Is there anything about abortion in particular that you'd like more laypeople to understand?
Hm! Off the top of my head:
Abortion is very safe. Safer, in fact, than a colonoscopy. Many orders of magnitude safer than giving birth (up until about 20 weeks, at which point risk becomes about par). Abortion does not affect your ability to conceive in the future. Abortion does not increase your risk of breast or uterine cancer.
Surgical abortion is very fast. Most surgical abortions take 3-5 minutes total. Not kidding. Between a pelvic exam, placing a speculum, opening the cervix, and removing the pregnancy, 5 minutes is on the long side for a first tri procedure. After 13 weeks gestation, 5-7 minutes is pretty typical, and after 16 weeks gestation it’s more like 15-20 minutes. The procedure itself may be uncomfortable (nothing sharp, but pressure and cramping is totally normal!) but most women do not experience lasting discomfort afterwards. Discomfort should be akin to menstrual cramps.
The Abortion Pill is not the best choice for everyone. The Pill (or pills- most people will take one tablet of mifepristone and four tablets of misoprostol) was an incredible advancement in women’s healthcare and is an amazing tool to end a pregnancy- but it kinda sucks. Bleeding and cramping are much more intense with the Pill, and debilitating cramping can persist for even up to five days. Some women will be able to see the pregnancy when it passes. Most women will not be able to work or go to school. If you would like the process to feel a little more natural, like a miscarriage, or would like your partner to be with you for the worst of it, or are super trypanophobic, it’s absolutely there for you, but I would encourage someone seeking even a very early abortion to at least consider the surgical option.
Women do not regret their abortions. The single most common emotion after abortion is relief. The vast, vast majority of people consistently believe they made the best choice they could.

















