Mr. Munson
Composition I ENG 111-004
17 October 2014
Physical and Emotional Attributes of Abortion Abortion is a touchy subject among most people. Pro-life is when a person is against the woman having an abortion because the baby is alive and some people try to argue the fact that it may be considered murder. Pro-choice is when someone believes the woman should have the choice of abortion because it is her body. Some individuals are pro-life for moral or religious reasons, some people are completely pro-choice and others are indifferent about pro-life or pro-choice. The earliest known abortion was in 1550 BCE. For most of the 20th century, abortions in the United States were illegal. In the 1960’s, a few states began to allow abortions. In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court held in Roe vs. Wade that the right of privacy protected a woman's right to end an unwanted pregnancy before the fetus has developed the capacity for viability outside the womb (“Abortion”). There are many side effects that come along with choosing the abortion option versus choosing to keep a baby or putting the baby up for adoption. Many women are sometimes afraid to choose abortion because the effects from abortion can be physical while other times the effects can be emotional (“Learn About”). Physically, the effects of abortion can range anywhere from minor things such as spotting, vomiting, and abdominal pain to major things such as infection, heavy bleeding, or possibly death (“Possible Physical Side Affects”). According to afterabortion.org, approximately 10% of women who undergo abortion report having immediate physical pain soon after the abortion, 2% of which are major. The article “Abortion Risk and Procedures” states there is at least one death per every 530,000 abortions if the patient is at eight weeks or less, one death per 17,000 abortions for pregnancies at 16–20 weeks, and one death per 6,000 abortions at 21 weeks and more. There are two ways to go about abortion. One way to go about an early abortion is by taking an abortion pill. The abortion pill can cost anywhere from $300 to nearly $800. The abortion pill is a safe and effective way to end an early pregnancy and is available in many Planned Parenthood health cares. Some women feel relief after the abortion pill, others may feel anger, guilt, and sadness. A medical abortion acts as an early miscarriage, so bleeding is normal. However, some women may experience dizziness, cramps, vomiting, and abdominal pain (“Abortion Pill”). A second option to abortion is an in-clinic procedure. In-clinic procedure can cost up to thousands of dollars depending on where the woman is in her pregnancy at the time of the abortion. The most popular type of in-clinic abortion is aspiration abortion. Aspiration abortion is a procedure used before the 16 weeks after a woman’s last period. During an aspiration abortion, the patient will be given medication to ease the pain and fall asleep. Sometimes the patient is awake but at a very relaxed state. This type of procedure can take up to 10 minutes. There is also a recovery time of about an hour, paper work to be signed, and a physical exam (“Abortion Pill”). A less popular alternative to the