If you have already had an abortion, you are most likely dealing with the aftermath of that on some level.  If not now, you most likely will at some point in the future.  Some people don’t fully realize the gravity of what they are doing when they surge ahead, in a state of panic, and receive (or encourage their partner to receive) an abortion. 

 If you’ve had an abortion you may experience some unexpected feelings. You may have thought ending your pregnancy would solve your problems, but it hasn’t, and you’re confused. Maybe the girls you know who have had an abortion are not talking about any of the problems they have been experiencing since their abortion. You may feel like you are going crazy or that you are alone in this, but you are not alone. Many women experience physical and emotional trauma after receiving an abortion. You are probably in post-abortion trauma, which is defined by these symptoms:

• Anger (often generalized of specifically aimed at those who were involved in the experience)

• Anxiety (probably non-specific or in form of panic attack)

• Denial/repression (the “pushing down” of intolerable emotions)

• Depression

• Deterioration of self-concept (self-worth, self-image)

• Disruption in relationships (increasing inability to be intimate or social with friends and family)

• Feelings of helplessness or powerlessness

• Grief

• Preoccupation with the abortion procedure or thoughts of babies

• Guilt

• Suicide thoughts or attempts

• Regret

• Nightmares or flashbacks

Even if you have just one or two of these symptoms you should seek help. It’s probably very hard for you to talk to anyone about your abortion, but there are thousands of women who understand what you’re going through. The following is a list of suggestions to help you work through your pain:

Web sites:

• www.optionline.org

• www.afterabortion.org

• www.tellthemilovethem.org

• www.ramahinternational.org

• www.abortionfacts.com
  

Books: (can be ordered at www.hh76.com – 1-800-858-3040)

• A Season to Heal, by Luci Freed & Penny Yvonne Salazar
• A Solitary Sorrow, by Teri Reisser, M.S., M.F.T, with Paul Reisser, M.D.
• Forgiven and Set Free, by Linda Cochrane
  

Other:

• Check with your local Pregnancy Care Center (may be found at optionline.org) to see if they offer abortion recovery groups or one on one counseling.

You shouldn’t have to deal with this alone.  No one should.  The help is free and caring people are waiting to talk to you. 

It is very important to understand that the only true healing from abortion, as well as the rest of our sins (and we are all sinners), comes through Christ Jesus alone.  We need to seek Him and ask Him for His forgiveness.  He is eager to give it when we ask from a sincere heart and turn away from our sins and toward Him, trusting in His death on the cross for salvation from our sins.  Anything else is like putting a band-aid on a gaping flesh wound.

In the Bible, God promises to forgive your sins and to restore you, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

If you have already experienced healing from your abortion and feel that you have worked through all of the feelings of your abortion, I encourage you to check into the ministry of “Silent No More.”  It is a group of women and men who speak out about their abortion experiences and how it hurt them in an effort to help others choose life.  For their national website go to: www.silentnomoreawareness.org   
 

A Poem to Our Babies

A seventeen-year-old girl who regrets the abortion she received wrote this touching poem below:

 Dear Babies,

 

When we wake up in the morning

'Til the lights go out at night

We think about you, babies

Wishing we could hold you tight

 

We stop and think about you

Full of sadness and of tears

Because we know its all our faults

That we can’t hold you near

 

We will never see you smile

Never see your pretty face

We'll never have the chance

To hold you in our sweet embrace

 

We're all so sorry, babies

We were lost and unprepared

I wish there was some other way

To show how much we care

 

But know for sure, our angels

We have loved you from the start

Your memories remain

Back here today, in all our hearts

 

We remember you with a picture

A letter, card or jewelry

We wish we could have known

What you'd be like or who you'd be

 

But we care about you, babies

We love you more than you could know

But surely heaven's the best place

That anyone could go

 

You are accompanied by Jesus

Strangers, family and friends

And we all know that we'll see

Each and every one of you again

 

You will NEVER be forgotten

Without a doubt, we know it's true

You are in our hearts forever

We love you babies... see you soon 

 

~The Mommys and Daddys