A mother in South Africa has welcomed a healthy baby girl thanks to the help of the life-saving Abortion Pill Reversal.
The woman’s story was highlighted by the Pregnancy Help Network based in South Africa. In an email sent to Pregnancy Help News by Africa Cares for Life Executive Director Danièle Gradwell, it was revealed that a mother named Buhle regretted taking the abortion pill and wanted to save her child, who was later born healthy.
At the end of 2023, the mother reached out to a local pregnancy help center and asked for help saving her unborn child. She told pro-life workers at the facility that she “desperately want[ed] my baby to survive.”
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Buhle reached out for help after taking the first dose of the abortion pill, which consists of both the pharmaceutical drugs mifepristone and misoprostol. The first is taken to block the hormone progesterone, halting nutrients for the developing baby, and the second induces labor so the mother can deliver her child.
Thanks to the help of Abortion Pill Reversal, Buhle was provided “an opportunity to choose a life story” for her baby. The child, described by Gradwell as a “healthy and perfect little girl” named Itumeleng, “was born earlier this year.”
“Abortion Pill Reversal helps women who are seeking a last chance to choose life for their baby,” Gradwell wrote. “They are able to reach out to Pregnancy Help Network and be connected with a local medical doctor who starts the abortion pill reversal process.”
Abortion Pill Reversal is completed by women taking progesterone, replacing the hormone that is stopped by the drug mifepristone, and which is critical for the unborn baby’s development. The protocol is often successful when initiated within the first 24 hours of taking the abortion pill, with similar life-saving results also occurring within a 72-hour timeframe.
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In 2023 alone, 1,200 babies were saved through abortion pill reversal, according to Heartbeat International’s 2024 Life Trends report. Mothers in every American state and 93 different countries sought help saving their babies from the abortion pill by contacting the Abortion Pill Rescue Network (APRN), an initiative of Heartbeat International, last year. Heartbeat is the largest network of pregnancy help organizations in the U.S. and the world. According to statistics to date, 5,000 lives and counting have been saved thanks to the APRN.
In South Africa, many mothers seeking a chemical abortion go to “traditional healers” or get the pills “illegally from dodgy sources” or certain “pharmacies that may stock these pills,” Gradwell explained. They generally “do not have access” to post-abortive resources, including help for the emotional side effects of the pill.
“It is so important that women have someone to talk to before getting to this point,” Gradwell said, adding that this “is why Pregnancy Help Network’s mission is to help establish pregnancy help organizations in every community in Southern Africa.”
Although Pregnancy Help Network does not have full statistics of how many women in the country seek Abortion Pill Reversal treatment, Gradwell told Pregnancy Help News that the organization “collaborate[s] with Doctors for Life,” another South Africa-based pro-life group. She shared that this group “report[s] that since August 2022, they have been contacted by 49 clients and [that] 16 babies have been born and are doing well.”
“Abortion doesn’t have to be your only story, and it is not your only option,” Gradwell replied when asked what she would say to women who were considering abortion or were despairing after they take the pill.
“Many women have shared how they regret choosing abortion and wish they could turn back time to make a different decision,” she said. “I want to offer a hand of support and hold up her arms at a time when she can’t.”
Heartbeat International provides 24/7 pregnancy guidance through its contact center, Option Line, that can be found here. Women who are considering or regret taking the abortion pill can also contact the Abortion Pill Reversal helpline.
Editor's note: Heartbeat International manages the Abortion Pill Rescue® Network (APRN) and Pregnancy Help News. Heartbeat is currently the subject of two lawsuits brought by state AGs concerning sharing information about Abortion Pill Reversal.