This Common Secret - Likewise Book Reviews

"Excellent, informative, quick-read. #abortion #womensrights #feminism #womens_health The rest of my review consists of quotes, from throughout the book, I found to be thought provoking. “People like you do it safely so that people like me don’t murder their best friends.” “Risk of death during childbirth is eleven times higher than the risk of death from legal abortion.” “Women have abortions because they want to be good mothers.” “… true choice is a matter of understanding and weighing all the options, and then being free to carry out the most appropriate one.” “Abortion is about life: quality of life for infants, children, and adults. Everywhere and in every sense of the word. Life, not death.” “Poor women in the United States are four times as likely to have an unwanted pregnancy than affluent women. They are five times more likely to have an unintended birth and three times more likely to have an abortion. The correlation between poverty and unwanted pregnancy is stark.”"

"While this book did not change my personal views on abortion, it did allow me to see things from another point of view, which is never a bad thing. Dr. Wicklund seems to be a very caring physician and person. Her stories will make you cringe, and laugh, and cry. Mostly, I was just disappointed by the total lack of respect many of the pro-life activists had for her family, which at the time included a minor child. Because of this book, I believe I will be a little more empathetic as a bereavement doula in working with women who have been faced with the heart-wrenching decision to terminate a much wanted pregnancy for medical reasons. Although trained in a traditional medical school, Dr. Wicklund seems to subscribe to the midwifery model of care which is woman centered.<br/><br/>If one is going to be working with women in the childbirth and pregnancy realm, this book would be very important to read. It may even be beneficial for pastors and mental health counselors to read so they can better understand some of those they help. I personally ended up reading this book because I had to choose books from a list in order to acquire doula certification, and this book was on the list, and available through Scribd - so I did not have to purchase another new book...I had just purchased 3/4 of the textbooks needed for my entire midwifery education program."