Your views on the abortion time limit in this country?

[mountainboo]

This is a very sensitive and controversial subject and I do not want anyone to be offended by this post. I only ask what peoples views are as it is a subject that has recently been raised in the media and I was shocked to find out the time limit of abortions in this country. My personal belief is that we should adopt a similar approach to that of other European countries. So there should be a much earlier cut off date. I feel that it should be no later than 10 weeks. I'd like to know how the NHS can justifiabely allow them to happen so late on in pregnancy as surely the woman concerned would have been aware of the pregnancy long before this time? Again, I do not want to be insensitive to anyone that has had a late abortion, but being 18 weeks pregnant myself and regularly being able to feel my baby kick and move about I find it devastating that doctors can willingly do this procedure at such a late stage and a good few weeks further on than I am. I have a friend who due to the fault of the NHS had to wait untill she was 3 months pregnant before having the procedure done. A short time after that I had my 3 month scan and saw my baby moving around and looking like a proper little human, it was a very scary thought! Anyway, what are your thoughts?

[naomi24]

Obviously there are sometimes very serious and valid medical reasons for terminating a pregnancy at a late stage, but in general I too feel that the cut off date should be much earlier.

[naomi24]

By the way, good luck.

[meredith101]

You can terminate up til birth if it emerges your child has a cleft lip. In america you can partially give birth, and they kill the baby as it's half way out.

I just don't get the philosophy behind it. A baby can survive at 23 weeks old, yet can be killed just because it's on the wrong side of a tummy!

[devil99]

oh my god meredith, i never knew that, it makes me sick to the stomach, how can people do that???

[naomi24]

Where did you get your information from, Meredith? Do you have a link?

[warpig3]

Yes this is a very sensitive issue. Firstly, I will lay my cards on the table - Many years ago I had an abortion when I was 12 weeks pregnant and I am now 23 weeks pregnant with my 'first' pregnancy.

The thought of terminating a pregnancy at 24 weeks seems shocking to me unless for serious medical reasons and I agree that in most cases women must have a fair idea that they are pregnant much sooner than this, however each case must be treated individually.

Consideration should also be given as to whether elective abortion is available on the NHS, in Northern Ireland it is not and therefore when I found out I was pregnant at 6 weeks I had to find the necessary money to travel to London and pay for the abortion as I didn't happen to have a spare �300 lying around - hence being 12 weeks pregnant.

Then we get to the issue of abortion as a method of birth control, I recall one recent story of an 18 year old who had had 6 in the space of two years, clearly there are other issues that need to be addressed in cases such as this.

If the limit is lowered, say for example to 10 weeks, then will women return to backstreet abortionists, which again has its problems.

I am personally neither pro or anti abortion, I believe it is up to the individual and I believe that the majority of women who have abortions do not take this decision lightly, I know I didn't.

[tigwig]

I agree that it should definitely be brought forward to 15 weeks at the latest in my opinion. 31 years ago I was born at 29 weeks weighing less than 2 pounds and in 1976 that was very rare, sadly my twin brother didn't make it. When I was pregnant I could feel my baby kicking from 15 weeks and it is beyond me how anyone can go ahead with abortion any later than this unless they have a very disabled child that would suffer if it was born.

[mountainboo]

That is awful. I also heard that in the U.S women are terminating very late if they find out the baby has webbed fingers or feet. A friend of ours has recently had a baby and he was born with one hand smaller than the other and with the same hand, webbed. In my eyes this is a very minor thing that can be rectified with surgery. They quite rightly didn't see it as even the smallest of problems. How can these surgeons actually sleep soundly at night knowing what they are doing? Surely they didn't go into medicine with the hope of one day becoming abortion surgeons? Thanks naomi by the way

[mountainboo]

I see your point about going to back street abortionists if the age limit is lowered that much warpig. I also agree that each case should be dealt with individually. Warpig, you obviously found the decision extremely hard to make but there are many girls/women out there that unfortunately do not, ie the 18 year old that had 6 in 2 years. The government are obviously doing something wrong as we have the highest abortion and young pregnancy rate in Europe.

[mountainboo]

Wow Tigwig, its quite shocking to hear how early you were born, I am sorry your twin didn't make it. You were obviously a very strong baby. I hear that from 26 weeks the baby can survive outside the womb.

[warpig3]

Yes that is the problem mountainboo, when I was 15 or 16 I never even considered having sex but nowadays that does not seem to be the case. I have seen programs where young girls say they don't know the facts of life etc but again I find this hard to believe as I know contraceptives are widely available as is the morning after pill and would imagine that sex education is more enlightening and instructive today that it was 25 years ago, and surely they cant be unaware of the consequences of having unprotected sex or can they?

Perhaps this is just a reflection on todays society and values or lack of them and there is no answer, also what is acceptable today was not as acceptable 25 years ago and scorned and vilified 50 years ago.

[Pippa68]

I think you would find that the (very high) majority of abortions are performed well below 18 weeks.

I am sure whiskeysheri provided a link the last time this was discussed. I have also read that abortions at the later stage are only performed due to real medical reasons (not cleft palates etc). For instance.. a woman could not neccesarily go into the doctors and demand a termination simply because she doesn't want the baby.

[pastafreak]

In reference to mountainboos remark that women are having babies aborted due to webbed fingers or toes, I read an article in (Ithink) The Times the other day related to the abortion question and it seems that webbing and several other seeminly minor physical problems may actually be indicators of much more serious birth defects that cannot be detected via ultrasound or other methods before birth. so abortion in these cases may be justified. In the case of cleft palates-they can be treated so early and easily now. I agree that the limit should be lowered-the idea that a woman could choose to abort a fetus that she can feel kicking is horrific.A program several weeks ago showed a late termination,and it is a messy and major procedure.

[mountainboo]

Thanks pastafreak, I didn't realise that was the case regarding the webbed fingers etc. Also, thanks pippa, it's made me feel ever so slightly easier knowing that late terminations aren't just done willy nilly. Mr mountainboo gets extremley distressed even mentioning the word abortion let alone discussing it. The late abortion procedure is a truley horrific thought as I have been told (and I cringe even writing this) that they dismember the poor fetus whilst it's still inside the womb. This must surely cause pain and suffering to the fetus?

[sukkie]

Hi All
I personally do not believe in abortion as I am pro-life but feel everyone one has the right to make their own choices. I do feel though that late abortions are horrific and less people would have them if they knew what actually happens. Because the baby is bigger the docters actually break the baby in peices to abort it. Like I said horrific1

[whiskeysheri]

Hi, mountainboo. :o)

I answered a similar thread of wisewoman's a couple of weeks ago:
http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Family/Pregnanc y/Question467251.html

(I've copied and pasted my answer)
I think it's only something like 1% of all abortions are carried out at such a late stage, though. I can see what you're saying about bringing the limit down in weeks, but think about the people who have to make the difficult choice to abort their baby when they find out it will be born with a severe disability; they wouldn't know about that at 16 weeks.

I'm definitely pro-choice, but as others have said I don't agree with the idea of using abortion as a method of contraception.

_________________________________

Sorry, it's 1.6%.

90% of abortions are carried out at 12 weeks or less gestation.

This is a good link: http://www.mariestopes.org.uk/pdf/late-abortio n.pdf

I don't think any woman would go through with an abortion at such a late stage deliberately, unless under the above circumstances.

[i_love_laughing96]

i think abortion is very wrong. dont kill the baby..there is something called adoption.
dont destroy the childs life.