The WHO estimates that, worldwide, one woman dies every 8 minutes from an unsafe abortion that could have been prevented [1]. To its credit, South Africa has come a long way since 1994 when nearly 45,000 women were admitted to hospitals for spontaneous abortions or complications of clandestine abortions [2]. Since the Choice on Termination…

The positive result of her pregnancy test fell heavy on Ana’s shoulders, a 28 year old Brazilian woman. Her job as a maid could barely feed her 3 children. Her husband was unemployed and had been coping with alcohol. Desperate, she seeked help from her neighbour, Maria. Years before Ana learned that Maria had also…

This is the list I wish I had ten years ago. After I had an abortion, nobody knew what to say to me. Not even Larry, my therapist. Poor Larry. Looking back, I would not have known what to say to me, either. One in three women will have an abortion in her lifetime. Men,…

safe2choose has just launched a new website to share information about the Zika virus epidemic. With growing concerns about the virus spreading, the Rio Olympic Games just around the corner and the World Health Organization (WHO) recently confirming the link between microcephaly and the Zika virus during pregnancy, safe2choose’s new landing page, pregnantwithzika.org, seeks to…

Abortion is generally restricted in Mexico. This means that, although there is some legal protection, legislation differs between states, making it difficult for many women to receive safe abortion. Laws base eligibility for and legality of abortion based on the circumstances of the pregnancy. This variation in legislation between states has created a discriminatory, stigma-ridden,…

When I knew I was pregnant, I also knew I was going to have an abortion. So I booked an appointment at the closest clinic and had to wait until the following week, because there was no space. The date finally arrived, and I had to take two buses and the subway during rush hours…

Many people believe that abortions are unsafe or that in order to have a safe abortion, it must take place in a healthcare institution. This is false. Having an abortion using pills, also known as a medical abortion, is a safe method that has changed the way women can end a pregnancy. With the right…

On January 31st, 2016, it will be one year since the president of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, introduced a bill into Congress to allow abortion in instances when the mother’s life is at risk, fetal non-viability due to hereditary or genetic malformation, or when the pregnancy is the result of rape. After almost twelve months, the…

Today, December 10th, is Human Rights Day. It commemorates the day on which the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948. The first article of this important document stated that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights”[1], but almost 70 years later,…

Due to the continuing public discourse around abortion and Repeal the Eighth (which is ever welcome, if exhausting in that “Are we still debating this?” kind of way), I decided to take another look at common myths surrounding abortion, and debunk them so that you have information knives with which to cut down anti-choice nonsense. Embryos and…