Post-abortion support group to hold second session

Published: Thursday, September 6, 2012

Updated: Wednesday, January 16, 2013 17:01

Chart depicting when women have abortions.

What: "The Beautiful Pain Movement" – a Post-abortion support group.

When: Every Wednesday from Jan. 23 to Feb. 27, 6 to 7 pm.

Where: N.C. State, Harrelson Hall, Room 119.

Contact: thebeautifulpainmovement.org

The following story is an update to our original story of Sept. 6, 2012.

Provide help and support for those who need it.

That’s all Tianna Spears – an N.C. State junior – ever wanted to do with her post-abortion support group, "The Beautiful Pain Movement."

She held her first session last fall. Spears said five people showed up for her five support sessions.

She’s holding the second set of six sessions starting Wednesday, Jan. 23.

“I think in different situations people feel that they have nobody [to talk to]. Out of 'The Beautiful Pain Movement' I hope that people will find a place of support,” Spears said.

Spears started the support group after someone close to her experienced post-abortion trauma. She realized many people have nobody to reach out to for support after an abortion.

For Spears, that’s a huge problem.

Spears’ support group isn’t tethered to any faith or government organizations. She’s just doing it because she knows there is a need.

“If you have the heart and you want to do something, you should just be able to do it,” Spears said. “I don’t want to exclude anybody just because of what they believe in.”

Spears said her objective is to offer support and to keep controversy out of the picture.

She said the point is that an abortion can’t be taken back, but the important thing is to move forward and learn from the experience.

“I basically want people to come in and feel like they can share,” Spears said.

Original story which appeared Sept. 6, 2012:

N.C. State business junior Tianna Spears is starting a conversation about abortion.

She says a conversation is needed and if nobody else is willing to bring it up, she might as well be the one to start it. Spears is starting “The Beautiful Pain Movement,” a post-abortion support group for women and men who have experienced or encountered abortion in their personal lives.

The group is free and open to the public. The first meeting is Sept. 22 at 11 a.m., on the fourth floor of the North Carolina Institute of Minority Economic Development building, 114 W. Parrish St., in Durham. The group will meet for five Saturdays and conclude on Oct. 20.

“I saw my friend go through this situation and they didn’t know where to go. I know this topic is taboo in society, nobody wants to discuss it,” Spears said. “I thought, there’s a support group for everything, so why not this? Why couldn’t I start it?”

Spears said “The Beautiful Pain Movement” is not affiliated with either side of the ongoing abortion debate in political circles. The support group is neither pro-choice, nor is it pro-life. Instead, Spears said she wants to provide a place where people of all backgrounds can share their experiences, feel a sense of community and escape negative judgment.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, a private think tank that compiles statistics for Planned Parenthood and other reproductive health organizations, half of American women will have an unintended pregnancy by age 45, and nearly one-third of them will have abortions. In 2008, the most recent year for which the Institute provides statistics, there were 17.5 abortions per every 1000 women aged 15-44 in North Carolina.

The chart below was formulated with statistics from the Guttmacher Institute: The chart shows when women have abortions according to how far they are into their pregnancy.

“I feel like we are starting a conversation that doesn’t exist,” Spears said. “I know a lot of people won’t discuss abortion. My organization is here to change the typical belief about abortion.” Spears also said “The Beautiful Pain Movement” endorses safe sex.

“To me it’s bigger than just one side.”

Visit www.thebeautifulpainmovement.orgfor more information.