Hesperian Health Guides
Abortion
information about the causes of a miscarriage.
Deciding to have an abortion can be hard. Some religions teach that abortion is wrong, and in many countries abortion it is not legal or safe. But there are many reasons a woman may try to have an abortion anyway. In making a decision, most women will benefit from warm, respectful advice and friendly support. Here are some examples of why a woman may want an abortion:
- She already has all the children she can care for.
- A pregnancy is a danger to her health or her life.
- She has no partner to help support the child.
- She wants to finish school.
- She does not want to have children.
- She got pregnant after being forced to have sex.
- Someone is forcing her to have an abortion.
no matter what
you decide to do.
Some women choose to have a baby whether or not they will have support. They may choose to have a baby even when they know the baby will have serious health or disability problems. Many pregnant women say: “I want THIS child!” and are determined to find ways to manage, whatever the difficulties.
For some women, the conditions of their lives or health make having a child a bad choice, and they decide to have an abortion. They may make this decision because they know they will not have enough support to care for the child. Or because they know the baby will have a disability or a serious health problem. Or they may find the idea of having a child, with or without a disability, too difficult to deal with.
Deciding to have a baby is a personal choice all women should be able to make. Whatever your own beliefs, try not to judge a woman if she does something you do not agree with. Care for her with compassion and treat her as you would want yourself or your daughter to be treated.
Safe abortion
Where abortion is legal and available, a woman can have a safe abortion when it is done under clean and sterile conditions in a hospital, health center or clinic by a trained health worker. It will not usually endanger her future pregnancies. Also, abortions are safest when done in early pregnancy. There are 3 kinds of abortion that can be safe:
Vacuum aspiration. A health worker uses a machine or manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) syringe to empty the womb. If vacuum aspiration is done correctly, it is usually safe. (See A Book for Midwives, Chapter 23.)
Dilation and evacuation (D&E). A health worker uses medicines to soften and open (dilate) the cervix. Then a suction tube and instruments remove the pregnancy from the womb. D&E should be done by trained health workers in a medical facility with sterile equipment.
Medical abortion. The woman takes medicines that end the pregnancy and empty the womb. Talk with an experienced health worker about the medicines that are safe and effective for this. (See Where Women Have No Doctor: Safe Methods of Abortion.)
Unsafe abortion
In places where abortion is illegal, a woman trying to end a pregnancy may harm herself or turn to someone who does not give abortions safely. Unsafe abortions can cause heavy bleeding, serious infection or infertility, and are often a major cause of death for women.
These unnecessary deaths can be prevented when disabled women work with other women and men to make abortion safe, legal, and accessible for all women in their communities.