Luminous
A Catholic Woman and Her Thoughts on Life, the Universe, and Everything
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
The Cost of "Choice": Women Evaluate the Impact of Abortion.
A book review from New Oxford Review:
http://www.newoxfordreview.com/
Reviewed by: Lynn Campbell

The Cost of "Choice": Women Evaluate the Impact of Abortion.
Edited by Erika Bachiochi.
Encounter Books. 536 pages.
$17.95.


We know the impact of abortion on a baby in the womb -- a painful, violent death. The focus, though, of these essays by women is the destructive impact of abortion on women, physically, psychologically, and spiritually.

Consider the physical effects. Besides the risks of infection, tearing of the cervix, or perforation of the uterus, there is the long-term risk of breast cancer. Dr. Angela Lanfranchi has extensively researched the link between abortion and breast cancer. Breast cancer is the only major cancer that continues to rise, and it is estimated that some 10,000 cases a year result from abortion.

Attorney Denise Burke, writing on abortion clinic regulation, explains that abortion clinics usually operate under unsafe and substandard conditions. Regulations are lax and often similar to pre-Roe "back-alley" clinics.

Even if a woman is lucky enough not to be harmed physically, there's a good chance abortion will harm her psychologically. Three decades of abortion abuse support this. Dr. E. Joanne Angelo, psychiatrist and professor at Tufts Medical School, writes that "A tidal wave of sorrow and remorse is building in our time, but has not been recognized until recently." Guilt, depression, and suicidal thoughts are quite common in the aborting woman. Society expects her to "move on" after abortion; as a result, denial or emotional repression may continue for years. The harm can emerge in self-destructive habits, such as alcohol and drug abuse, bingeing and purging, anorexia, and promiscuity.

As a counselor at a pregnancy help center, I have observed that women who have had previous abortions act in one of two ways. If, first, they are in denial and have not mourned the loss of their baby, there is an emotional numbness about them. They are usually abortion-minded when facing another pregnancy. Or, second, if they've faced the horror of their abortion, allowing their emotions to surface, they regret their past "choice" and usually give birth to the baby.

Erika Bachiochi, born after Roe v. Wade, grew up in the culture of "choice." During her college years she came to the truth about abortion and became convinced that it was bad for women, especially poor women. "The thought that we, as a nation, would attempt to solve the problems of the poor by helping them rid themselves of their own children haunted me."

I've often noticed, as a counselor, that women who choose abortion have low self-respect and act out of a sense, it seems, of not being good enough to deserve help. Could this result from society's attitude of "getting rid" of problems rather than facing them honestly? Fortunately, pregnancy help centers also see women who welcome help. They speak of being received with love and being given options in their difficult situation.

Dorinda C. Bordlee, an attorney, writes about the "law of the gift" and gives examples of legislative initiatives that reach out to women in crisis pregnancies with concrete resources. How sharply this contrasts with Planned Parenthood, which in response to 9/11, offered a one-time free abortion to those carrying the unborn child of a victim of the terrorists.

Each of the 12 authors in this volume offers a helpful analysis of the harmful effects of abortion. Mary Ann Glendon, a professor at Harvard Law School, gives a historic overview of the abortion movement. Elizabeth Schiltz, law professor at St. Thomas Law School, gives her perspective as a mother of a child with Down Syndrome. She reveals the negative attitudes of the medical profession, and society in general, toward disabled children.

Although there is much work to do in the prolife movement, none of these women is daunted by it. They give us hope for the future. Reflecting on these essays, I know, has helped me in my own counseling work.
Written at 7:28 AM by Luminaria2112.
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