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RUNNING HEAD: ABORTION

Make Abortion Illegal

RUNNING HEAD: ABORTION Make Abortion Illegal Abortion (n.d.) is explained as an abortion also called voluntary abortion is the removal of an embryo or fetus from the uterus in order to end a pregnancy. For several decades, abortion has been one of the most debatable subjects in the United States. There are several points of view when it comes to abortion, but the two distinctions are whether someone is for pro-life or pro-choice. Within this choice there are legal, moral, social, and medical factors that influence the decision. Someone that is pro-choice would feel that the decision to abort the pregnancy, in any circumstance, should be the decision of the mother and that there should be no legal involvement, nor have their decision based upon the law. They would also believe that their choice is made from a higher good that is preventing a lesser evil. Where they feel as though that what is going on around them, is far greater than allowing the pregnancy to be completed. Individuals that are pro-choice believe that any decision being made, should just be their own. Whether they decide to keep the pregnancy going, or they choose to abort it, or if it is a person that is not even pregnant, these individuals want the decision to solely be what they want. On the other side of the spectrum, there is pro-life. Being pro-life means to believe that it is the duty of the mother to follow through with that pregnancy because it is a life that is within the womb starting at conception. It also means that the only way a pregnancy should end, is if it is from natural occurrences. Being pro-life, the greater circumstances that are going on around them are handled in other alternatives instead of aborting the pregnancy. Pro-lifers want it to be illegal to abort a pregnancy because it is viewed as killing a life.

RUNNING HEAD: ABORTION ProCon.org (2013) includes the debate over whether or not abortion should be a legal option continues to divide Americans long after the US Supreme Courts 7-2 decision on Roe v. Wade declared the procedure a fundamental right on Jan. 22, 1973. This decision legalized abortion but took into consideration the first, second, and third trimester of a pregnancy, and depending on the trimester, what limitations the abortion would have. During the first trimester the decision to abort is left to the medical judgment of the womans physician, and the woman. In the year 2000, the abortion pill was approved to allow for a woman to end the pregnancy within the first seven weeks from her last menstrual cycle. Many may not realize that within seven weeks a placenta has formed, the nervous system is developing, along with the arms, legs, and brain. By the fifth week hands develop fingers, and a mouth opening is developing, but most importantly, the heart is forming. In the sixth week, the liver is developing and by the end of the seventh week, the umbilical cord is forming. All of the transformations of the fetus are happening and most importantly this unborn child has become a part of the womans body. It has attached itself inside the womb, and has taken on a new form of life. Aside from all of these amazing transformations happening, it is not even guaranteed that this pill will fully abort the pregnancy. By the end of the first trimester, which is week twelve to thirteen, the baby is the size of a lime, and is fully formed. The baby is not yet ready to survive outside the womb, so its brain and organs will continue to grow within the womb. The babys nerves and spinal cord are forming allowing it to feel pain, along with organs beginning to function such as their kidneys. Also by the end of this trimester, the genitalia begin to form which gives the baby a boy or girl gender. There are several options during the first trimester for abortion which are:

RUNNING HEAD: ABORTION Mifepristone and Misoprostol procedure used in the first seven to nine weeks of pregnancy, and can be referred to as the RU-486 pill Manual Vacuum Aspiration (MVA) used as early as 3-12 weeks since the last menstrual cycle. A local anesthesia is used on the cervix then a vacuum is used to suck the baby out Aspiration can be known as a suction curettage or a D & C or vacuum aspiration During the second trimester the decision to abort is only supposed to be in the judgment of the physician to help better the mothers health. Aborting a child in the second trimester means that this baby boy or girl is going to have to die by surgical procedures such as: Dilation & Curettage (D&C) a surgical procedure use to terminate a pregnancy, and is done up to 16 weeks gestation. This procedure is also referred to as a suction curettage or vacuum aspiration Induction Abortion Where salt water, urea or potassium chloride is injected with a needle into the amniotic sac and prostaglandins are inserted into the vagina and Pitocin is inject intravenously. In simple terms they are killing the baby, then inducing labor As stated from MedlinePlus (2013) the risks of surgical abortion include: Damage to the womb or cervix Uterine perforation (accidentally putting a hole in the uterus with one of the instruments used) Excessive bleeding Infection of the uterus or fallopian tubes Scarring of the inside of the uterus

RUNNING HEAD: ABORTION Reaction to the Medicines or anesthesia, such as problems breathing Not removing all of the tissue, with the need for another procedure During the third trimester there are two ways to terminate a pregnancy, and one of the choices is just like in the second trimester, the induction abortion. There is also a dilation and extraction, but because of the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act of 1995, this procedure is considered against the law. This is an abortion after 21 weeks of gestation, and involves a three day process. They first dilate the womans cervix for two days, and on the third day the abortionist pulls the baby through the birthing canal feet first. Leaving the head inside of the woman, they then puncture the cranial skull with scissors followed by inserting a tube into the hole and sucking out the brains. This causes the head to collapse, and the baby to die and then the baby is removed from the uterus. Any procedure completed in the third trimester without a doubt should be illegal because this unborn child senses pain, and in some cases, is able to survive outside of the womb with medical help. Another medical issue is the post-abortion syndrome. It is the emotional pain that one gets after they choose to abort a pregnancy. The guilt can cause depression, denial of ever being pregnant can cause anxiety. If the guilt is bad enough, some woman have had suicidal thoughts, or even have chosen to take the path of drug and alcohol to numb the pain. These symptoms do not need to happen right away, they can happen years later. Avoid having to deal with this emotional rollercoaster. Allow for that baby to be born, and never have to worry about the what-if. When a human makes the choice to have sexual intercourse or chooses not to seek medical attention after rape to protect their bodies from allowing a baby to start forming, then

RUNNING HEAD: ABORTION why should an abortion be an option? Women should be using contraceptives instead of running to the choice of an abortion when an unwanted pregnancy occurs. Abortion involves the killing of a human being which defies a commandment from God known as Thou shalt not kill, and it has been known that after an abortion psychological damage can occur. There are many support groups that will help a woman understand other alternatives such as adoption instead of choosing an abortion. Also, say that a woman chooses to abort because of a genetic abnormality, than she is saying that people with physical limitation are less than human. This is not speaking highly from a moral stand point and in turn can have a greater impact on a womans social stand point. Through many religious groups aborting a pregnancy is frowned upon because it is believed that God gave the gift of a life and even though that particular individual may not be able to support or provide for that child, there is someone that can. There is also state funded help that is given, not to shame upon someone, but to help a mother wanting to give all that she can to her child. To be a parent is not to provide gifts, and to buy unnecessary items, but to provide love, and to give that child a life that is filled with joy in other ways. By aborting a child, a woman is choosing to not give a family that may not be able to have their own child, that gift of having a family. The woman is also choosing to not allow for a more diverse population. For instance, African Americans are more likely than white woman to have an abortion, and this lowers their ethnicity group. Our world needs diversity, and needs different bloodlines, because if we were to all be from the same background, then that would cause medical issues. For a woman that chooses abortion there are more medical problems that can be caused by the procedure than what has been listed above. For instance there can be a greater risk for

RUNNING HEAD: ABORTION that woman to get breast cancer. Research has been studied on estrogen in the breast and when a pregnancy ends, it changes the preparation of the breast, and the estrogen leaves immature cells in the breast and can lead to the breast cancer. By having the abortion, it is causing hormones to change too quickly, and more irregularly. Woman choosing abortion are also more at risk for later infertility problems because by having the abortion it could rupture the insides of the woman, or have a negative effect on the ovaries. Abortion can cause vaginal bleeding during early pregnancy in subsequent pregnancies. It can also cause preterm births, low birth weights, or placenta previa which is when the placenta partially or completely covers the cervix, which can cause severe bleeding before or during delivery. When it comes to making the choice to be pro-choice or pro-life, hopefully many stop and remember that their mother made the choice to keep their life. An individual that is put in a situation where they have to face the choice to keep their unborn child or to abort it then maybe that individual needs to go back to school and be taught by sex-ed. The only choice should be to have sex or not to have sex. If to have sex is the choice, then by no way possible should the choice be to have an abortion. Life starts at conception, where egg and the sperm meet and travel through the fallopian tube. A childs life is being formed, and whether that child will have a mental handicap, or physical needs, does that mean that the unborn child will not live a productive life? We cannot dictate what really will happen. Doctors cannot fully know the outcome of anything until it happens, so why kill a life before that life has a chance? There is only one choice to be made, that choice is to be pro-life and make abortion illegal.

RUNNING HEAD: ABORTION References abortion. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved December 03, 2013, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/abortion CDC Home. (2013, November 27). Reproductive Health. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/Reproductivehealth/ Data_Stats/index.htm MedlinePlus. (2013, October 31). Abortion-surgical. Retrieved from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002912.htm MedlinePlus. (2013, November 18). Abortion. Retrieved from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/ medlineplus/abortion.html ProCon.org. (2013, October 15). Abortion. Retrieved from http://abortion.procon.org/ #Background