DU Ladies...

Which of the following would you be more likely to choose?

A non-surgical abortion is done early in the pregnancy (typically up to 49 days) and involves an injection or oral medicine (RU-486). The actual abortion takes place at a later time while the woman is at home. The process can be quick or more lengthy, depending on your body's reactions.

A surgical abortion in the first trimester is a short invasive procedure (under 10 minutes) completed by a doctor in a clinic or hospital.

Both methods involve what is described as "intense menstral-like cramping." Both methods carry similar risks although the non-surgical does not carry the risks of cervical or uterine damage.

I would probably have to have the surgical one. If I'm too sick to report the "miscarriage" from home within the first 12 hours I might end up in jail. On the other hand, the hospital will write it down as an abortion and I wouldn't have to report it.

I am Delegate Cosgrove and I wish to respond to your website and the allegations that have been made by those who have emailed and called my office. The intent of House Bill 1677 is to require the notification of authorities of a delivery of a baby that is dead and the mother has not been attended by a medical professional. This bill was requested by the Chesapeake Police Department in its legislative package due to instances of full term babies who were abandoned shortly after birth. These poor children died horrible deaths. If a coroner could not determine if the child was born alive, the person responsible for abandoning the child could only be charged with is the improper disposal of a human body.

The requirement for the twelve hour notification timeframe comes from the method that a coroner would use to determine if the child had been born alive or dead. After twelve hours, it becomes next to impossible to determine if the child was alive due to decomposition gasses that build up in the body.

My bill in no way intends that a woman who suffers a miscarriage should be charged for not notifying authorities. The bill in no way mentions miscarriages, only deliveries. However, after discussing the bill again with our legislative services lawyers, I have decided to include language that will define the bill to apply only to those babies that are claimed to have been stillborn and that are abandoned as stated above.

I would never inflict the type of emotional torture on a woman who has suffered such a traumatic event as a miscarriage by making her notify authorities of her loss. I would also never impose criminal sanctions on a woman who has gone through this loss. And I am confident that the General Assembly of Virginia would also not pass such a terrible imposition on a woman. My mother experienced several miscarriages and I have other friends who have been devastated by losing their children through miscarriages.

On a final note, your website advocates the use of emailing comments to my office. As for the emails that I have received, I have answered a few and will forward a similar explanation to those who sent them. I always seek to receive emails that express a point of view either in support or in opposition to an issue. The majority of emails I have received from this site, however, have been extremely abusive, condescending, and mean-spirited. That is never the way to communicate with another person and I hope that civil discourse would be your desire as well.

I hope that you will post this explanation on your website and understand the original intent of this bill. If you feel the need to discuss this matter more fully, please do not hesitate to call. Thank you for your time and consideration of this matter.

Sincerely,

John A. Cosgrove



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The legislation was very poorly written ("fetal death" in Virginia consists of "any product of conception") and I'm glad he is going to rewrite it more clearly. As it was originally written, it could have been used to bully women.

Don't you think it deserves it's own thread?

It was a fairly hot topic a couple of days ago, as I recall. :hi:

I didn't see it discussed here earlier - was that in LBN?

I'd definitely go with surgical. The injection was the most excruciating pain I've ever felt in my life.

I've had surgicals, both awake and asleep. I'll take asleep.

But the actual "miscarriage" caused by the injection and then the pills you have to insert (yes, insert) vaginally. I was on my bathroom floor crying for about 4 hours. At least with surgical the pain was, for me, just a nusance.

I've had abortions and I've had miscarriages. Miscarriages are harder and more painful. It sounds like what you had was an induced miscarriage. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

school or college drop out, I know my parents would have helped me keep my baby, and even now as an old married gal if I turned up preggers I would want to keep it, despite a certainty of health complications on my part.

Having had two miscarriages, I just don't know which of the two procedures I would opt for if I felt I _had_ to do it. I guess I would go with my doctor's advice based on my personal health history?

I'd have a surgical abortion. My thoughts are based on the fact that I have had bad reactions to medicines and that medicine does naturually have a bad reaction that could be scary to have at home. I realize that there would be more likely to be damage from the surgery, but usually a doctor will know if there is damage during the surgery and if the procedure seemed to go alright. If one has never gone through the chemical abortion, one might not know what to expect and if one should seek emergency treatment or not.