1. “I ended up with septicemia”

One person shared a traumatising experience that ended with septicemia – a potentially fatal blood infection.

“I had a missed miscarriage and even though it was clear with three ultrasounds, the hospital doctors were not convinced so they didn’t want to end my pregnancy.”

“I spent two months of my life in and out of hospital with retained products of my miscarriage, ending up with septicemia – meaning that my blood got infected and there was the possibility that I could die.”

“If the law was in place, I wouldn’t have gone through such an ordeal.”

2. “Why had I prolonged my daughter’s suffering”

Someone reached out to Doctors for Choice explaining that she couldn’t have a termination abroad for reasons she decided to keep to herself. However, she still feels guilt to this day for carrying her very much wanted yet unviable pregnancy to 23 weeks.

Moreover, she listed some of the most difficult things about carrying a baby that she knew could never become a child.

“I cannot forget the feeling of complete hopelessness as I sat waiting next to excited pregnant women during regular ultrasounds to check if my baby was dead. Having people congratulate you as they see your very evident pregnant belly, choosing the baby’s burial outfit instead of the home one. These are only a few terrible things that women in my situation go through.”

“The worst part was my doctor telling me toward the end of my pregnancy that it was normal for me not to feel the baby moving because my condition caused swelling so severe that there was no space left for her to move.”

She still carries the guilt with her.

“Why hadn’t I terminated early on in the pregnancy? Why had I prolonged the suffering of my precious daughter? Was it really for her? Or had I not done it because I did not want to be seen as a murderess by society?”

3. “She had to carry her baby that had no chance of survival”

Another person recounted the heartbreaking situation that her friend was forced to endure because the law gave her no other option.

“A very good friend of mine had been trying to get pregnant for some time and when she finally got pregnant she was so happy.”

However, at around five or six months they found out that the baby had a major condition which meant it wouldn’t survive past the first five minutes from birth. “This was definite”.

“My friend had to spend the whole pregnancy knowing this, with people congratulating her. She had to go into labour till the end surrounded by happy expecting mothers.”

“Obviously, the baby died and everything was over but the psychological damage that she endured is still present and strong.”

4. “I’m a mother and I had an abortion”

A mother told Doctors for Choice that unless she had an abortion she risked no longer being alive for the lives of her four other children.

“I have had an abortion after failed contraception. I’m a mother, I gave life to four children. I now have a medical condition which puts my life at risk if I do give birth.”

“I couldn’t continue with the pregnancy as I owe my children my presence. I had to make a choice – it was mine to make, no one else’s.”

5. “She felt like a walking coffin”

Similarly to the third story, someone shared the experience of a friend of hers who got willingly pregnant but was made to give birth to a child that wasn’t going to live.

“At her anomaly scan, they found a defect that meant that the baby would not live more than a few hours. She was forced to carry to term.”

“Can any of these people imagine the trauma and pain of knowing that you are a walking coffin? People congratulating you, asking when you’re due, only to know your baby will suffer and die within a few short hours.”

“I can’t think of anything more cruel to put someone through all for the sake of piety.”

6. “The pregnancy was going to kill me”

Another person opened up about a pregnancy that she desperately wanted, however it was on the brink of killing her and she still had to wait a day for a board of strangers to decide whether she would be given the medication she needed.

“I had a missed miscarriage at the very beginning of the second trimester. One doctor wanted me to remove the baby, others told me everything was fine, the baby had a heartbeat. This went on for weeks.”

The woman explained that she was misinformed and was not given all the necessary information to make proper decisions regarding her own health because “others believed that they had the right to decide” for her.

“Eventually I was hospitalised when it became obvious that this pregnancy was going to kill me. I had to wait a day for a board of people who had never met me to decide if I could be administered the medication needed to save my life, all while sharing a room with labouring mothers.”

7. “Her pregnancy denied her chemotherapy for months”

An 18-year-old woman was denied an abortion after she was diagnosed with cancer; because of this, she had to wait months to receive potentially life-saving chemotherapy.

“I hope no one passes through this, but this happened recently. An 18-year-old woman got pregnant and after three months was diagnosed with cancer, and they couldn’t terminate her pregnancy in order to start chemo,” they said.

“They made her wait months to start her chemo, until she gave birth, and now there is no chance of curing her cancer.”

“It’s very easy for people to comment when they have not passed through such an experience.”

8. “We would’ve had to wait for the baby to suffocate or starve to death”

“I was pregnant. It was a wanted pregnancy, but during scans it was discovered that my baby had a fatal anomaly.”

“The doctor recommended an abortion because in the case the baby was born alive with the given condition, no life support would be offered. Instead we would’ve had to wait for a natural death – either through suffocating or dying of hunger due to the anomalies.”

“Said doctor’s name is among the list of those who signed the petition against the legal amendment.”

9. “I was a child at her funeral”

A woman recounted a time when she was just a child at the funeral of a 24-year-old woman who died while pregnant.

Around 30 years ago, a young woman died while pregnant. The person who shared the story admitted that while she did not know her exact cause of death, all she knew was “that the pregnancy was weakening her slowly and her blood pressure was sky high”.

“I will never forget how her mother was not just crying, but screaming in pain. When her coffin was brought in, she kept saying ‘jaħasra, jaħasra’ over and over again while sobbing.”

“Although I did not know it then, that was the moment that I became pro-choice, and I always will be.”

10. “I want to have kids soon”

Among the several messages that Doctors for Choice received, some women explained that while they have never been pregnant, they can rest easy knowing that if they choose to have a child, their livelihoods will be prioritised in the case of risk.

“I’m married and I wish to have kids in the future – I want the currently proposed law to be in force before I am pregnant. I have no intention to abort; god willing, I want a baby one day. But I want to know that I’m protected by law should medical complications arise threatening either my life or my health.”

“Thankfully, I do have the means to go abroad should this be required, but in truth, if I’m in a hospital bed unable to fly, no money will help me. All I can rely on is the law and the doctors taking care of me.”

“I’m Catholic and I’m in favour of this amendment because it’s intended to protect women, nothing more, nothing less. I wish the Church, the Nationalist Party and the pro-lifers would stop the scaremongering and fight for women’s health and life.”

11. “I can rest easy knowing that my partner and sisters will be protected”

A man reached out simply to thank the NGO and express that the new legal amendment has given him peace of mind.

“I can rest easy knowing that my partner and sisters will be protected if any complications are established if they get pregnant.”

When speaking about the legal amendment, one must keep in mind that it is not legalising abortion – it is solely protecting doctors from legal repercussions of performing abortions on women who are gravely endangered by their pregnancies.

It will also prevent some of the traumatising experiences seen above that leaves women and womb bearers with permanent mental scars.

If you have ever experienced anything similar and want to share your story, email [email protected]