1 in 4 pregnancies ends in abortion?

[MultiBird]

Reading the BBC article about the US ruling, it says that in the US 1 in 6 pregnancies ends in abortion, which I thought seemed very high, but I looked it up and it's 1 in 4 in UK.

I'd fight very hard indeed if anyone challenged a woman's right to choose here, but isn't that very high? Is there some truth in the argument that it's being used as contraception? I've heard it said before and dismissed it as ridiculous but 25%?!

Bear with me a sec and I'll post the links.

Women 30 to 35 are actually the most likely to be shagging around. But crack on.

Good for them, I hope they're getting their rocks off and enjoying themselves.

You're still not the shag police though.

Wow.

I will always be pro-choice. But

Yes abortion should always be available, but

No. No buts A soon as possible as late as necessary for all women who want one.

It wasn't criticism. So check your attitude. Bully to them.

And ultimately MEN can't get pregnant can they? So regardless of who was there at conception it is ultimately always going to sit with the woman to be responsible for HER OWN uterus.

1 in 3 of my pregnancies has ended in abortion.

I think almost every woman I know has had one. The statistic sounds about right to me.

Some of the posts on this thread are ridiculous.
So fucking what if women are using it as contraception. I'd rather that than a fuck load more unwanted or neglected kids in the world.
I had an abortion of twins because I was told another pregnancy would likely leave me wheelchair bound due to my disabilities. I was also in an abusive relationship.
I've had 4 pregnancies and 1 abortion so I fit into the statistic.

No, I will not "check my attitude" because my attitude is this it's a woman's right to choose.

Because women must pay for sexual enjoyment. That's what it ultimately comes down to.

Disagree. That statement undermines the implications and gravity of those using it as late contraception, just because they can't be arsed to look after their own contraception responsibly.

You honestly believe 'contraception failure' statistics is just that? It's also when the bloke forgot to pull out or put a condom properly, or she forgot to take her pill on time. Or theybjust couldn't be arsed and that's what they say to the clinic.

An abortion isn't just a medical magic wand. Regardless of what you believe - it's a scientific fact that in a healthy pregnancy you are effectively terminating a potentially healthy and valid life - a person. That has to have some weight with it.

The choice to have that option should always remain, but it shouldn't be undermined or downplayed as to what people are actually doing when they do have an abortion/termination.

Women daring to have opinions about our own bodies - who'd have thought it would be so controversial and lead to so much negativity!
A woman with attitude is my new email signature 😉

Whatever you do, woman, don't enjoy sexual activity. Don't have sex outside marriage or with more than one partner. Things have remained Victorian, haven't they?

Who'd think on MN, a place overwhelmingly occupied by women, they'd be so quick to judge other women as not worthy of ababortion
Fucking ridiculous.

Depressing.

That statement undermines the implications and gravity of those using it as late contraception, just because they can't be arsed to look after their own contraception responsibly.

What implications and gravity?

If every foetus is a life then all abortions are just as bad. There isn't a sliding scale . Definitely not based on the morals or behaviours of the pregnant women. If there is, then what it comes down to is "has she suffered first?" , then it's ok.

Every time men wank they are wasting sperm that could potentially become a valid life - a person

Ban wanking!

Be careful talking sense like that here. We're not allowed to highlight any irresponsibility or lack of due care leading to abortion.

On mumsnet you can only call somebody irresponsible if they're keeping the baby.

Strange that isn't it?

This ^. The potential life argument is bullshit

An abortion isn't just a medical magic wand. Regardless of what you believe - it's a scientific fact that in a healthy pregnancy you are effectively terminating a potentially healthy and valid life - a person. That has to have some weight with it.

This old chesnut, the vast, vast, mahority of abortions are before 10 weeks. It's not a baby, it's not even a fetus it is an embryo, a collection of cells. It is a life in as much as it is alive, but cannot sustain itself outside of it's host. IMO it is no more a potential person than the hundreds of eggs in a women's ovaries or sperm in a man's ejaculate.

Does it matter what the statistics are?

Women using abortions as contraception obviously isn't ideal for them, but some people don't have the benefit of the right tools/education/good mental health to be in a position to make "good" choices around contraception, and no method other than abstinence is infallible anyway. I'm glad abortion is an option for anyone who wants one in this country. Far better that than an unwanted baby, both for the child and the mother.

You think a 9 week old foetus is no more a potential person than the hundreds of eggs in a woman's ovaries that haven't been fertilised?

so it’s okay for 1in 4 pregnancies to end in miscarriage and often women to be told “it’s just one of those things” but if I woman chooses for whatever reason not to proceed with a pregnancy that’s not okay?

I wonder if those statistics include those who suffered missed miscarriages or incomplete miscarriages? (I suffered 2 missed miscarriages)

I think rather than looking at the statistics as being too high we should be looking at why women are having abortions- is it due to abusive relationships, societal pressures, money, access to contraception? I also wonder how many of these abortions come from the sex industry(porn, prostitution etc?)

And?

I'm 30.

As I said earlier - I'm in a friendship group of 5 women, we are all 30 or 31.

Four of us have fiancees and husbands, one hasn't.

Only one of us has never had an abortion.

Guess which one?

totally agree.

it's all lovely being pro life but what are they actually doing for children in carehomes?

@Barelyfunctioning3 You speak of irresponsibility/ lack of due care and how you don’t feel mumsnet is a place where you can criticise the reasons a woman has an abortion.

Yet you’d rather these women who you consider irresponsible raise a child they do not want? A woman who you consider to have a lack of due care ? You think them raising a child is a better option ?

It seems hypocritical to me that you wish to criticise these women for accessing abortion, yet think the foetus would be better off raised by someone who didn’t want them, or be at the mercy of the underfunded care system.

The only alternative to abortion is to carry the pregnancy to term, after birth the child would either need to be raised or adopted.

However, I do agree that a woman shouldn’t face criticism or hardship for not having an abortion. I haven’t seen any of this on mumsnet though.