Re: Abortion
My journey with the abortion issue is an unusual one, but one that I felt needed to be told.
I, like others out there, have no appetite for abortion on demand as a contraceptive choice. Neither do I want to forbid others from making this choice for whatever reason to ensure my daughter is protected when she may need access in her lifetime.
But neither is my journey. Mine started early this year after having unusual pain related to menopause. My pelvic exam showed a growth as a potential cause. With no way of knowing if I had to worry now about the risk of cancer, which is low but still there, I decided last month to have an operation to remove it. While waiting for the procedure to start, there seemed to be some problem that was causing delays and making me even more nervous than I already was.
Note: I am a divorced woman that had a tubal ligation over 15 years ago. And yet it was part of their process at the religiousbased Adventist Rideout hospital to test for pregnancy, whether I wanted or needed the test. As luck, or unluck, would have it, I tested positive on both the quick and blood test. What now? How do you prove you’re not pregnant? Why are they even testing post-menopausal women?
Normally, this would not be of importance, because I knew I was not capable of having another child. However,
I saw the notices in the hallways that this facility does not perform abortions and knew that this will be a huge problem. Although I know there was no way
I could be pregnant, the nurses and hospital administration did not and could only take my word. Here I am, IV in arm, waiting to find out if I have cancer and I have to deal with this situation.
Just getting up and walking away after using all of my savings to prepay the bill and taking the time off to get this procedure was not an option for me. I was fortunate. My doctor was able to convince the hospital that I was one of those few women that can have a higher hormone level, which causes a false positive. Because of this support, I was able to continue. I am also happy to say my complaints are gone and that there is no cancer. I shudder to think what would have happened had I lived in Texas or any of the other states forbidding abortion.
But this makes me wonder: What would have happened if I had attempted the procedure before menopause? What if I wasn’t able to convince the hospital I wasn’t pregnant? Just because this is California doesn’t mean that my rights are protected. After experiencing first-hand how abortion issues can impact your life, it scares me to think of women today living under the impact of the Supreme Court’s decision. What’s next?
Jane Doe Yuba-sutter area