Dixon 1

Nicole Dixon

Mrs. Aughenbaugh

Cyber

25 April 2017

Abortion should be legal

Throughout the world the number of abortions has been increasing. Abortion

is the termination of pregnancy. It is the removal of the fetus before it is capable of

surviving on its own. It is usually done before the fetus gets to 25 weeks old.

Abortion refers to the induced type (Malcolm 1977 page 12). Abortion should be

legal for certain circumstances.

In some countries abortion is legal but in others it is not. This brings about

the differences in safe and unsafe abortions procedures. Abortion is the cause for

over 70,000 maternal deaths worldwide. If abortion is illegal there would be many

more unsafe procedures of abortions done at home or unsafe places. Doing this is

not only is going to kill the baby, but there is also a chance of it killing the mother.

In the past, abortion was done using instruments such as sharpened tools,

traditional methods, and physical trauma. Since there has been advancement in the

field of medicine abortions are safer.

Each country in the world has different legality, cultural and religious

statuses, and prevalence of abortion. Countries such as the United States of

America and Britain have heated politics surrounding the issue of abortion in pro-life

and pro-choice campaigns (Ted 1995 page 66). Most governments in the developed
 Dixon 2

countries have legalized abortion. Many developing and underdeveloped countries

have not legalized abortion and have no control over what is done by the medical

personnel.

The leading causes to maternal death worldwide are complications and

abortions. If a person does not want pregnancy to happen they should use a form of

contraceptive. In some cases this may not be an option for example, rape.

Of all the pregnancies in the world today about a third of them are

unintended. Of these unintended pregnancies around a fifth of them result in

induced abortion.

Removing the fetus from the mother's womb forcefully is an induced

abortion. The age of the fetus is the determining factor of what procedures are be

used to conduct the abortion. The legality of abortion in that country determines

whether or not the woman goes about doing it and if it is safe or unsafe. Induced

abortion is either therapeutic or elective. Therapeutic abortion is performed by

medical personnel in an effort to save the lives of patients. Patients suffering from

such things as illnesses, multiple pregnancies, and complications could have this

procedure done on them to avoid having complications at childbirth that may lead

to loss of life (World health organization 1979 page 16). Elective abortion is done at

the request of the woman. This is usually done for non-medical reasons.

Abortion is caused by many factors among them social, religious and

economic factors. The societys desire for convenience has been a factor

influencing the rates of abortion. Children and pregnancy are seen as a hindrance to

a lot of fun and pleasure. One would remove the pregnancy in pursuit of this
 Dixon 3

pleasure. The society accepts this circumstance and even encourages it by allowing

governments to legalize abortion.

The lack for respect for life is a religious factor towards promoting abortion.

People no longer appreciate new lives. One would not think twice before doing an

abortion. Raging debates have come up suggesting that a fetus is not a life form

until it is born. Such debates could easily change peoples mindsets to disregard life.

Rape has been a big reason why people abort their children. When raped has

occurred to a women she will most likely not go through with the pregnancy

because of issues that arise throughout her term. When women are raped they go

through a lot of mental issues and having to carry their rapist's baby only worsens

those issues.

Surgical removal can be done when the fetus is at 13 to 14 weeks. A sterile

tube is inserted through the cervix and into the uterus. Suction is done pulling out

all the materials in the uterus. The woman may leave the hospital the same day

after the procedure has been done. At 14 and 15 weeks, surgical dilation is done

using forceps to remove the unwanted fetus. Abortion can also happen by taking a

pill. Some may think that the pill would be easier, but it's not. The abortion pill is

still very painful for the woman.

There are many common symptoms after abortion has been done. Bleeding is

the most common of them all. For a few weeks after the abortion bleeding will

occur, this is normal. It decreases after about five or six weeks. There are chances

that the uterus may not have been emptied completely so bleeding will be

excessive
 Dixon 4

Pain is a normal problem for the abortion process but if there is an excessive

amount of pain, the woman should see a doctor. The normal pain can often be

taken away by using pain medication.

Abortion has helped women with health issues. With abortions, women with

diseases such as heart disease, hypertension, and sickle cell anemia have been able

to avoid serious medical complications that arise from childbirth. These

complications could easily lead to death of the women. Usually a doctor may

prescribe such a procedure when he realizes that the life of the mother is in danger.

Rape victims have found comfort in the fact that they could remove

unwanted children that would be a product of this action. Rape victims would not

want to keep the baby. Removal of the child would remain the best option to end

this.

Abortion is brutal to the unborn child. This is because abortion is killing. It

does not give the new fetus a chance to survive. This fetus will not have the choice

to live. It is hinged on religion, which disapproves of the act by saying that all are

equal before the almighty.

When a women goes through with an abortion is can lessen her chances of

getting pregnant later on in life. The uterine wall can get messed with during

abortion. It could also lead to complete damage of the uterus which is not good for

the mother. This could result in never getting pregnant later on in life when she

wants to. Abortions are also a cause of hormonal imbalances.

Abortion promotes irresponsible behavior. This is because men and women

know that they could easily get rid of the pregnancy if they so wish to. This freedom
 Dixon 5

makes them care less about being protected to keep from having a child in the first

place because they know they could just end the pregnancy.

Concurrent abortions may lead to medical complications. Some of these

complications include uterine infections, recurrent miscarriages, and sepsis along

with other complications. Consistent use of such methods causes the hormones to

change. This means that the hormones are tuned to a program where they cannot

sustain a pregnancy to full term. The body gets used to rejecting any pregnancy and

this is why consistent miscarriages may pop up.

Abortion may end up causing psychological impairments. Examples of this

include depression and guilt. Some women may feel depressed after losing their

baby. This could be the case especially, if the child was their first and the abortion

was done as a medical thing that they had no control over. Continuous miscarriages

may cause such individuals stress and eventual depression. The brain would have

been tuned to reject any pregnancies due to such depression.

Churches, non-governmental organizations, and the government run

campaigns against abortion. In these campaigns, they ask mothers to look for other

options rather than abortion. Some of these options include putting the child up for

adoption as well as being provided with the necessary help to enable them to carry

the pregnancy to term.

Adoption is common in many countries. It involves the transfer of ownership

of a child to other parents who would love to take care of it. The child is usually

given to adopting parents because the mother could not afford to raise him or wants

to pursue other things. Mothers choose adoption because they are relieved of all

duties about the child as it is taken up by a different family. The mother is assured
 Dixon 6

that the child would be safe with the adopting parents. The mother can then go

through with her plans without the child getting in the way.

Providing support to mothers is another option that has been explored. Non-

Governmental organizations and church groups have come together to pull

resources to support such young mothers through their pregnancy. They have also

been of importance in supporting them as they take care of the child. They support

them with such things as financial resources and psychological counseling.

Providing the necessary support in the form of financial aid and psychological

support to mothers contemplating abortion could serve as the best way to curb

such deaths resulting from abortion.

There are advantages and disadvantages of abortion of almost equal

measure but it is a much better decision to go full term with the pregnancy and give

the child to a family that is unable to reproduce. Abortion should be the last option

when pregnant. Women need to be careful about what they do. If they are not ready

for that step in life they need to use a form of contraceptive. It should be after

careful consideration that abortion should be done (Patricia 1992 page 93).

Abortion should remain legal but only for certain circumstances.