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Why I Choose to Perform Abortions
Because humans have sex. Because I believe in God. Because I am pro-life.
I’ve worked in a county hospital, and I’ve worked in a private clinic. The waiting rooms looked different, the staff’s enthusiasm varied, and the patients of all ages came from different backgrounds, education levels, and phases of their lives. It never ceased to amaze me that despite variation in settings and situations, the look on someone’s face when seeking an abortion has mostly been the same. Eyes diverted toward the floor, shoulders curled slightly inward, hands fidgeting with one another, or arms crossed, the body is closed. She recedes into herself.
Sometimes the guilt is haunting.
She wants to focus on school. She just started a new job. She can’t afford childcare. Her partner is no longer in the picture. Her partner is violent. She has difficulty managing her current children. She was given incorrect information about her birth control.
I don’t ask for any of this information. She, the patient — the one who lied to her employer about why she needed to take off work, the one who couldn’t find a friend to drive her home, the one who has thought about this decision nonstop for days that have felt like months — volunteers this information without me asking. She feels the need to…
