Carolyn Fransden, Program Coordinator for Support After Abortion and Wendy Gianocola discover how to connect and and collaborate on abortion healing during the pandemic.
Wendy Gianocola is the author of, Transforming Your Story: A Path to Healing After Abortion and she serves as the Director of Pregnancy Loss at at the Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center, in Washington D.C. Wendy’s passion to help guide others through their abortion healing came from her own experience. When she was 19 years old, Wendy had an abortion. After her abortion, Wendy experienced symptoms of shame and regret and struggled with addiction as well that come along with having an abortion. She spent years trying to hide, ignore and push her abortion experience down. After many years of struggling, Wendy started healing from abortion and began working in the pregnancy center, where she has now been for 11 years.
As previously mentioned, Wendy is the author of Transforming Your Story: A Path to Healing After Abortion. Wendy states, that “this book involves using both hemispheres of the brain, with the combination of words and action steps to complete.” It is important when healing from abortion to utilize both sides of the brain, with both stories and action steps. This way those healing not just read about healing, but the action steps teach the reader how to live that healing out in their daily life. Readers, such as Carolyn Fransden, found this abortion recovery method to be extremely helpful for her abortion recovery. Both Carolyn and Wendy stress the importance of going through multiple abortion healing programs. They know, healing is not a “one size fits all”, so going through different programs, that offer different methods will increase healing, and will help those impacted by abortion continue to peel back different layers that lay underneath the surface.
Maintaining Connection and Increasing Collaboration for Abortion Healing during the Pandemic
The pandemic certainly slowed everyone and everything down, and those involved in the a new movement that embraces and prioritizes healing men and women from abortion.Abortion Recovery Movement had to stop to think about how to continue to help those heal while not having face to face contact. Support After Abortion was able to offer Virtual Support Groups. The virtual groups include specific abortion recovery groups, but also have healing groups for those impacted by codependency, miscarriage and sexual trauma. Another group, offered by Support After Abortion, that both Carolyn and Wendy find impactful is, Unraveled Roots. In a collaborative effort to increase the amount of healing Support After Abortion delivers, Wendy herself, is a facilitator of the Unraveled Roots group and states, “I love facilitating the Unraveled Roots group because it inspires people to live a transforming life of hope. You can heal from an abortion while simultaneously healing from other issues, such as abandonment and addiction.”
Another method of connection, is the memorial service. When a man or woman completes an abortion recovery group it is important to end this experience with honoring their children and give their child an identity and dignity. At Support After Abortion, during the last day of the group, the facilitator will go to a local Florida church and plant flowers for each child, as a symbol of hope and healing. Due to the fact that not everyone can travel, and Ipad is taken, so that each group participate can watch and be a part of honoring their lost child. This has become a beautiful closing to the group, and a sincere comfort to those who are in the abortion recovery process.
April is Abortion Recovery Month. If you or someone you know has been impacted by abortion, you are not alone. Please visit our website if you are experiencing feelings of guilt and shame after an abortion, and ways to get involved at https://supportafterabortion.com. To speak with someone about beginning a virtual group or to be linked with services in your area please call our Hopeline, at 844-289-HOPE (4673).