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Texas woman almost died while suffering miscarriage after doctors' 'hands were tied' by abortion law
October 18, 2022 12:00PM ET
Young woman patient lying at hospital bed feeling sad (Shutterstock)
A Texas woman says she nearly died after suffering a miscarriage because her doctors' "hands were tied" by her state's abortion laws.
In an interview with People Magazine, Amanda Zurawski says that she first learned that she was suffering from a miscarriage when she was 18 weeks pregnant after her doctor informed her that her cervix had dilated too early.
While Zurawski called this news "horrific" in its own right, her nightmare would soon worsen when she realized how Texas' anti-abortion laws were about to come into play, as her doctors said they could do nothing to remove the nonviable fetus inside her until her own life was at risk.
"I was left wanting to either get so sick that I almost died or, praying for my baby's heart to stop beating — this baby that I had wanted and worked to have for 18 months," she told People Magazine. "Every time they did an ultrasound, to be hoping to hear her heartbeat, but at the same time, to not hear her heartbeat… it's the most anguishing feeling."
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Soon afterward, she contracted sepsis, a life-threatening condition.
Even after this, she had to wait three days to become sick enough where her doctors would be able to terminate her pregnancy without fear of legal repercussions.
"It took three days at home until I became sick 'enough' that the ethics board at our hospital agreed we could begin medical treatment," she explained. "Three days until my life was considered at risk 'enough' for the inevitable premature delivery of my daughter to be performed; three days until the doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals were allowed to do their jobs."
Although she survived the ordeal, Zurawski is still facing complications from lingering bacterial infection that will require her to soon undergo surgery.
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