{"id":315892,"date":"2024-07-22T09:44:24","date_gmt":"2024-07-22T14:44:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=315892"},"modified":"2024-07-22T00:37:33","modified_gmt":"2024-07-22T05:37:33","slug":"regretted-abortion-pill-sidewalk-advocate-offered-help","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/regretted-abortion-pill-sidewalk-advocate-offered-help\/","title":{"rendered":"She instantly regretted taking the abortion pill. That’s when a Sidewalk Advocate offered help."},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this guest post are solely those of the guest author. Live Action News has made minor edits for clarity.<\/i><\/p>\n

Martha*<\/span> pulled up in tears to the abortion provider\u2019s office. All she wanted was an ultrasound to find out if her baby was still alive. Filled with regret, Martha<\/span> no longer wanted the abortion she thought was a solution. <\/span>Just the day before, she<\/span> had been told by Planned Parenthood that there was no way to stop the abortion pill process she had begun, but this hopeful mother raced to find another solution. That was the moment everything changed.<\/span><\/p>\n

When Planned Parenthood said there was no way, a Sidewalk Advocate stepped in to help<\/strong><\/p>\n

When she had visited Planned Parenthood, she was given a dose of mifepristone \u2014 the first drug in a chemical abortion \u2014 and was sent home with the second drug (misoprostol) to be administered later. But before she could take the second drug to finish the abortion, she was flooded with regret. She asked the staff at the Planned Parenthood she had visited if anything could be done to stop the process, but was reportedly told there was nothing that could be done, and that she should take the second drug and finish the abortion.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to go through with it, just take the second pill,\u201d said Planned Parenthood staff.<\/span><\/p>\n

Unwilling to take no for an answer, the next day Martha visited a different abortion facility, hoping she would be able to have an ultrasound and check on her baby. Outside of that facility she met a volunteer (who has chosen to remain anonymous) with Sidewalk Advocates For Life (SAFL), a national outreach group dedicated to helping abortion-seeking women to find life-affirming alternatives.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDo you have an appointment?\u201d asked the Sidewalk Advocate. \u201cI can help.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What would be needed to attempt to counteract<\/a> the effects abortion pill would be a high dose of progesterone.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jen, a California SAFL chapter leader, said her team was able to get Martha an ultrasound from a local clinic, along with the progesterone dose she needed to continue to sustain the life in her womb. \u201cWithin several hours, the team was able to confirm a heartbeat through an ultrasound,\u201d said Jen.<\/span><\/p>\n

Martha said that while she was receiving support from Sidewalk Advocates, she received a letter from Planned Parenthood, encouraging her to make a follow-up appointment and suggesting that she finish taking the second drug of the chemical abortion. <\/span>Martha said she crumpled up the letter and threw it away.<\/span><\/p>\n

Reportedly, weeks later, Martha was able to receive an additional three ultrasounds, all revealing her unborn baby was still alive and kicking. In a follow-up meeting with the woman and her boyfriend, the volunteer with SAFL said the couple was very excited about their baby, and that the baby was very active in the ultrasounds \u2014 a good sign.<\/span><\/p>\n

Months later, Martha gave birth to a healthy baby girl!<\/p>\n

Prayer and help, not protest<\/strong><\/p>\n

Jen with SAFL explained, \u201cWe\u2019re simply here to share information. Our heart is that women would just be fully informed before they walk in and make a very life-long decision. Everything is compassion led. Our signs say, \u201cmom hugs,\u201d and we\u2019re friendly faces \u2014\u00a0we\u2019re very approachable and a safe place.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In an opinion piece for <\/span>The Washington Times<\/span><\/a>, Sidewalk Advocates For Life Founder, President, and CEO Lauren Muzyka said she founded the organization in 2014 for exactly this type of outreach \u2014 \u201ca loving, peaceful presence on the sidewalk outside sites that perform abortions, providing women with life-affirming resources that abortion providers will not – resources that help them understand that, whatever challenging circumstances they face, they can choose life for their babies.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On its <\/span>web page<\/span><\/a>, SAFL says that an estimated 952,600 abortions were committed in the U.S. from January to November 2023, adding that approximately 777 abortion and abortion-referral facilities were operational in 2023. Reportedly, 34% of these facilities are covered by SAFL\u2019s peaceful, prayerful sidewalk outreach.<\/span><\/p>\n

Muzyka said SAFL has served more than <\/span>21,000 women<\/span><\/a> since 2014, and has helped to save more than 21,000 babies from abortion.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAbortion pill reversal is possible if, before taking that second pill, a woman receives a high dose of progesterone. Abortion pill reversal is science-based. It gives pregnant women choices: if they regret taking that first pill, they have an opportunity to act on their change of heart,\u201d said Muzyka.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n