Category: Abortion Counseling

A mother who accompanied her daughter to and abortion clinic described the “counseling” they gave – and their command not to return to the clinic if she had complications.

“A middle-aged woman called Sheri’s name and we followed her into a small room in the back corner office with a messy desk and two chairs. As we sat down, she introduced herself as the counselor. She verified Sheri’s name, birthday, and the date of her last period. She explained with an expressionless, mundane attitude that the “termination” might be a little uncomfortable and she recommended “a little something to take the edge off.” She said that a bit of cramping and bleeding is to be expected. If the bleeding became more like hemorrhaging, however, go to the Emergency Room, “Don’t come back here.” This apparent lack of professional responsibility was a little unsettling. She was rather emphatic and repeats, “Don’t come back here if you have complications. Go to the nearest hospital. And follow up with your doctor in two or three days.”

I thought counseling is defined as some sort of wise advice or guidance, information and recommendation, or at the very least, options. But, in this case, I guess I was wrong. The counseling session was over. Sheri was ushered to a treatment room, alone, without me.”

Teri Stanton Two Minus One: Our Abortion Story (Meadville, PA: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc., 2016) 36 – 37

The fact that the clinic did not want to bother with women who had complications and would rather dump them at the emergency room is disturbing.

From one teenager who had an abortion:

“In my junior year health class I found out that my baby had developed to the point of looking like a person with arms, legs, and a head. And she could feel pain. That knowledge will haunt me for the rest of my life… I would trade every success and milestone in my life to have her back.”

Barbara Horak Real Abortion Stories: The Hurting and the Healing (El Paso, Texas: Strive for the Best Publishing, 2007) 26

She was told in the abortion clinic that her child was only tissue.

Read other examples of women who were deceived by abortion clinic workers.

Read what the workers themselves have to say about their ‘counseling.” 

Sue Liljenberg, who was a teenager when she obtained a “safe, legal” abortion:

. . . I’m a victim of abortion and, even if it takes until my last breath, I must be heard.

When I was 17 I found myself in a crisis pregnancy . . . . When I went to the local family planning clinic, I sought guidance and wanted to know what I could do about my situation. I wanted a helping hand. When I walked into the clinic, I trusted the nurses and doctors, and thought they were concerned about my health enough to help me make a decision, not make my decision for me.

Only one solution was strongly recommended that day. When I questioned the development of my baby, I was told it wasn’t a baby yet, and that it looked like a tadpole. Since that day I have learned differently . . . .

I was told that abortion was simple and safe and that I could go and live the rest of my life and have children when I was in a position to provide for them. I heard no scientific facts that day, only biased opinions. I was not told what abortion itself could do to me in the years to come, only that it was “safe and simple.”

I was not told that I would abuse myself with alcohol, try to kill myself, develop an eating disorder, and have terrible dreams. Worst of all, I was not told that I might never have another child. It has been 14 years since my “safe and simple” abortion and I have never been able to have another child.

Letter from Sue Liljenberg to Sen. Gordon Humphrey, dated June 6, 1986

Amicus Brief in Webster v. Reproductive Health Services” by Christine Torre, et al.

BRIEF FOR FEMINISTS FOR LIFE OF AMERICA,
WOMEN EXPLOITED BY ABORTION OF GREATER
KANSAS CITY, THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF
PRO-LIFE NURSES, LET ME LIVE, AND ELLIOT
INSTITUTE FOR SOCIAL SCIENCES RESEARCH,
AS AMICI CURIAE IN SUPPORT OF APPELLANTS