Post-Abortion Healing

A lot of my blogging is about what to do to make people aware of the horrors of abortion. Most of the time I focus on the fact that it is a human being being murdered. Sometimes I have focused on being politically active. This post is going to focus on the emtional damage done to the people who have been involved in an abortion & some places to get the healing needed.

The truth is, there is more than1 victim in an abortion. The child who was aborted is the 1 everyone obviously thinks of. & I will be honest, up to a year ago that was my main focus. I never really thought much about the other victims. Then I decided to take the speaker training class offered by DBQ Co. Right to Life. In looking over the possible topics, the 1 that caought my eye was the 1 about the psychological damage done to women. So, for my 1st short talk I did some research on it. After that talk I had to decide what to do for my full presentation. I was thinking about continuing on that subject. Then 1 night I had on Defending Life with Fr. Frank Pavone of Priests for Life on EWTN. They were talking about the emotional & psychological damage done not only to women, but also to men involved in an abortion. As I looked into it, I realized how little was said about the harm abortion does to the fathers of those aborted & how important it was to get that message out.

I also learned a few other facts that didn't surprize me so much as anger me. 1 of those facts is that abortion providers like Planned Parenthood (PP) greatly downplay or outright deny the existence of the problem. & even more disgusting was the fact that the American Psychologcal Association (ASA) deny its existance. This group is supposed to exist to help people who have emotional problems get well, not deny them help.

This problem does have a name, Post-Abortion Stress Syndrome (PAS) or Trauma. & despite what PP & ASA say, it does exist. There have been several studies to see if it exists. & while more of them have focused on the existence of the syndrome in women who've had an abortion, there have been several that have looked at its existence in men who have been involved in an abortion. & despite the claims of the nay-sayers, most of studies have been done using the right proceedures. (The latest MSM smear-job was done last week by the NY Times Magazine in an article entitled Is There a Post-Abortion Syndrome?)

PAS includes a wide variety of symptoms. They can include the following:

• Low self-esteem
• Guilt and shame
• Grief (mild to profound)
• Depression (sometimes to the point of suicidal thoughts and attempts)
• A sense of alienation from family and friends
• A feeling of being 'numb,' not able to feel joy from activities that used to be pleasurable
• Anger
• Problems bonding with her other children
• Isolating self from others to avoid discussing the abortion experience with them
• Sleep disorders
• Fear that God will punish him or her for their involvement

A person call feel all or some of these problems. They can show up at different times. If you are someone who has been involved in an abortion or know someone who has been & are suffering from PAS there is help. The groups listed below can provide you with the resources to get the help, forgiveness & healing needed.

Rachel's Vineyard

Silent No More

Hope After Abortion

Life Issues Institute

PAS doesn't discriminate, it affects women or men, rich or poor black or white. Many people are speaking out about how abortion has hurt them. Silent No More is leading the way with a campaign to get the word out that there is hope. Many people who have been hurt by abortion are speaking out. People like Sharon OsboUrne, Jennifer O'Neill, Dr. Alveda King (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s niece), Jonathan Flora (writer/director A Distant Thunder) & many others are saying there is healing for the hurt.

God wants anyone who has been hurt to be healed. These groups provide it. Support their efforts, spread the word.