Relief, Gratitude, Empowerment
Relief
You may feel relief that the crisis of the unintended pregnancy has passed and you will be able to move forward in your life. You may feel happy that you are back to normal and free from nausea and fatigue from the pregnancy. You feel confident that you made the best decision you could given the circumstances.
It is not uncommon for you to feel relieved after an abortion; it is ok to feel relief after abortion. Relief can be mixed with other emotions, but it isn’t always.
Gratitude
You may feel grateful that you were able to have a safe and fully-funded abortion. You may wonder how you can feel so good after having an abortion and then you may feel guilty for feeling good.
If you are happy, relieved and grateful about your abortion, allow yourself that. There’s nothing wrong in that.
If you appreciate that you have reproductive choice, consider what you can do to ensure all women, trans and non-binary people in Canada always have access to safe, fully-funded abortion. Also see the Abortion Rights Coalitions of Canada for more information.
Gratitude unlocks the fullness in life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity; it turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates vision for tomorrow.
~~ Melodie Beattie
Empowerment
Further than just relieved or grateful, you can experience a sense of empowerment after an abortion. It can have a positive effect on your life. You can feel in control of yourself, your body and your life.
When you examines your life and decides you are not ready to parent, you may gain insight into what you want to be different. You may decide to end your current relationship, find another job, return to school or move closer to your family or social support.
You may discover through this process that you don’t want any more children or any children. Or you may find a new appreciation and love for the children that you have now.
The process of the pregnancy and abortion can be an awakening experience that drives change.
Imagine a Woman
By Patricia Lynn Reilly, M.Div. © 1995
Imagine a woman who believes it is right and good she is woman.
A woman who honors her experience and tells her stories.
Who refuses to carry the sins of others within her body and life.
Imagine a woman who believes she is good.
A woman who trusts and respects herself.
Who listens to her needs and desires and meets them with tenderness and grace.
Imagine a woman who has acknowledged the past’s influence on the present.
A woman who has walked through her past.
Who has healed into the present.
Imagine a woman who authors her own life.A woman who exerts, initiates, and moves on her own behalf.
Who refuses to surrender except to her truest self and to her wisest voice.
Imagine a woman who names her own gods.
A woman who imagines the divine in her image and likeness.
Who designs her own spirituality and allows it to inform her daily life.
Imagine a woman in love with her own body.
A woman who believes her body is enough, just as it is.
Who celebrates her body and its rhythms and cycles as an exquisite resource.
Imagine a woman who honors the face of the Goddess in her changing face.
A woman who celebrates the accumulation of her years and her wisdom.
Who refuses to use her precious life energy disguising the changes in her body and life.
Imagine a woman who values the women in her life.
A woman who sits in circles of women.
Who is reminded of the truth about herself when she forgets.
Imagine yourself as this woman.
