Nebraska First to Allow Women to Sue for Psychological Injury After Abortion

After Abortion ^ | 7-18-10

[Salvation]

**storm the courts ladies ... **

And don’t forget the fathers of these aborted babies who were often left out of the decisions...

[DustyMoment]

I think most women know that sex can cause pregnancy.

I'm not so sure. I have heard of too many women who, after having sex, asked their partner where babies come from.

I'm not unsympathetic to the plight of unwed pregnant women but, I reiterate, there is plenty of information available. With all of the resources (other than the DBM) that anyone can access for honest information about this topic, I still think that they can find the necessary data if they want to.

I understand the fear, feelings and panic women face. I also understand that this is something that women who have undergone an abortion have failed to come together to let other women (and girls) know their options and choices. How come that isn't part of this debate?

[mlizzy]

I also understand that this is something that women who have undergone an abortion have failed to come together to let other women (and girls) know their options and choices. How come that isn't part of this debate?

That is a very good question, and I've often thought it would be the post-abortive mother that would end abortion, pure and simple, but the devil is quite foxy (and very evil), and he took care of that early on. A post abortive mother, even though she may feel (or know!) the mistake even before the actual procedure, cannot sometimes, for decades (yes, decades!) admit this to herself openly, much less to others. Abortion silences much more than the baby. It silences the mother, too. I had a Web site up once; it was for the bringing together of post-abortive mothers and fathers (and their children in heaven) to pray for the end of abortion. And that was the #1 similar thread throughout those who joined the group. They had all been muted by shame for differing, but significant amounts of time. The women who hold the "I Regret My Abortion" signs at pro-Life rallies are not always, but usually in their 50s and 60s. That's how long it takes to heal; they then can turn around and help others. Now what young woman, let's say who is 19-early 20s listens to a 60-year-old grey-haired "old" lady about the complications from abortion she's about to endure. (Again, the devil is brilliant!) It will be through prayer, fasting, protesting, and the grace of God through the reception of the Most Holy Eucharist that will ultimately end abortion forever ...

[mlizzy]

And don’t forget the fathers of these aborted babies who were often left out of the decisions...

And the fathers too, indeed! (ty)

[Jean2]

How true that is. OTOH; what can you expect from an organization that was founded by the repulsive Margaret Sanger. She was a huge propotent of Hitler-style eugenics.

[ArrogantBustard]

Sorry, this is wrong. Those women knew (or should have known) the consequences of their actions!!

Do you know any women who have committed abortions? Have you discussed the matter in detail with them? Have you ever discussed abortion with women who are actively considering committing it, or being pressured to do so?

"Should have known"?

Sure.

In a perfect world.

We don't live in perfectville ... we live in a world filled with liars in government, the mass media, and the abortion industry, who specialize in lying about abortion to all and sundry.

[exDemMom]

There is abundant information on the tactics of PP that is available to anyone who wants to thoroughly understand what they are getting into. Too many people don't want to know what they are getting into - they want to hear that they are doing the right and necessary thing by aborting their child.

The pressure argument also doesn't fly - at least, not with me. When someone starts putting a lot of pressure on me to do something that I'm not sure is right or wrong, it is a signal to me that something is wrong. As many lawyers will tell you, if a deal is good today, it will still be good tomorrow. If it isn't, take your money and run as hard as you can the other way.

In an ideal world, girls would be mature enough to recognize the pressure tactics being used on them.

Unfortunately, PP hard sells abortion beginning long before a girl "accidentally" gets pregnant. When I was in high school, a salesgirl from PP came to speak to my biology class. She talked about all the different forms of contraceptives, but along with the valid information, stressed how dangerous those methods are and how prone to failure they are, intentionally trying to give the impression that they're extremely dangerous and don't work. She talked not only about how safe abortion is, but told us that having an abortion, especially a late abortion, would cure menstrual cramps. A fifteen year old girl probably doesn't know she's lying--I sure didn't. And the way she addressed whether the child is alive--she laughed, and said that some people might believe that, and some might even believe the sperm and egg are alive, HA HA HA. She was very slick.

Couple the hard sell methods with the other messages--like pro-lifers don't want women to have rights, they just want to force them all into the kitchen, barefoot and pregnant. Not every girl is suspicious enough to examine their motives, or to start digging around for information. It is a sad reality that they often have an abortion (or two or...) before they start learning anything about the truth. And then they often don't want to hear it.

[DustyMoment]

Now what young woman, let's say who is 19-early 20s listens to a 60-year-old grey-haired "old" lady about the complications from abortion she's about to endure. (Again, the devil is brilliant!) It will be through prayer, fasting, protesting, and the grace of God through the reception of the Most Holy Eucharist that will ultimately end abortion forever ...

Your point is well made that young women are not going to listen to the words of a bunch of "60-year-old grey-haired old ladies" about this. So, what's the answer?? I'm still not convinced that suing the abortion Dr. and/or the clinic is going to assuage the guilt that you and others have expressed on this issue.

[DustyMoment]

Because I’m feeling a little lazy this morning, I’m not going to dissect your reply line by line. Suffice it to say that I understand your argument and there are some valid points being made. However, IMO, that doesn’t turn into a payday from a lawsuit against the abortion clinic.

Way back in the dark ages (the 60s) when I was in high school, we all knew that if a boy and girl had sex, there was a 50-50 chance of a pregnancy resulting. We also knew that if the boy used a condom, the chances of that pregnancy occurring were reduced to ALMOST zero. And, we knew that a pregnancy was not going to be welcome news at home. The only part of that that has changed since I was in school is that there is less social stigma associated with having a child out of wedlock and too much acceptance.

The pressure on girls to “put out” (an ugly term I really don’t like) has not really increased because both teenage boys and girls have these hormones raging inside - the same raging hormones we had when I was in high school. Without proper guidance (and, as we know, they aren’t getting that from the public schools) both boys and girls don’t know how to properly channel their energy, curiosity and raging hormones. If they are not getting the information at home from their parents or from their church or synagogue (and, based on a casual observation, they aren’t), then we get what we have today - either a significantly high incidence of teenage mothers having children out of wedlock, or visits to the abortion clinic.

Again, the influences and the information are there. But, parents not wanting to parent their children and teenagers who are not engaged in safe, chaperoned social events, still doesn’t add up to a payday from the abortion clinic. Too many parents are satisfied to let the schools usurp their rights to raise their children and provide them with values. If you are on this site, you know that the schools have morphed into extremely liberal government indoctrination centers. They’ll teach our children how to put a condom on a cucumber and how to make more subjects . . . . . er, voters . . . . . . . er, TAXPAYERS (yeah, THAT’S it!!), but they don’t want to teach them anything useful.

[mlizzy]

I'm still not convinced that suing the abortion Dr. and/or the clinic is going to assuage the guilt that you and others have expressed on this issue.

No amount of compensatory damages can assuage the guilt of being an accomplice to your own child's murder; to remove guilt, one must be forgiven (through Confession to a Catholic priest, or, if not Catholic, one can contact their clergy for advice, or contact Rachel's Vineyard). The suing is to pay towards any unemployment due to illness brought on by the after-effects of abortion, doctors (psychiatrists, etc.), medications, whether chemical or natural, to deal with the trauma from an abortion they never realized would occur because they were incorrectly advised (or more precisely), weren't advised at all through Planned Parenthood. PP does not "help" pregnant women; in fact, they hurt them to varying degrees and, at the same time, their "doctors" destroy their children forever (to earth). The deadening of one's soul through abortion then encourages repeat visits from the moms and/or referrals, and the cycle of death goes on and on.

Ultrasounds (fewer will sign on to end the life of their baby after seeing their child's beating heart), accurate information as to the possible after-effects of abortion, alternatives ("choices"--adoption); this is what is not offered to women through PP, because they are not in the business of saving Life. This is where they are failing women (fathers and immediate/even extended family members, too). This is why they should be sued.

[exDemMom]

Although I have no sympathy for abortion providers and like to see anything that makes their life harder, I have reservations about this. It seems to be trying in large part to eliminate any blame against the women who choose to have abortions. You poor thing - blame it on the providers. This in turn shifts the costs from the recipient’s mistake to the providers. In fact the whole system seems designed to shift the psycological costs of abortion from those responsible to those better able to bear them.

A lot of women having abortions try to shift the blame away from themselves already by claiming that they were coerced into it. I think such screening is a good idea. If the abortionists are forced to discuss the negative consequences of abortion and require the prospective client to sign a disclosure form, then she can't claim she didn't know what abortion is later on. If she is asked, up front, if she feels coerced into having an abortion, then she would either have to face the fact that she chose to kill the baby, or she would have a chance to refuse if she is being coerced.

[narses]

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[exDemMom]

It sounds like you went through high school a few years before I did. By the time I went through, Roe v. Wade was a reality. We weren’t taught that we should avoid sex or be careful; we were given a hard sell on abortion. No actual information on pregnancy was offered, and pro-lifers were portrayed as being somewhat more eccentric than the Manson family. There was a very deliberate effort to deceive women.

It’s easier to get information these days, but also easier to disseminate disinformation. I’m not ready to place complete blame on women who fall for the false promises in this climate—many of them just don’t have the education or training in critical thought necessary to navigate their way to the truth. I’m absolutely for forcing abortionists to provide accurate information. Although I think it’s a bit late for that info, when the pregnancy has already begun—but what should happen in an ideal world isn’t very likely to happen in this world.

[Melian]

If women were given all the objective facts about abortion, I doubt many would choose it. Some are at the clinic because they are appalled and embarrassed that they are pregnant in this day and age. They’re worried everyone they know will think they’re stupid. They need to be counseled on ways to tell family and friends of their mistake. They need information on the physical and psychological consequences they will endure and the increased risk for certain illnesses, if they proceed. They need to be told what their baby at this stage of its development is actually like, what it can do, and what it can feel. They need to hear the stories of women who’ve made the various choices, pro and con. Finally, they need to be handed a sensitive pamphlet from their particular religion, telling them what that religion thinks of abortion.

If all those things happened, I doubt many women would choose abortion. They are caught in a moment of fear and weakness. We should help them through it. Since most women who choose abortion are NOT this informed and are blinded by their doubts and fears, I think we can say, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

[trisham]

Excellent post.

[denydenydeny]

Suddenly tort reform goes on the Democrat agenda....

[mlizzy]

I agree. Great commentary!

[mlizzy]

... pro-lifers were portrayed as being somewhat more eccentric than the Manson family ...

*smiling* Thanks for your commentary!

I’m not ready to place complete blame on women who fall for the false promises in this climate—many of them just don’t have the education or training in critical thought necessary to navigate their way to the truth.

Or they may have an education, capable of thinking critically, but they haven't the faith to leap the obstacles.

"Pure and simple, Maggie, have an abortion, or we won't pay for your college; your father and I are sick and tired of the crap you pull. God, how can you be so stupid? Maybe an education is a total waste on you, huh? I'll call the clinic in the morning."

[mlizzy]

They are caught in a moment of fear and weakness.

In only ten words, you've summed it up! And who will be there for them when they fall? Surely not the ones who knew about their pregnancy and allowed (coerced/encouraged/forced) them to abort in the first place, unless they've had conversions. However, a Catholic priest can absolve them of their sins (if they are sincere in their confession), and for further aid, Rachel's Vineyard ("healing the pain of abortion, one weekend at a time") is a great organization for a post-abortive mother (and father!) to become involved with.

Thanks again for your thoughtful commentary.

[exDemMom]

"Pure and simple, Maggie, have an abortion, or we won't pay for your college; your father and I are sick and tired of the crap you pull. God, how can you be so stupid? Maybe an education is a total waste on you, huh? I'll call the clinic in the morning."

Is that your experience? If so, I'm really sorry.

One of the saddest things I read was someone who was supporting that bill (I forget which state it is) to require abortionists to provide accurate, high quality sonograms of the baby prior to committing the abortion. The person said, simply, "If only this were already available. My parents wouldn't have forced me to abort my baby if they had seen their grandchild."