1899: The first known maternal death at the hands of Dr. Lucy Hagenow

Marie Hicht, employed as a domestic on Dearborn Avenue, died September 2, 1899 at the office of Dr. Louise Hagenow from complications of an abortion performed there that day.

Dr. Hagenow was sentenced to Joliet prison in 1900 for Marie’s death.

There were a number of deaths in Chicago attributed to either a Lucy Hagenow or a Louise Hagenow. These are the same woman, a physician/midwife who also called herself Ida Von Schultz. The deaths include:

1906: Lola Madison
1907: Annie Horvatich
1925: Lottie Lowy, Nina H. Pierce, Jean Cohen, Bridget Masterson, and Elizabeth Welter
1926: Mary Moorehead

Hagenow was typical of criminal abortionists in that she was a doctor.

What I found particularly dismaying in my research was finding doctors like Hagenow that got away with not only killing babies routinely, but who also got away with killing mothers one after the other after the other. And yeah, the repeated maternal deaths may have been only one of those “all surgery has risks” things attributable to a combination of Hagenow’s high-volume business and the poor state of medicine at the time. But it’s still disheartening that she was able to stay in business at all. Those of us fighting to end abortion and protect women from quackery need to study the dynamics of how these doctors were able to thrive in their criminal world and close the loopholes that let them get away with it.

17 wks pregnant with own eggs & 44

I am 17 weeks pregnant with own eggs and 44 via 5th try at IVF, 4th actual IVF.

Will be getting my amino in two days, but all tests up to this point have been within normal limits.

Life Begins… – Miscarriage stories of loss, hope & help
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Not so sure about a Tummy Tuck? Try the Belly Bandit

Read what a blogger on RealSelf (a site to find, share & discuss the real story about any cosmetic treatment) had to say about the Belly Bandit:

“Not so sure about a Tummy Tuck? Try the Belly Bandit”

“Mommy belly, mommy tummy, baby belly. There are plenty of cute names for it, but somewhere around 3 months after giving birth, you realize that the beaming pride you once felt for that belly bulge is now a source of unwelcome self-consciousness. No doubt about it, post-pregnancy belly is something that bothers all mothers–it’s frustrating, hard to lose, and it often seems like there just aren’t options for women who don’t want to undergo the knife.

Redbook featured it [in] their September 2008 issue. The Belly Bandit is an abdominal compression wrap that was designed to help mothers as they try to “bounce” their bodies back (another euphemism, no?). Apparently, the Belly Bandit wrap “helps reduce bloating and uterine swelling, provides much-needed support for your fatigued back and legs, and even improves posture during breast-feeding”–and it’s available in three versions:”

1. Belly Bandit Original ($45.95)

2. Belly Bandit Couture ( $55.95)

3. Belly Bandit Bamboo ($65.95)

“My initial thought (since I’m now over the “child-bearing years”) was that it looks a bit uncomfortable–kind of a scaled down version of a weightlifter’s belt. But it does seem to provide more support than your average Spanx. If nothing else, it’s another non-surgical method to try and it may boost your mood if not, in reality, your belly.” click for complete review on Realself.com

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I was 46 when I had my daughter

I was 46 when I had my daughter, and she was definitely worth the wait. If I’d had a choice, of course, I would have had kids much younger….but God had other plans for us.

My only ‘fear’ is that if my daughter waits until she is my age to have a baby, I may never live to see it. Longevity is in my genes, however, and I try to stay healthy.

I’m planning to be around for a long time!

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All a-Twitter: "Red states" Google abortion more. Why?

Jill Stanek posts her Weekend Question: Why is “abortion” googled more in pro-life states?

Abortion supporters postulate that it’s because abortion facilities are harder to locate in these states. How would that explain it? Doesn’t EVERYBODY who is scheduling an abortion looking up the phone number? If you were googling abortion just to make an appointment, you’d google it once and be done with it, and you’d be googling whether or not there was a handy abortionist in town. When I was looking for a clothes drying rack, I googled clothes drying racks for days, comparing reviews, then drove down to Lowe’s and bought one. I didn’t have to do all that googling because clothes drying racks were difficult to avail myself of, but because I was planning a purchase and doing my research. And any reasonably bright internet-using woman contemplating abortion is going to do the same thing — google “abortion” and shop around — unless she’s a frequent flier and they know her by sight down at the mill.

I’d say there are two underlying causes of the higher “abortion” googles in “red states” –

1. Prolifers tend to do more research. (You can see this in any number of studies showing that more knowledge of abortion tends to correlate with a prolife stand, and great confidence in one’s misinformation about abortion tends to correlate with a prochoice stand).

2. When abortion laws and regulations are proposed, it puts abortion into the news and sparks curiosity, so people google it to find out which side is telling the truth.

No huge mystery.

The more laws we propose, the more regulations, the more we keep abortion in the news, the more people will become curiuos and start googling. And the more prolife they’ll become.

Read it and weep, abortion lovers!

Conceived my daughter at 43

I’m in the same thought process. Conceived my daughter at 43 3/4 via IVF #4.

She is 7 months now, I turned 45 on January 29…

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1926: Fatal abortion by perpetrator, profession unknown

On August 28, 1926, 44-year-old Margaret Muscia died from a criminal abortion performed that day in Chicago. Mrs. Minnie Miller, alias Molinaro, was arrested on July 10 for Margaret’s death. Minnie’s profession is not given. On November 15, she was indicted for felony murder by a grand jury.

For more on pre-legalization abortion, see The Bad Old Days of Abortion

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Delivered a healthy baby at 49

Someone I know had been married 26 years and always been told she couldn’t have children.

Two years ago at age 49+ she thought she was in menopause. She delivered a healthy baby boy.

Life Begins… – Miscarriage stories of loss, hope & help
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I am 48 and pregnant

I hope this gives encouragement as may docs seem to throw in the towel with women over 44 using their own eggs.

I was 48 and with first IUI became pregnant with a normal baby girl.

Life Begins… – Miscarriage stories of loss, hope & help
Stories of Pregnancy over 44 years old – sharing stories I find online, for inspiration!
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1909: Doc implicated in abortion death

On August 27, 1909, Anna Dennin, age 23, died in Chicago from an abortion. Dr. E. Mayeke held by the coroner’s jury and indicted for felony murder. The source document doesn’t indicate that the case went to trial.

Anna’s abortion was typical of pre-legalization abortions in that it was evidently performed by a physician.

Note, please, that with overall public health issues such as doctors not using proper aseptic techniques, lack of access to blood transfusions and antibiotics, and overall poor health to begin with, there was likely little difference between the performance of a legal abortion and illegal practice, and the aftercare for either type of abortion was probably equally unlikely to do the woman much, if any, good. For more about abortion and abortion deaths in the first years of the 20th century, see Abortion Deaths 1900-1909.

For more on pre-legalization abortion, see The Bad Old Days of Abortion

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