Coed tells why
Abortion joins sadness, indecision
(Editor's note: The following is a KU coed's account of a therapeutic abortion, legally given in Kansas upon the signed statement of three physicians after proof that continuation of pregnancy will harm the mother's physical or mental health. The name is fictitious.)
Special to the Kansan
Special to the Kansas Carol is a pretty, sensitive unmarried coed who recently had a therapeutic abortion (TAB) at the University of Kansas Medical Center.
She sat at her desk in a KU residence hall, and talked calmly of her experience.
"At first I didn't know what I was going to do," she said. "When I called the lab and the nurse told me the test was positive, I tried to sound happy, but I really felt awful."
Carol said her greatest problem was not knowing who to talk to. She didn't want her parents to know about her condition.
"I found out just before going home for Thanksgiving vacation. We had a houseful of guests, so my mom didn't have time to notice how upset I was," she said.
After returning to KU, Carol finally talked to a friend whose cousin is a medical student at KUMC. He helped her make an appointment for consultation.
Her first trip to the Medical Center was pretty unpleasant, she said. She was frightened, and there were so many questions to be answered.
"They told me when I would have been due, and that made me feel just great," she said ruefully. "I really broke down once, but there was a very nice nurse who calmed me and made me feel much better about the whole thing."
Carol talked to a resident gynecologist at the Medical Center, who referred her to two psychiatrists for letters of approval needed before she could have a TAB.
Who's whose Pinnings
Kerry Anderson, Tulsa, Okla. junior, majoring in elementary education, Delta Delta Delta, to Steve Neill, Clay Center senior, majoring in psychology, Kappa Sigma.
Joyce Kaltwasser, Kirkwood, Mo. junior, majoring in physical therapy, Delta Delta Delta, to Bob Lewis, Tulsa, Okla. junior, majoring in psychology, Sigma Alpha Epsilon.
Hannah Johnson, Tulsa, Okla. sophomore, majoring in liberal arts, Delta Delta Delta, to Mike Meredith, Kansas City, Mo. sophomore, majoring in pre-medicine, Sigma Phi Epsilon.
Jane Ann Geraughty, Overland Park sophomore, majoring in elementary education, Delta Delta Delta, to Robert B. Hines, Overland Park junior majoring in psychology, Sigma Alpha Epsilon.
Rebecca Ashley, Edina, Minn. junior, majoring in physics to John E. Selk, Seneca junior, majoring in civil engineering, Theta Tau.
Vicki Phillips, Tulsa, Okla. sophomore, majoring in journalism, Alpha Delta Pi, to Joe Bullard, Ellis junior, majoring in journalism, Sigma Nu.
Sharon Schlup, Paducah, Ken. junior, majoring in social studies to Chester Lawrence, Vienna, Ill. senior majoring in physical education, Sigma Nu.
Debbie Simpkins, New Canaan, Conn. junior, majoring in English education, Sigma Kappa, to Alan H. Simons, Valley Falls senior majoring in journalism.
Jo B. Werner, Kansas City, Mo., junior majoring in piano, Chi Omega, to James Paul Cobb, McGue, Ark. junior majoring in radiation-biophysics.
"It made me happy to know I was carrying a child, but I knew it was the wrong time and the circumstances couldn't have been worse," she said, "I know I couldn't have gone through with having the baby, but having an abortion really messes you up."
Nancy Alexander, Kansas City sophomore majoring in physical education, Pi Beta Phi to Dick Almond, senior majoring in English.
Nancy Calkins, Overland Park junior majoring in elementary education, Pi Beta Phi to Fred Bosilivac, Shawnee Mission junior majoring in pre-law, Phi Delta Theta.
"My mother worried about me because I seemed so unconcerned right after the operation. It really bothered me though. I'm still depressed about it," she said.
Sue Beard, Shawnee Mission freshman, to Charlie Smith, Mission sophomore, Phi Kappa Theta.
"I felt great," she said. "But later I became very depressed. I've thought about the whole thing so many times since it happened, and it's kind of confusing."
Marilyn Morgan, Shawnee Mission freshman majoring in elementary education to David B. Feeingold, Kansas City, Mo., junior majoring in psychology.
Carol tried to explain her feelings.
Kansas law requires that a woman obtain the signatures of three physicians who have determined that she will suffer mental or physical harm if she completes her pregnancy, before she may have a legal abortion.
Kansas now raises fewer hogs than it did in 1909.
Kermit Krantz, head resident physician of obstetrics and gynecology at the Medical Center, was the third physician to approve Carol's abortion.
KANSAN features
"I called the doctor who was to perform the abortion the day I went home for Christmas vacation," Carol said. "I wanted to have it done the first week of January so my parents wouldn't have to know, but he said I was too close to the three-month limit. He said it had to be done two days before Christmas, or not at all."
Therapeutic abortions are usually performed through a dilation and curettage (D&C) operation, which entails scraping the lining of the uterus to which a fetus attaches. It is very dangerous to perform a D&C after the third month of pregnancy.
"I either had to tell my parents, or do some pretty fancy lying. I can't lie to my parents, but I couldn't think of a way to tell them," she said.
"I called my minister and told him all about it," she explained. "He said he would go home with me and help me break it to my parents. It's difficult to tell your folks you're scheduled to have an abortion in three days."
Carol said her parents were "just great" when she told them.
"Dad hugged me and told me everything would be all right. I really needed their support," she said.
Carol was admitted to the Medical Center on a Tuesday. She was put on the maternity floor, which she said unset her.
"There was another girl who shared the room, and she was scheduled for a TAB the same day I was to have mine," Carol said. "We gave each other a lot of moral support. It helped us to know that neither of us had to go through it alone."
Carol went into surgery at 8 the next morning. By 11:30 a.m. she was back in her room, and no longer pregnant.
Feb. 27
1970 KANSAN 13
Swing into Spring
What picture means Spring to you? Tulips growing . . . robins returning . . . a baseball bat in a child's hands. Spring is lots of pictures of playing outside. But most of all, Spring is over too fast! Now's the time to get the best pictures. If this year is to be your first adventure in taking color slides or snaps of Spring, or if you would like help in selecting a new camera or film to use, we'll be happy to assist you. We have the new KODAK INSTAMATIC® Cameras and the latest KODAK Films. So come see us—before Spring is over.
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