Crisis Pregnancy Centers

[Coy Koi]

I went to one of these places once. I was 17 and pregnant and my mom made me go the day after I told her. They did nothing remotely helpful, and told me that having an abortion drastically increased the likelihood of developing breast cancer. I wasn't even considering abortion and was actually antiabortion at that time (but not anymore). I wasn't really pressured to give my baby up for adoption though. My mom was with us in the room for the entire appointment though (doesn't that seem like not the best way to do things? if you're actually trying to help someone experiencing a crisis pregnancy who may have sensitive information that she needs to tell someone privately?) so I can't say how they would have acted otherwise.

I was lucky in that for me it was just a waste of time since I didn't want an abortion anyway. It can be so much worse for many women.

[Destiny]

18 hours ago, dramallama said:

If you haven't seen it, watch the documentary "12th & Delaware" on HBO GO/HBO NOW.  The filmmakers go inside an abortion clinic and the crisis pregnancy center across the street from it.  

Thanks for the recommendation. I’m putting it on now. 

Edit: holy shit the manipulation from these assholes. RAGE. 

[SuperSluth]

Oh I can only imagine!  I have an Aunt who volunteers, donates money, shares propaganda on FB from a pregnancy center local to her.  When her OWN DAUGHTER had an unplanned pregnancy she was shocked to hear that my hospital bill from having my son was thousands of dollars...after insurance (of course I was in labor for 36+ hours with tons of interventions and then 2 days in recovery).  I was so pissed!  Common, lady!  You thought giving birth was FREE?!?!  What is WRONG with you!  And you encourage teen/young/single mothers to keep babies!  GRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

[Destiny]

Oh my fucking hell. I can’t with these people. I hate them all so much. Preying on these vulnerable women makes you a fucking terrible person.

[Briefly]

I never knew any of this. I honestly thought that they worked with the girls to figure out what her choices were, helped her with adoption agencies if that's what the girl decided, and helped her with whatever resources she needed if she decided to keep the baby. I had no idea that they were like they apparently are. Kind of regret donating my maternity clothes to one when I was done with it and we figured out that I was not going to need to wear them again.

[Exposed Collarbone]

I was pregnant when I went into a CPC because I needed help. I could not confirm my pregnancy with my doctor yet because I was waiting for health insurance to kick in. (Oh the joys of American healthcare.) I told them I was pregnant and wanted to keep the pregnancy, but I had questions about what to do until I could see a doctor. The lady had no clue what to do with me. She talked to me in the lobby, and told me to get in with a doctor as soon as possible. I was having cramp like sensations, and wanted to know if it was safe to use a heating pad. She could not get me out of there fast enough. Such a simple question, but she had no knowledge of what to do because I did not fit the profile. How hard would it have been to offer me some comfort? 

[Destiny]

That’s so sad. I bet a Planned Parenthood would have helped you. Of course, you’d have to run the protesters line, (which is NOT fun and also bullshit) but they have really medical people there. So much for helping women.

Pressed send before I meant to. Oops. It’s sad to me to see PP so demonised because they actually helped a younger me, instead of guilting me into not having sex and answered my questions.

 

[AnnaSofia]

I thank Planned Parenthood daily. They're the main reason I never needed to seek an abortion. I hit my teens in the 90s, before the internet was the resource it is today, and they were a lifesaver just in terms of information alone.

[hoipolloi]

Back in the early Dark Ages 1970s, Planned Parenthood was an absolute godsend.

It was the one place in my college town where we could get good GYN medical care + birth control at a reasonable cost (sometimes NO cost) and relatively quickly. 

2 hours ago, Exposed Collarbone said:

I was having cramp like sensations, and wanted to know if it was safe to use a heating pad. She could not get me out of there fast enough.

These asshats often get government money for their "services."

How could it NOT be illegal for them to do this, shove potential patients out the door, never mind not having staff who are qualified to provide care?

[Dandruff]

Why aren't protesters at these places?

[tankgirl]

8 hours ago, Dandruff said:

Why aren't protesters at these places?

Because the protesters probably give money to these places and know the truth.


CPC's are horrible, they list them selves under "Abortion Services" they offer scans and other testing, but they have no one on staff who is actually trained. The lying and scary advice they give is horrible.

California has a case trying to get CPC's to have to be up front that they are not medical offices, and do not offer abortion services, but the groups are fighting against the law. How bullshit is it, that because its women's health, a group can lie and give you a "medical" screening, they are not trained to offer, and they do not have to tell you what services they actually offer or any information about their training or degrees up front? You would be sued and in jail if you ran any other "health care" business this way, but here we are, and they are not only not in jail, but getting loads of government funding. It's sickening.

 

[Coy Koi]

In my county, they're required by law to post notices stating that they aren't health care facilities. But they just don't anyway. https://crosscut.com/2018/01/king-county-health-crisis-pregnancy-centers-disclosure-rules-ignored

[smittykins]

I just googled "Planned Parenthood" for shits and giggles, and the first two results were "We're Not Planned Parenthood" and "Parenthood Planning Services." 

[spork78]

I earned a major black eye in my MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) group because I refused to fundraise for our local CPC. We did those silly baby bottle fundraisers and I wouldn't participate. I actually accompanied a friend to Planned Parenthood for a termination and I thought they were very informative, caring, and understanding, so that's where my donations go.

[Destiny]

Thank you for doing that. I went to my local PP eleventy years ago for BC and still have nightmares about the protesters and how vile they were.

[WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?]

On 4/15/2018 at 3:33 PM, Destiny said:

Thank you for doing that. I went to my local PP eleventy years ago for BC and still have nightmares about the protesters and how vile they were.

I used PP for birth control and pelvic exams/pap smears when I didn't have health insurance. They were always respectful and informative, and I never saw a single protester. (The last visit was in 2004, so I suppose protesters could be a problem now.  )

A PP nurse gave me a mirror guided tour of my anatomy at my first visit, and it was much more informative than the first pelvic exam I had by a doctor, years before. I visited PP after my first miscarriage, when we finally had enough money for a visit, and they reassured me that I was healthy and could go on to have children someday. I have a great deal of respect for their work.

I only remembered one crisis pregnancy center here (it's been around since the 70s, at least), but we apparently have many more these days, including one that set up right next to Planned Parenthood. Scary.

[smittykins]

There's a CPC in my area(affiliated with CareNet), and our regional newspaper once ran a front-page article with a positive slant, including a glowing testimonial from a woman who said one of the services they offered was parenting classes.  I wanted to write a response asking her if they were the kind that teach that children are inherently sinful and need to be "trained" from day one, a la Pearl/Ezzo.(I almost did, but chickened out.)

And at the time, the director of the CPC was the wife of the pastor of the conservative evangelical church I'd attended as a teen/young adult, who was quoted as saying "Abstinence is our form of birth control. "

[dramallama]

The PP in my town doesn't even provide abortions and yet they still get the occasional group of protesters.  In fact, there are no abortion providers in my county at all, but there are several CPCs and billboards advertising them all over the damn place.  

[Audrey2]

On 4/10/2018 at 11:54 AM, Coy Koi said:

I went to one of these places once. I was 17 and pregnant and my mom made me go the day after I told her. They did nothing remotely helpful, and told me that having an abortion drastically increased the likelihood of developing breast cancer. I wasn't even considering abortion and was actually antiabortion at that time (but not anymore). I wasn't really pressured to give my baby up for adoption though. My mom was with us in the room for the entire appointment though (doesn't that seem like not the best way to do things? if you're actually trying to help someone experiencing a crisis pregnancy who may have sensitive information that she needs to tell someone privately?) so I can't say how they would have acted otherwise.

How awful! My heart breaks for the young women who find themselves pregnant with their mom's friend or boyfriend's baby, or a father, stepfather, or step brother, who have to suffer this ridiculous treatment. Imagine, too, if you felt pressured by your boyfriend to have sex, or you got pregnant at a party or at a friend's house, and had your disapproving, very conservative/religious mother at your appointment, shaming you.

[NotQuiteMotY]

And all of these stories are why I vetoed my husband's suggestion to donate to a CPC in our area...

Doses anyone have any relatively "balanced" or unbiased links to articles or resources that articulate this stuff? He won't donate to Planned Parenthood because of OMG!abortions! but I refuse to donate to the CPC in our area and when I told him about this stuff he brushed it off. I've tried looking a couple of times with little luck.

(Common funds, so we agree on donations before making them.)

[tankgirl]

The AMA has a pretty good break down of why they are bad, even if he is anti-choice in regards to abortion, or chooses not to send money to PP because of abortions, they fact they are acting like medical clinics, with no licensing or training, shoudl be seriously worrying. Also PP saves lives, they do testing for STD's, mammograms and pelvic exams, areas where the funding has switched from PP to CPC and other groups, have seen, so many poor people, especially women left with no care, this is wrong. I think every woman has right to decide if they want to proceed with a pregnancy or not, but if he doesn't he should at least be honest, about how dangerous, it might be to have these people lying to women and pretending they are trained when they are not. What happens if they miss something important in one of those scans? A poor woman, might not be seeing any other person, as they can't afford it, and if they think the CPC is a medical office, why would they find a doctor?

Its terrible they even exist.

http://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/2018/03/pfor1-1803.html

[NotQuiteMotY]

@tankgirl, thank you. I'll show that to him.

I agree with you. He's squeamish about PP providing abortions, which, yeah, nobody likes, but they can be necessary, and their other services help prevent them, but. Boy was raised Catholic, and some of it stuck more than the rest...

[Coy Koi]

On 4/19/2018 at 9:52 AM, Audrey2 said:

How awful! My heart breaks for the young women who find themselves pregnant with their mom's friend or boyfriend's baby, or a father, stepfather, or step brother, who have to suffer this ridiculous treatment. Imagine, too, if you felt pressured by your boyfriend to have sex, or you got pregnant at a party or at a friend's house, and had your disapproving, very conservative/religious mother at your appointment, shaming you.

I very much hope they have changed their tactics now, if they are still in operation. At very, VERY least, they should be required by law to report all instances of pregnant girls under the age of consent. I wasn't one of those girls, I was 17 and the age of consent here is 16, and my daughter's father was less than 3 years older anyway (it wouldn't have mattered how old he was, since I was 16 when we first got together). But there are many cases that do violate the law, and the younger the girl is, the more likely it is that the father is a rapist. If you even want to pretend to care the tiniest bit abut teenage victims, you had better devote a substantial amount of your resources to helping them, and not punishing or shaming them.

[L1o2u3]

That is so stupid (CPCs I mean). The fact that abortion exists troubles me very much and I wish it wasn't there (as well as I wish there was no rape and incest), but how on earth does anyone think it's a good idea to lie to people? And shouldn't these volunteers at least know some things about pregnancy, childbirth, governmental aid and other possibilites and also contraception? It's not like you can't access these informations as a non-medical person. Why don't pro-life doctors and ob-gyns work in these centers instead of lay persons doing nothing beyond lying, simple at-home pregnancy tests and maybe ultrasounds? That would be so much more effective!

I disagree though that the CPCs should have to support a mom long after birth. That, in my opinion, is the government's job. To make sure a mom can be on a paid maternal leave, to make sure she can feed her kids, to take care of the kids of drug-addicts, to provide housing... I hope the people in power realize that. Volunteers can not do the government's job, even if they aren't ill-equiped, manipulative CPC workers. 

[Coy Koi]

2 hours ago, L1o2u3 said:

I disagree though that the CPCs should have to support a mom long after birth. That, in my opinion, is the government's job. To make sure a mom can be on a paid maternal leave, to make sure she can feed her kids, to take care of the kids of drug-addicts, to provide housing... I hope the people in power realize that. Volunteers can not do the government's job, even if they aren't ill-equiped, manipulative CPC workers. 

I strongly agree, but the people volunteering or otherwise contributing to these places usually strongly disagree, and work to prevent this from happening. If they want to force or coerce women to carry pregnancies to term, and don't want them to be able to get support from the government, then it is VERY MUCH their responsibility to provide practical support.