Thread by @k_meredith_s

A thread on why I #VoteNoAug2
Because I would have died, but I didn’t. And pregnant people will die, when they shouldn’t.

In October 2019, my endocrinologist confirmed that I was pregnant. But I knew it didn’t feel right. 1/x

Sure enough, my hormone levels bounced around, and they aren’t supposed to do that. A week before we were to leave for Thanksgiving, a transvaginal ultrasound confirmed an ectopic pregnancy. 2/x

My body thought it was pregnant, but the pregnancy was growing in one of my fallopian tubes. I was “lucky” - we caught it early. Many ectopic pregnancies are not caught until the woman is bleeding because the sac has ruptured. 3/x

Bleeding during ectopic pregnancies accounts for 10% of maternal deaths in the United States. After learning that there was no viability to the pregnancy in my body, my doctor and nurses gave me injections of methotrexate and sent me home. 4/x

I was “lucky”: the methotrexate worked and I did not need further medical intervention. I got to keep both of my tubes.

Prior to that, October 2016, I got “lucky.” My body miscarried an early pregnancy, and miscarried completely. 5/x

No further intervention was necessary. Again in March 2020, literally the day after the WHO declared COVID a pandemic, an ultrasound informed us that where there had been a sac, there was a “normal” looking uterus. 6/x

“Normal” if you weren’t hoping and praying for a baby to stay and grow there. I returned, alone, (pandemic) the following week to confirm my “luck” - no further medical intervention was needed.

None of these situations were my choice. I wanted those babies. 7/x

I wanted our boys who were born subsequent to these losses. I voted no because I cannot imagine those conversations with my doctor being politicized. 8/x

I cannot imagine my doctor telling me that they could give me a shot that would safely eliminate the nonviable ectopic pregnancy, but they can’t because legally that is an abortion. 9/x

I cannot imagine not being “lucky” after my miscarriages and needing to have further medical intervention. Medical intervention for miscarriage is abortion. Abortion is healthcare. Plain and simple. 10/x

We’ve decided as a country that fear and gross ignorance are appropriate grounds to restrict and police private decisions, and professional autonomy. We need to trust people to make the best decisions for their circumstances, families, bodies. 11/x

I don’t want to sound like I support reproductive freedom simply for potential life-threatening medical situations. Because here’s the thing: I don’t really care what reasons someone has for seeking abortion care. 12/x

Because I honestly don’t have the time, energy, or more importantly wisdom to assess the “fitness” of others’ reasons. We keep hearing boogeyman scenarios that assume the vast majority of abortions are a result of reckless, irresponsible behavior; abortion as birth control. 13/x

It’s the same boogeyman argument that assumes all persons who receive government support for groceries, rent, etc., only need it because they are too lazy to work. Miss me with that bull.

Abortion is healthcare.
14/x

This is not an issue that is the result of reckless sex and oopsie babies. It’s far more complex and nuanced than that. 15/x

What a cynical view of our fellow humans we must have if we assume that “most” abortions are a result of “irresponsibility” and an arbitrary “not wanting” a child. (Side note: why would we want to force pregnancy, childbirth, and parenthood on someone who does not want it?) 16/x

This is so much bigger, deeper, and more complex than the arbitrary termination of healthy fetuses at week 38. Come on.

Abortion is healthcare.
17/x

Some would argue “well, this wouldn’t apply to ectopic pregnancies or miscarriages.” First of all, tell that to the woman and doctors in other states already facing interrogation for abortion services in those situations. 18/x

A total ban on abortion services means my doctor can’t give me methotrexate for my ectopic. My doctor can’t perform a D&C to prevent a miscarriage from turning my body septic. Abortion is healthcare.
19/x

Again: this isn’t just about those kinds of life-threatening situations. This is about people haven’t autonomy to make the decisions that are best for themselves and their families. Even the most responsible methods fail. Nothing is fully effective. 20/x

I trust women to make their own choices. Who gets to say what is a “valid” reason for an abortion? Do you know what pregnancy can do to your body? Do you know what childbirth and recovery does to your body? 21/x

Adoption isn’t a simple band-aid solution to unwanted pregnancies. Do you know how expensive it is to have a child? Literally, to care for the child as it develops and birth a child - not to mention keeping a baby fed, clothed, cared for. 22/x

In a country that punishes women for having children in all kinds of ways - not to mention the poorer you are the costlier it is to bring a child into the world 23/x

- a country that refuses to actually care for life once it’s on this side of the womb, and in a world that is literally burning around us - I can’t blame someone for having reservations about bearing, birthing, and raising children. 24/x

For many women and families choosing not to see an unplanned pregnancy to term is the most pro-life choice they could make.
#voteno #AbortionIsHealthcare
25/end
(Thanks to @morninggloria and @AlyssaMastro44 et al for helping me clarify my thoughts on this with their wisdom)