Have you been wondering about emergency contraception? Millions of women have been. It’s
a simple fact: unprotected sex can lead to a pregnancy. Those who don’t want a baby are most
likely doing something to keep from becoming pregnant. There are many birth control methods
out there for consideration, so many more options than our grandmothers, who had to count
the days in their cycle.
But what about when one of those methods fails? Pills are forgotten, condoms tear.
A “quick fix” pill you can pop any time after intercourse up to five days later (depending on
which drug you choose) is, understandably, a real temptation. No one needs to know. Your life
can go on as before. It’s less messy than a surgical abortion, fewer medical side effects, fewer
long-term ramifications, and easier to live with yourself after the fact. Or so they claim.
But is it an abortion?
GET THE FACTS
If you are sexually active and a baby would not necessarily be welcome at this time, you owe it
to yourself to get the facts BEFORE you are backed into that corner and need a quick decision.
In fact, if you aren’t sexually active but are of child-bearing years, arming yourself with
information is wise simply in case of a rape. Of course I hope none of my readers ever has to
face that horrible experience, but unfortunately rape is reality in our world. And rape can lead
to a baby.
How do you feel about that?
Either way, if a pregnancy occurs, do you know what you would do? It’s when we are under
that kind of stress that we sometimes make decisions we wouldn’t otherwise. I especially
encourage you to look into the facts and talk with your partner ahead of time. When cooler
heads can prevail.
GET THE FACTS FROM A TRUSTED SOURCE
In seeking information, I caution you to PAY ATTENTION to who is passing out that information.
You might not want to rely on claims from drug companies, abortion providers, or politicians
who are looking for votes. In doing a search on the Internet, you will find many articles that
support the pro-choice agenda before you finally scroll enough to get to one that is pro-life.
Don’t just believe something because you see the same statement in several different articles.
Please, I beg of you, pay attention to the source.
KNOW WHAT YOU BELIEVE
Here are some thoughts to help you get started.
Do you know the difference between the “morning after” pill and the “abortion pill”?
Or are they the same thing? There are actually two different types of drugs. One
unapologetically will kill your baby and expel it from your womb. The other comes with claims
that it “does not cause abortion.” The problem with that is their definition of abortion.
According to The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, a “pregnancy” only begins
once the embryo has embedded in the womb. And if they can resist calling it a pregnancy, then
ending it would not be considered an abortion.
See how tricky this can be?
Here is another problem with terminology.
“Fertilization” is straightforward: when the sperm enters the egg, it is fertilized. Boom, an
embryo is created.
“Conception” – let’s get back to this in a minute.
“Implantation” is when the fertilized embryo makes its home in the lining of the uterus. This is
the point, the ACOG says, there is a pregnancy.
A baby.
But here’s the problem. If life begins at conception, when exactly is conception? Some say it’s
the moment the egg is fertilized. Others say it’s at the point of implantation. This can be a
difference of somewhere between six and eighteen days.
And those days can make all the difference.
If you are convinced that life begins at fertilization, and you are against abortion, you might
want to forego the morning-after pill. One of the ways the morning-after pill works in
“preventing” a pregnancy is to keep the embryo from implanting in the womb. I don’t know
about you, but I think if we put that in other terms, it keeps a baby from staying alive. We have
a word for that.
Abortion.
