Pregnant and Scared: How to Help Her Know You Love Her

Good morning! Yesterday, first way staffers were treated to a special training by a social worker. Since there are no "magic words" to help a woman in a crisis pregnancy, we learned more than techniques and more about ways to hold a perspective that helps a panicked woman feel heard and supported. We were taught to look for her strengths. For example, does she hold any other moral convictions you can affirm? ("You have a strong sense that adoption may not be the best choice for your unborn child.") How can we respond to her immediate experience without interpretation? (Example: Instead of, "You sound worried," say something like, "Wow, that's scary.") Holding the perspective that the life of the mother and the unborn child are precious will go further than any counseling technique we could ever learn. She needs to be heard and to know we're on her side and not judging her. I'm sharing this with you, our supporters, so that when you come in contact with a young lady who needs your help, you will know more about how to be a lifesaving friend.

Tip #3: Reach the Truth Deep Down

Deep down, every woman knows she is terminating a human life and that it is her child. Abby Johnson, former Planned Parenthood director, says the most common statement she heard when a woman, groggy on medications, was on her way to have an abortion was, “Will my baby feel pain?” We have answers to that, real ones, and not the lies Planned Parenthood will tell. Although by the twentieth week, medical consensus is that pain can be felt, information about when the unborn baby feels pain earlier is speculative, but logical. Pain receptors are present in the fifth week of gestation. At six weeks, the cerebral cortex (recognized as the center of pain consciousness) is developed. Most compellingly, even babies in the first trimester try to escape the D&C blade by moving away from it as much as they can.


Fetal Pain Brochure: Suitable for Printing