T.He learned in graphic detail exactly how far abortion bans would hurt.After the Supreme Court Overturned Law vs Wade last juneit was like Every week, patients and doctors came forward to talk Women evolved life-threatening sepsis Also filled Diapers in blood before they were finally able to have an abortion.Some, like a Louisiana woman, never received that care forced to deliver her non-living fetus, and cancer patient who had to delay chemotherapy.another woman’s fetus had no skullbut she still had to travel 1,400 miles to get an abortion. dominated of headline for several months. Recently, we caught up with one of the women who shares her.
Elizabeth WellerMs.’s waters broke at 18 weeks, long before the baby was alive. In May 2022, a six-week abortion ban was issued for her in Houston, Texas. The Wellers wanted to end the pregnancy rather than let the baby suffer, but there was still a heartbeat. The hospital told her Weller that he basically had two options. Either wait for the fetus to die inside the body or wait for the life-threatening uterus to develop. infection from lack of amniotic fluid. Only then could the hospital terminate the pregnancy under the medical emergency exception to the law.
As Weller waited at home, her health deteriorated, and the hospital called her to say she was not yet sick enough. I called my doctor and was told to go to the ER immediately. She felt so gaslighted by the situation, toilet paper She was discharged as proof in case they didn’t believe her.Weller decided to share her story Immediately on NPR record.
Weller, 27, who recently graduated with a master’s degree in political science, is in tough conversations with her husband about plans for children and staying in the states. Here’s what she had to say.
This transcript has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
I remember sitting in my hospital bed thinking about how I took a media class in politics the semester before this happened. In that class, they told us that the literature tells us that when conservatives look at anonymous sources, they mostly think, “Oh, this source was made up by a reporter.” I didn’t want that to happen. I think this is something horribly tragic and very personal, and a problem other women have to face, giving people a reason to say ‘this is a fake problem’. I didn’t want to become something else.
I come from a really conservative family. For me, it was a warm-up to find my voice and challenge my parents. Because when the time came, I was familiar with how to talk to other conservative individuals and make them understand that this requires empathy. Still, I’ve seen some comments like, “This is not realistic” after talking about abortion. I have to refrain from sharing photos of my daughter. She is very, very small and very red. It’s a personal photo, but there were times when she wanted to hit this person’s face.
I grew up thinking women should be able to have abortions, but I personally didn’t want to. this experience Definitely made me very pro-abortion. This is what happens when you try to ban abortion. These are the results. When I got back to the hospital, I brought some toilet paper with secretions in case I didn’t believe it. It’s amazing. No need to do that. We don’t have to bring in our own bodily fluids to make them believe we are sick. Death is going to take us away, and we don’t have to prove it to people.
Now, I am 100% in favor of women seeking abortions. You don’t have to tell people how to approach these choices. It should be up to them and only them. If you look at polls about American society today, people actually don’t want to go back to such a conservative lifestyle.
What I got was a lot of talk about Democrats in the weeks leading up to the midterm elections. play their hands excessively in abortion. I was just like Don’t say that. ’ When you say that, people stand out—they start taking it lightly. Abortion voting measures It passed, but I’m really glad that at least it still feels like the pulse of America.I’m also disappointed that the gubernatorial and capitol campaigns here in Texas didn’t make much sense. .
I think all women should be disappointed that this country has let us down.took a long time to codify egg, We didn’t, and it’s the party’s fault, both Democrats and Republicans. Law vs Wade It will not be overturned. When that happened, they switched to supporting the Democratic candidate. We let the ladies down because it’s easier to use this as a way to get people to vote for you than to actually do something meaningful.
It’s anger and I don’t know what more I can do to stop it.
After coming out for the first time on NPR article, was very busy. There was a lot of activity in the roughly four months leading up to the November elections. Since then it’s been wonderfully quiet. I recovered and was able to start the healing process. It was a bit like a wave of recession here and there, but it got a lot better.
I keep my daughter’s urn in a small corner of the house, and a small frame of her footprints, an ultrasound, and a letter from the hospital. She sometimes goes there to see it and tells her how much she misses her. This was the first Dia de los Muertos that I actually celebrated. I did everything for her, her altar, and everything.
I am now thinking about what my life will look like after this. Would you try to get pregnant again after working for a year? If so, what would it look like? Am I going to have another miscarriage? If so, will the same thing unfold before my eyes again? It’s horrible. Yes, there are days when I definitely want to do it again for my child.But there are days when I can’t even imagine trying to do it again. If it means having to go through the possibilities, do I really want another child?” How much do I want to experience this if I get to that point again?
My husband and I have talked about leaving Texas. My mother was born and raised in Mexico and my father’s family is indigenous, so my family has lived in Texas for centuries, or at least in areas that have always been just south of the border in Texas. If I move from , I’ll be the first. You don’t want to leave here, do you? Whatever life I’ve built in Texas doesn’t mean I have to leave my family and friends just because the state doesn’t want to see me as someone with autonomy in my body.
Graduating in December was a much-needed positive for this last year. It felt like another way to heal. I felt like I had accomplished something and was able to say: Such high notes. After all, I’m still standing.
It was terrifying, but I am at least grateful to see this change and realize how strong I am as an individual. I am so grateful to her daughter for showing me that, she empowered me to understand my inner strength. And she gave me the strength to show other women that she was just as strong. I know she changed someone’s mind at least, and I can say I’m really proud of that.