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Yes, this would be one of my exceptions.

There is a brilliant play on this called "Mitzi's Abortion." Don't see it around a lot... It was by a local playwright. But it was genius, and on this very subject. The subtitle: "One side does not fit all." Explored ever nook and cranny of the abortion debate, pro life AND pro choice.

The pictures were scary to look at. I never knew that could happen, but then again, anything is possible.

I'm not in favor of abortion, but in this case, I think it'd be best.

This is an incredibly difficult question for me to answer. I vote pro-choice and would never condemn a woman's choice to abort in this situation. Yet, I know I can never go through an abortion...I would rather let nature follow its course and make the baby comfortable until his death, including not making any life-saving gestures. Most cases do not survive pregnancy.

However, I may change my answer if I were ever to be placed in that situation. And hopefully never will be.

the pick for no, is.....disturbing.

This is one of those situations where I, as a 93% pro-life individual, will accept abortion as a solution.

As for myself?
Maybe.

Exactly 93 percent? wow, i probably wouldn't of bothered working out the percentages for any opinions. XD how do you say: 100 for percent gay marriage, 75 percent for euthanasia, 95% for abortion (i am against abortion when it involves using the pill when your pregnant and back-street abortion), 85 percent for feminism (with the exception of being so feminist it's being sexist to men) and 100 percent for CHOCOLATE!

"85 percent for feminism (with the exception of being so feminist it's being sexist to men)"

I've said it before and I'll say it again - any woman who believes herself and all other women to be better than men is not a feminist, she is a chauvinist. Ergo, 100% liberal feminist here. 0% chauvinist.

Well, I just don't like being completely black or completely white. I enjoy exploring the grey in the world, and there's still a lot to venture through. :)

Okay, I'm completely torn on this issue. I understand everything about this, it's just... I don't know how to explain it!

No question here.

I'm not sure what that means but it looks like the baby is gonna suffer, and if the kids suffers, thats one of my acceptions

^I think in this case abortion is in the baby's best interest here and I'm quite sure that this is the reason why most of us picked this, not because we are "disgusted".
It doesn't have anything to do with giving birth to something "ugly", it has something to do with giving birth to something that simply can't live and is going to suffer while it's "alive".

I'm not sure what this has to do with heaven? :S

I didn't pick 'yes' because of the picture. I picked 'yes' because I read what these babies go through. I'd rather kill my baby than force it to go through pain and suffering for selfish reasons.

"I think most of us who picked yes only did so because we find the pictures disturbing or sad. That is a selfish act. Ending a life because you're disgusted by it."

Well, I can only speak for myself in response to that; I would never abort a child because I (rarely) think that he or she was ugly. Hell, I myself am ugly. So how can I bash someone else for that to begin with? xD
Alongside this though, it would be the suffering the child would go through while even in the womb and his/her high chances of not surviving delivery that would make me consider having an abortion. After all, this is one of these cases where I am occasionally accepting abortion as a solution (I'm mainly Pro-Life myself).

But as I said before, the answer to my choosing an abortion in this hypothetical situation is a maybe.
Mainly because I know of cases where an anencephalic infant was born alive, and his/her parents were able to bond with the baby for the next few hours before he/she passed away.
I wouldn't want to remember my baby as the deformed fetus I aborted, or in better words I don't want to say good-bye to my child without ever seeing him. Without ever meeting him or her, holding his or her tiny hands, speaking to him or her etc.
If there was a chance of my baby surviving delivery and living for a few hours, I'd take that chance so I can at least hold him/her and perhaps even let the child know that he/she was loved. :)

And, that's basically it xD

I want to add this second comment in case anyone asks;

The reason as to why I chose "No" is because it's easier for me to view the comments this way.

Except the baby isn't going to be living happily ever after... Either way it's going to die. Why prolong the suffering?

^^Dada, I didn't pick yes. I don't even want to automatically pick 'No' neither. My simple answer is maybe.

And bri-marie basically stated my response to the second point you have mentioned.

EDIT: Additional words.

And to be honest, I'm not sure why I responded to your previous comment. Because I never meant to say 'yes' or 'no'. :/

I'm torn on the issue, I don't know if I could ever abort a baby, but at the same time, I don't want to make the baby live to only suffer.

O-kay? Again, either way the baby is dead - usually before it's first birthday. Forcing the baby to suffer isn't going to give it a better chance to get into heaven. It's not going to give it a "great" quality of life. SO what's the point in keeping it alive?

Plus even if you did abort it, don't fetus's go to heaven? Wait, im atheist but i'm just asking christians or people with knogledge of this---- if you abort a fetus, does it go to heaven, assuming it exists?

i'm just curious.

also, shaperequeen, isnt it more heart-breaking to meet your baby and then have it snatched away from you, than never meet your baby at all?

" and then have it snatched away from you?"

What do you mean by 'snatched away from you?'

And I wouldn't necessarily call it 'heart breaking' (if these were the words I used to describe how I'd feel, my apologies and I'd wish I used a different choice of words).

I would just feel terrible about losing a child that I never met. I never got to know this little person who would be the love of my life for as long as I lived. So, if there was a strong opportunity, I may let the baby live just so I can say good-bye face to face. I know that might sound...odd to others. It's just how I am.

Which would probably lead me to my conclusive opinion on this; If there was a chance, yes I'd stay pregnant for full-term. But if there were no chances, then I may consider abortion.

i don't know..if the baby couldn't survive--- then by not having a abortion--- wouldn't you just be setting it up for a few hours of horrible pain before it's death?

if i had a baby, I don't think i would ever forgive myself if i let my baby suffer horribly...

There have been plenty of cases where parents allowed their anencephalic children to be born, and spent a good number of hours with them. In fact, I believe there was a scenario where an infant with anencephaly lived for a 93 days. Let me find the link;

link

The pain the baby may undergo is exactly why I may choose abortion in this rare circumstance. But obviously, according to other cases, suffering isn't always the biggest problem or perhaps a problem at all.

suffering is a problem, and in my ideal world, we try to keep it to a mimimum, if possible...

and would it nessicarily be a good thing if he/she lived for 93 days? i mean, 93 days of potential horrible suffering, because the parents are really that selfish that they don't have their childs best interests at heart?

"suffering is a problem, and in my ideal world, we try to keep it to a mimimum, if possible..."

Yes, pandawinx.
In a lot of people's ideal worlds, suffering is nonexistant.

Not once did I say that suffering was not a problem in our world. I do believe that it should be minimized if possible. That is exactly why I am on the fence about aborting the baby if I find myself in this situation.


As for other parents, I will boldly say that I highly doubt that they were/are selfish enough to be willing to have their children endure a tremendously painful death.

Allow me to post some particular quotes from a website where mothers (and perhaps there were a few fathers) told their stories about their infants having anencephaly;

"In the evening, I phoned one of my uncles who is a doctor to get a further explanation. He cannot give me more details, except that an anencephalic child cannot live. However, he encourages me to give her the same rights as any other baby, and to live in the most normal way possible. These words shake me, since one of my major questions after the diagnosis was how I could live the remaining four and a half months with a human being already condemned to death.

Our pastor and his wife visited us and together we prayed that God will help us and console us. However, we do not pray for healing, since neither they nor we feel that it is the right direction to follow.

I also telephoned the midwife, and like my uncle, she urges me to continue living normally and to give this baby everything I would give to a healthy child; she has the same right of receiving love and good care as any other."

From what I get from reading these, this mother was well aware and disturbed by the fact that her child would die, before or after birth. So it's not like she didn't think of the child's interest or well being.

Also, two of the people who counseled the mother in this scenario had great knowledge on anencephaly, yet encouraged her to keep the child. Would you necessarily call these people 'selfish'?

According to their reasoning; The baby should be given the same rights as any other normal, healthy child. That this baby can be given the same things given to a healthy child, that the baby can still be loved and cared for.
I may disagree, but I don't see how this is selfish.


I skimmed over a couple of the stories on this website;
link
There are plenty of over stories that someone can read over if interested.

These quotes came from one particular story titled "Anouk".


Now you see, I honestly don't see the parents choosing temporary life for these babies as right or wrong.
I stated what I would have done for myself if I find myself in this situation.

But for other parents, if they feel that it is right to allow their children to live if given the chance, then I'd respect that.

EDIT: Changed choice of words.

I also have a question;

What would you, pandawinx or anyone else who comes across this fanpick call 'selfish' reasons for choosing the child to live?
I'm just sincerely curious.

well, i do understand that the parents are obviously disturbed and upset to see there child suffer so but.....disturbed enough not to put a end to it before it happened?

i think some people, most people want to have children. it is in human nature for us to want to nurture, care for something, multiply, carry on the human race, i know there are exceptions (like for example, me) but i think some parents simply want to be parents, perhaps they would feel devastated over losing a child and for there own insecurities decide to keep it, even when they know their own child's going to suffer.
Also, i just want to make it clear that i'm sure the parents want to do the right thing, and perhaps, in some peoples perspectives they are. but everyone once in a while gets so caught up with doing the right thing, that they do the complete oppisite.

take for this hypothectical example-
you are 10 years old. your best friend is being bullied by someone in the year above. she is miserable, and you want to help. because that would be doing the right thing. so----- you punch the bully in the face causing him/her to bleed and cry, telling the teacher. at the time, it seems perfect and good- you are helping your friend and possibly preventing him/her being bullied by this person. a split later however, you realise that you are being like the bully you so hated, and did exactly the wrong thing.

example 2-
You are walking in a buzy street, in a city. someone in front you drops his/her wallet, with the value of 50 dollars/pounds, and doesn't notice. as far as you can judge by his/her appearance, she/he is neither rich nor poor.
you pick up the wallet and you are about to point out the stranger's mistake, when you spot a homeless person on the street, a beggar. from your perspective, he/she seems to have much more need for the money than the person who owned it. the person who dropped the wallet is still in sight and you are capible of returning it to it's rightful owner. however, you think that it would be better to give it to the person who--- from first impressions, seems to need it much more. so you give the wallet to him/her. because that's the right thing, right?

i think the parents you discribed might THINk they're doing the right thing by saving a doomed life, but then again, is it right to give your child a horrible life?

i have two questions to you-
1. In your perspective, is it better to live a life of horror and pain from start to finish, which you are too young to understand or make sense of, or have no life at all?
2. would you blame yourself if you aborted a anencephalic baby?

Hell yeah

I am pro-choice and stuff like this is the reason. I honestly don't know what I would do. I know my sister was really sick but my mom kept her anyway, because she hoped maybe she would get better. I honestly didn't know what I would have done if I was my mother. I pray that I'll never have to know, for her's or for this one.
I'm totally up in the air over this.

Why carry it to full term? It's not going to survive anyway.

I don't think i could deal with an abortion easily after what one of my friend gone through it but...when i looked at the subject and the picture,i thinked ''No,i would abort it.'' why? because 1) the poor baby is going to be so diformed that even if he/she managed to survive,he/she going to be feared and teased forever and ever.
2) The baby can't feel pain,is deef,blind,mute,uncouncious among other things.I don't think i would feel very well knowing that my baby is heavily disabled and can't survive.So,aborting it before his/her birth is better (I'm pro-choice,btw)

Continue being pregnant?
Abort?

I honestly would choose neither.

I support abortion for the reason that people should not be forced into pregnancy and then forced to stay that way and then endure the second most painful thing on Earth for someone she doesn't want.
Continued rape is what forced pregnancy is.
A tragedy is what forced abortion is.

Lots of people think they have the right to tell me to go through a medical condition for someone else. It should be my option, same for donating organs, it is an option. I will donate my organs after I die, but until I die, they are for my body.


As for this topic right here, stop the suffering as early as possible, do not let someone live out it's entire lifespan in pain.

fuuko-chan: your baby would never be feared or teased because it will not survive long enough for that to happen. That is what happens with anencephalic babies.

To us, the baby will only suffer for a few days. But to the baby, he/she will suffer his/her entire life. I wouldn't do that to my child and to me, it's sort of politically selfish to choose pro-life on this. I'd rather go through with an abortion than face the fact how I pushed through and gave my child a life full of suffering.

I had a baby with anencephaly. I chose not I read your comments because try would be hard to read. My son Tobie lived 6 days. I wish I could post his picture because he was beautiful and did not look like the picture posted above. With a hat on he looked like a normal baby. I am so glad I chose to hold and care for him. He felt it it and knew we were there. He was comforted by us every second of his life.

This condition is Not compatible with life. These babies only live a few days. They will not suffer in life because they don't live. My son did not suffer...in fact he actually got to live the full extent of seconds on earth god gave him without me selfishly taking them from him. He got to feel his mom, meet his brothers, and be held by his dad.

Normally I am against abortion. But this is one of the cases where I would agree with it. I feel like it would almost be cruel to let the baby be born, it just sounds like a very hard lifestyle and a very short one at that. I feel like it's more merciful to spare it of such pain.

@jennifervan I'm sorry for your loss. You bring up some good points.