A U.S. Congressman witnessed the authenticity of Abortion Pill Reversal (APR) recently when a baby saved through the APR protocol visited his office.
Manuela and Chris met with varied lawmakers and staff in Washington D.C. as part of Heartbeat International’s Babies Go to Congress event May 12.
Babies Go to Congress invites U.S. Senators and Representatives to meet with moms and their babies, to hear the moms’ stories to illustrate that pregnancy help organizations are good for America. Heartbeat is the nation’s largest network of pregnancy help.
Lisa Bourne
Manuela and Chris faced an unplanned pregnancy and thought that abortion was their only option. They pursued a chemical abortion and Manuela had taken the first of two abortion drugs when the couple experienced immediate regret.
They were helped by Crossroads Pregnancy Center, part of the Abortion Pill Rescue® Network (APRN) managed by Heartbeat, and they were able to reverse the chemical abortion with APR.
Manuela and Chris couldn’t be happier to have their son Oliver, now two, and they were happy to share their pregnancy help story on Capitol Hill.
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Some of the people they met were hearing about APR for the first time and augmenting the amazement for those new to the life-affirming protocol at times was encountering Oliver, living proof of APR’s efficacy.
Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) was one for whom Oliver whose the introduction to APR, and the Congressman was taken aback.
Heartbeat team members accompanying Manuela, Chris, and Oliver to lawmakers’ offices explained the reason for the visit, basics of the couple’s story and how they were helped by the Crossroads and the APRN.
Norman then asked whether Oliver was their first child, and as he did the realization set in that Oliver was who was saved from chemical abortion.
“Was this your first child?” the congressman asked … “That’s, that’s the, that’s him?”
Even among individuals who are aware of APR it’s not yet very common to have met or known a child saved through APR.
Heartbeat’s Director of Medical Impact Christa Brown explained for Norman that Heartbeat has 3,000 affiliate pregnancy organizations throughout the world, and also that the APRN hotline was available 24/7 to women who have taken the first abortion pill and regret their decision.
“So, to date, there have been more than 3,000 lives saved through the Abortion Pill Rescue Network,” Brown told Norman.
“We know that women who start abortions often have regret and they should still have that option if they would like to continue to pregnancy,” she said.
Manuela shared that she had called Planned Parenthood after starting the chemical abortion asking for help with stopping the process.
“They told me there was nothing they could do at all,” she said. “They didn't give me any information or choices about reversing the abortion.”
Manuela said likewise she had not been prepared for the aftereffects of the chemical abortion.
“I spoke to, actually two people from Planned Parenthood and they didn't give me anything,” Manuela said. “And then even when I was at the Planned Parenthood (for the abortion), they didn't give me any information of like, after the abortion or anything, they basically only were advertising like death, like, okay, this is your only choice.”
Norman asked what had made the couple consider abortion.
“I just felt like it was at that moment we weren't ready,” Manuela said. “We felt like we weren't prepared, financially and everything.”
Chemical abortion involves two drugs. The first, mifepristone, blocks the natural hormone in a woman’s body needed to sustain pregnancy, progesterone, starving the unborn baby. The second drug, misoprostol, taken a day or so after the first drug, then causes the mother to go into labor and deliver her deceased child.
The APR protocol entails prescribing bioidentical progesterone to counter the mifepristone. If a mom asks quickly enough it may be possible to save her unborn child. The APRN’s statistics show that to date more than 3,000 lives have been saved thanks to the APR protocol.
Heartbeat manages the APRN, which consists of roughly 1,000 medical providers and pregnancy help organizations that administer APR.
Norman asked about the logistics of chemical abortion and APR, including how quickly a mom experiencing regret from starting a chemical abortion must act to try and save her child through APR.
“So, the sooner the better,” Brown explained. “We want to get the progesterone to them as soon as we can to reverse the effects of that mifepristone.”
Many lives have been saved even within 72 hours, explained Brown, who manages the daily operations of the APRN hotline.
“If they haven't taken the second drug and they call us, we are able to get a prescription to them,” Brown said. “In her (Manuela’s) case, we were able to do that through the Crossroads Pregnancy Center.”
“That is amazing,” Norman said.
He asked Manuela more about how her story unfolded.
Manuela had taken the first abortion pill at 10 a.m. that day, and then she started the progesterone at around 11 p.m.
Norman’s questions continued.
Chris explained how they were both going through various things when they learned Manuela was pregnant, she was more open to the abortion and was really not for it, and there had a lot of emotions.
“She had second thoughts,” Chris said of Manuela after taking the first abortion pill.
“After I came home, I just felt like, I felt terrible,” she told the Congressman. “I was like, what am I doing? You know, this isn't right.”
“And like I said, I wasn't given anything from Planned Parenthood, like any extra options or anything like that,” she said.
“So, I did a Google search,” said Manuela, “and it was the first thing that came up - Abortion Pill Reversal.”
“And all I did was call the number and they connected me with a nurse,” she explained. “And then I spoke to her for a little bit, and then she connected me to a doctor, who helped prescribe me the progesterone.”
“That's amazing,” Norman said again.
Legislative Director for Rep. Jeff Duncan/Lisa Bourne
Manuela shared how life is now, having Oliver with them.
“He’s brought a whole different story to my life,” she said. “It's just … he's been a light to my life. And before I was depressed, I didn't know what to do. I didn't have a belief (knowing God) and he came into my life and it's just in like a miracle, you know?”
“That's an amazing story,” said Norman.
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Brown detailed abortion pill specifics for him, and the regret experienced by many women who take it.
“What we commonly hear is that regret,” she said, “and it sets in so quickly that many of them are calling us from the parking lot of the abortion facility or on their way home, because the regret is that fast.”
“And then we hear the same story over and over that they thought they knew (that this is what they should do),” said Brown. “You know, they paid for it, they went there, they did this.”
“And now they have regret because they realize, and they call us,” she said.
“We have a hotline that's 24 hours a day. We have about 30 nurses that take these calls,” continued Brown. “And they're in a panic. And they say, ‘You don't understand what I did. This isn’t the path I want to go,’ and they’re looking for help now.”
Norman concurred with the need to raise awareness about APR and chemical abortion, encouraged pro-life advocates to let their voices be heard.
Editor's note: Heartbeat International Manages the Abortion Pill Rescue® Network (APRN) and Pregnancy Help News.
