A Florida woman is speaking out after experiencing a pregnancy loss during the early weeks of her pregnancy. She says the experience became even more difficult because of requirements she was told she needed to meet before receiving treatment. In her state, many abortions are banned after six weeks of pregnancy. And for those who qualify, there’s a 24-hour waiting period. Now, she’s speaking up with outrage over the situation and how it affects many women.
Ashley (@ashley_livinginchaos) said she learned that her pregnancy was no longer viable during the early weeks of pregnancy. She said she lost the pregnancy at five weeks. Since then, she’s had three scans to ensure there has been no growth in her pregnancy. While on vacation at Disney World, she visited a Planned Parenthood in Orlando. She said she was concerned about potential complications while on vacation, including the possibility of infection. Ashley states, “I’d rather just have it removed today and move on with my life than be in the hospital for sepsis.”
Ashley goes to the Planned Parenthood and says that, yet again, a scan showed there’s no heartbeat. Ashley said she was told she could not immediately receive a D&C procedure despite multiple scans that she says showed no fetal heartbeat. Ashley said she was told she would need to wait 11 days between scans and after that amount of time, they’ll finally treat it as a “missed miscarriage.” Because she did not want to wait any longer, Ashley said she chose to move forward with an abortion procedure “while on vacation.” She tearfully explains that if she waits any longer, she’s afraid she’ll be putting her life at risk.
Ashley said that the entire process has been really traumatic for her. The clinical staff asked her if she wanted to see what nine months of pregnancy looks like in case she wanted to “change her mind.” This isn’t even a feasible option for her because there is no heartbeat. On top of that, she had to pay for everything leading up to this out of pocket. Ashley shares, “The way the law is written is awful for a woman in my situation. But after tomorrow, I can finally put it behind me.”
Commenters immediately reacted to Ashley’s video, sharing opinions related to Florida abortion laws and their own experiences. One commenter said that Florida laws are “risking women’s lives.” Another stated, “This is literally a form of torture.” Other commenters were shocked that Ashley had to go through something so traumatic. One commenter stated, “Putting women at risk for sepsis in insane.”
While many commenters expressed sympathy for Ashley and criticized the situation she described, others focused on offering support and condolences following her pregnancy loss.
