organs. The mother is about to miss her second
period.
Week 8 - Everything is present that
will be found in a fully developed adult. The heart has been beating
for more than a month, the fetus' body responds to touch, although
the mother will not be able to feel movement until the fourth or
fifth month.
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Will there be an
ultrasound and who will be doing the ultrasound? Is there an
additional cost? What is the purpose of the ultrasound? Will you be
able to see the ultrasound screen? One purpose for doing an
ultrasound in the abortion clinic, besides determining how big the
fetus is, is to determine if you have twins. An abortion could be
performed on a person carrying twins and only one fetus might be
aborted. If part or all of the other fetus is left in the womb,
severe infection and complications could result.
Will you be given a
blood test? Most often it is to determine your hemoglobin level, to
see if you are healthy enough for surgery, and to test for the RH
factor. It is particularly important that they test for the RH
factor. Be sure to ask if the clinic tests for the RH
factor.
Ask about other costs following the abortion. You may leave
with prescriptions for bleeding and infection. Ask how much these
drugs usually cost. Is there a cost for a follow up visit? Is there
a follow up visit at all?
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Most STD's can
infect you for long periods of time with no symptoms. It is
estimated that 1 in 5 Americans is now infected with a viral STD.
This does not include the bacterial STDs such as chlamydia,
syphilis, and gonorrhea which are at very high levels. Tragically,
63% of these infections occur in persons under age 25.
Ask if the
clinic tests for STDs (sexually transmitted diseases) and if they
do, which of the 20 plus STD's they check for and why. Is there an
additional charge?
If the clinic does not
test for STDs you should see your doctor to check if you have an STD
and be treated before an abortion. This is so important because PID
(Pelvic Inflammatory Disease) is a potentially life threatening
disease which can lad to an increased risk of ectopic pregnancy and
reduced fertility. Of patients who have a chlamydia infection at the
time of an abortion, 23% will develop PID within 4 weeks. Studies
have found that 20 - 27% of patients seeking abortion have a
chlamydia infection.
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PAS (Post Abortion Syndrome)
is a psychological disorder which occurs when abortion is experienced
as a traumatic event. Symptoms may include anxiety attacks,
outbursts of anger or rage, sleep disorders, flashbacks about
the abortion, nightmares about the abortion or baby, intense
grief or depression, withdrawal from relationships.
Post Abortion trauma
varies from one individual to another in its symptoms, intensity,
and the time of onset. It can be seen soon after the abortion but it
can be most intense 5 to 10 years after an abortion.
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Choices are good! Our organization
has all this information and more. All our services are free and
confidential. We want you to make an informed decision. Help is
available, call todayor email
us.
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