A woman who bravely shared her heartbreaking abortion testimony has highlighted cases of coerced abortion in the UK.
In a debate about abortion on the BBC’s Victoria Derbyshire programme, Laura Mann revealed that she went into her abortion without being fully informed of what it involved.
She also spoke about how her abortion regret has impacted her since.
‘Nightmare’
Laura went for an abortion aged just 19, and reported that she only saw one doctor, not two as the law requires.
“When I went into the room to discuss, the first option I was given was abortion. I was so afraid, so confused, I had no clue what to do.
“All the voices were telling me I couldn’t do it, I couldn’t do it. I felt so much pressure. I felt okay with myself to go in for an abortion, but when I left that clinic, that was the beginning of my nightmare.”
“You silly girl, don’t you know what you’ve done?”
Depression
She continued: “When I came out of the Marie Stopes clinic in Brixton, the first thing that went through my mind was ‘Where is my baby, what’s happened to the body of my baby?’, and I kept asking myself that question.
“The nurses that escorted me to the recovery room, because I was in so much pain and sobbing, she said to me: ‘You silly girl, don’t you know what you’ve done?’
“It made me so depressed. I questioned for months after months, nightmares and cold sweats, what’s happened to this baby’s body?”
“The notion that women do not regret abortion has to be re-evaluated.”
‘Dying in secret’
Laura added: “Why are women not informed? If I went in for an operation, I would get the full download. Why is it that with abortion, it’s a secret? Why don’t you let us know what we are going for and what’s going to happen to our babies’ bodies?”
“I come across many women today that tell me the same thing: that we’re dying in secret.”
Laura said that by sharing her story other women have felt able to come forward and ask for help.
Poor information
Louise Grant, Director of Abortion Recovery Care and Helpline, said: “The notion that women do not regret abortion has to be re-evaluated.
“The reality is that many women do struggle with their decision and it is beyond cruel to continue to ignore these women.
“All too many feel they were poorly informed, and their state of ambivalence or feelings of pressure have failed to be recognised.”