Physicians Share Photos of Early Pregnancy Tissue: 'We Just Want People to Have Accurate Informatio

[niyad]

Physicians Share Photos of Early Pregnancy Tissue: ‘We Just Want People to Have Accurate Information’
11/4/2022 by Carrie N. Baker

Anti-abortion rhetoric and images saturating the internet and political discussions portray embryos in early pregnancy as fully formed miniature human beings. Recently enacted abortion bans refer to embryos as “babies” and claim there’s a “fetal heartbeat” at six weeks of pregnancy. But what does an early pregnancy actually look like?The MYA Network (short for “My Abortion Network”) set out to answer this question in their recent Issue of Tissue Project, which shows what tissue removed during early abortions looks like. The MYA Network is composed of clinicians working to expand early abortion options in primary care settings using abortion pills and manual uterine aspiration.

“There’s a lot of misinformation out there and many people have come to believe it,” said MYA Network co-founder Dr. Michele Gomez, a family care physician in Burlingame, Calif. “There’s also accurate information out there but mostly in the form of highly magnified embryos at these early stages. People have a right to know and understand that they are magnified.”In fact, before nine weeks of pregnancy—when 80 percent of abortions take place—the embryo is not visible with the naked eye in the pregnancy tissue removed during an abortion. There is no “heartbeat” at six weeks of pregnancy, only the electrical activity of cells before an actual heart is formed, said Gomez.

“The anti-choice movement has been showing inaccurate and graphic pictures for a long time, and these images shock us so they tend to stick with us,” said Gomez. “Without factual images to counter the inaccurate images, many people just accept the only things they’ve ever seen, which is completely understandable. Seeing actual images of early pregnancy tissue, as seen with the naked eye, can help people replace the graphic and inaccurate images they may have come to accept as true.”

MYA Network created the Issue of Tissue Project to share accurate images of early pregnancy tissue. After manual aspiration abortions, they rinsed the blood from the tissue removed from the uterus and photographed it for pregnancies of five weeks through nine weeks.

. . . .


These photos show pregnancy tissue extracted at five to nine weeks of pregnancy, rinsed of blood and menstrual lining. The images show the tissue in a petri dish next to a ruler to indicate its size. (MYA Network)



Pregnancy tissue at five weeks of pregnancy. (MYA Network)

At six weeks of pregnancy, the tissue is a little over half an inch.

Pregnancy tissue at six weeks of pregnancy. (MYA Network)

At seven weeks of pregnancy, the tissue is one inch wide.

Tissue at seven weeks of pregnancy. (MYA Network)

At eight weeks of pregnancy, the tissue is two and a half inches wide.

Tissue at eight weeks of pregnancy (MYA Network)

At nine weeks of pregnancy, the tissue is about three inches wide.

Tissue at nine weeks of pregnancy. (MYA Network)

Gomez said the MYA Network’s decision to share these images grew from their own experiences as clinicians.

“Many of us in the MYA Network provide in-office abortions by manual uterine aspiration, which a simple, non-surgical procedure that takes five to 10 minutes to complete and can be done with only ibuprofen for pain control,” she said. “We’ve often had the experience of a patient asking to see the pregnancy tissue after the procedure, and then being very surprised by what they see. “In my experience, pregnant people and their partners have felt some relief when they see the tissue, because it doesn’t look like what they’ve seen in anti-choice imagery,” Gomez continued. “We in the MYA Network discussed this, and decided that as clinicians we wanted our patients to have more information, so they could be better informed.”

. . . . .

https://v16m-default.tiktokcdn-us.com/5d2d454d80bd49956ee45a5c798e27fa/6367010e/video/tos/useast5/tos-useast5-ve-0068c002-tx/e6a65826a604439ab6c3ee22d11888e1/?a=1988&ch=0&cr=0&dr=0&lr=tiktok_m&cd=0%7C0%7C1%7C0&cv=1&br=1190&bt=595&cs=0&ds=3&ft=eXWR6H-qMyq8ZA6e4he2N5yyfl7Gb&mime_type=video_mp4&qs=0&rc=Zjo5aWdoODY1Z2loaGVkZ0BpamltO2g6ZnNoZzMzZzczNEA0LTZeNmMzNmExNDJfYjFjYSNsXmtkcjRfcDZgLS1kMS9zcw%3D%3D&l=20221105183323382F4C2E8E23D507B657

https://v16m-default.tiktokcdn-us.com/1d575606ba3eeec60598fd5f49954cd9/63670130/video/tos/useast5/tos-useast5-ve-0068c004-tx/7aab629cf2ce49999edd741e3201f5f9/?a=1988&ch=0&cr=0&dr=0&lr=tiktok_m&cd=0%7C0%7C1%7C0&cv=1&br=1676&bt=838&cs=0&ds=3&ft=eXWR6H-qMyq8ZA6e4he2NnBGfl7Gb&mime_type=video_mp4&qs=0&rc=ZjpmaTZoaDc6NzQzaWY4ZkBpM3U5Nzk6ZnM2ZzMzZzczNEA2Xl40YjFhXi8xXjUuXzMtYSNqLTRycjRvZDVgLS1kMS9zcw%3D%3D&l=2022110518332314B14779ACCDC50820FAthey need to show these images at every political debate about abortion #feminism #abortion #fyp ♬ original sound – Jessica Valenti

@whitneywithheart Replying to @this.is.my.brain.69 ♬ Cornfield Chase – Dorian Marko
. . .

To learn more or support the work of the MYA Network, visit myanetwork.org/.

https://msmagazine.com/2022/11/04/early-pregnancy-tissue-fetus-baby-abortion-bans/

[republianmushroom]

1. THANK YOU

[niyad]

41. You are most welcome.

[UniqueUserName]

2. Thank you! This is much better than my idea

I thought it would be sort of interesting to see someone like John Oliver interviewing Pro-birthers showing them images of cancer and embryos and asking them which were which.

[Scrivener7]

3. Or that mold you get when you leave a cloth in water in a bucket and forget it for a week.

[ShazzieB]

14. LOL!

[Scrivener7]

17. Can you guess what I did and forgot about and discovered yesterday while cleaning?

Blech!

But it looks just like that!

[niyad]

42. A most interesting idea.

[Hekate]

4. KnR

[niyad]

43. Thank you.

[raging moderate]

5. Facebook anti-abortion readers need to see this.

I have tried to explain it, but they always think I am only making up words. These pictures would help some of them understand.

[Aviation Pro]

7. They don't want to understand

They want to hate.

[Warpy]

15. You're right, they're hyperventilating outrage junkies

who are so desperate for other people to shame that they will always prefer those fetus dolls drenched in ketchup over the real thing.

[calimary]

56. They don't want to be told their false god IS just that.

A FALSE god. Imposter. Fraud. A fraud that starts with “t” and ends with “p”.

[wryter2000]

60. I think some would

Some people would realize they’d been duped. Others would ignore this and blather on about late term abortion.

[niyad]

44. Agreed. But they would not believe.

[Native]

6. Thanks Niyad. I retweeted MsMag's tweet of this.

[niyad]

45. You are most welcome. And thank you for spreading this information.

[GoCubsGo]

8. It's beyond me why images like these have not been presented until now.

They should have been plastered all over the place for the past 5 decades. A fetal heartbeat at six weeks? Give me a fucking break.

[niyad]

46. Exactly.

[JudyM]

61. It would make a stunning ad right about now.

[paleotn]

9. Can I super rec this? We need a super rec button. This is perfect!

This should be broadcast everywhere, all the time. Far better than my response to the "heartbeat" bullshit....even tadepols have heartbeats and humans look a lot like them early on.

It's like the other side actually still believes in preformationism, an ancient and incredibly ignorant theory, coupled with bizarre religion.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preformationism

[ShazzieB]

24. Thanks for this link.

I was somewhat familiar with the concept, but not the word. Now I know what to call it.

And yes, I think the other side does believe in preformationism, if not literally, then in a sort of symbolic sense. It comes out in the way they respond when you try to discuss any of this stuff with them in a purely rational way. For example, I've seen them respond to someone pointing out that there's no actual heart present at 5 weeks (or whenever those electrical pulses start) by saying that it doesn't matter, because those cells will eventually develop into the heart. It's as if, to THEM, the heart really IS already there, even though it's.... not?

The more I think about it, the more sense it makes to view the anti-choicers as preformationists of a sort. I mean, these are people who think there's an actual person present from the moment a sperm penetrates an ovum, that a few pulsating cells = a heart, and ethically disposing of frozen embryos is mass murder. They see ALL of those things as actual humans with the same rights as you and me. If that's not preformationism, I don't know what is!

[Lochloosa]

32. You can have a Super Rec for 8 bucks a month

[niyad]

51. Snicker.

[niyad]

47. Thank you for that link.

[LittleGirl]

10. Thank you! Bookmarked! Thank you! nt

[niyad]

48. You are most welcome.

[Ligyron]

11. Very educational, thank you!

A picture is worth a thousand words as they say and I learned about a procedure I had no idea existed, "manual uterine aspiration".

The forced birth crowd would have a hard time stopping something like that.

[niyad]

49. But they will try!

[Farmer-Rick]

12. But, but, but forced birthers talk about heart beats

And human like fish tailed babies at 5 to 6 weeks. You can't even tell if the fetus will have a heart or even a face at 5 to 6 weeks. It's nothing more than a clump of cells.

But don't tell the forced birthers like Alito. They are already to adopt the fetus at 5 to 6 weeks.

[SCantiGOP]

13. You can remove cells from an adult's heart

put them in a petri dish and run a mild current through them, and they will pulsate because that is what they are designed to do.
The ultrasound does not pick up heartbeats from a fetus; it registers the pulsations and turns them into a sound so the doctor can hear the heart tissue as it is developing into a heart.

[niyad]

66. When my friends and I did our counter-protests at the local PP, I made a point of taking

note of the idiot with the "pictures" of "aborted fetuses". I told her that I, too, did photoshop, only I did it much better. When she insisted that the images were real, I said, "In that case, I want the name of the person taking those images, because they are breaking the law, and must be reported." oooops.

[NJCher]

16. this thread

is full of information I didn't know, the OP plus many of the contributions upthread. I didn't know about pulsations, so thanks to you, too, ScantiGOP.

[niyad]

50. DU is always an education, is it not?

[NJCher]

57. jawohl!

[littlemissmartypants]

18. Thank you! Bookmark. Early fetal tissue by week. ❤️

[niyad]

52. You are most welcome.

[sarge43]

19. Thank you for posting this n/t

[niyad]

53. You are most welcome.

[Alice Kramden]

20. Valuable information

Thank you for posting. This should be publicly widespread.

[niyad]

54. You are most welcome. Please share wherever possible.

[Mousetoescamper]

21. Thanks, niyad, for this edifying and useful post.

Your inclusion of the text and photos along with the video is appreciated.

[niyad]

65. You are most welcome. I was very glad that there was both.

[Samrob]

22. The MAGA cult will never believe it. They will call it fake Dem doctor scam.

They are braindead and refuse to deal with facts and truth.

[ShazzieB]

25. Yeah, THEY won't believe it, but so what?

There are a lot of other people who will learn something valuable from this, people who
have heard conflicting messages from both sides and aren't really sure what to believe. Let's face it, some of the anti-abortion propaganda that's out there can be powerful stuff, especially when it's used on people who aren't all that well-informed already. Those of us who know what the actual facts are can spot the inaccuracies, exaggerations, and outright lies a mile away and roll our eyes, but not everyone is well enough armed with the necessary information to do that. This right here is information that can be a big help with that.

The MAGA-muddled maroons and the "LIFE begins at fertilization!" religious fanatics will continue to think what they want to think. If there was any way to reach them, someone would have figured it out by now. They're not reachable, and they're welcome to stew in their own juices afaic. But people's attitudes about abortion are on a continuum, and not everyone is firmly rooted at one end or another. There are lots of people spread out along that continuum who ARE reachable, and this kind of thing can be very useful, imo.

[niyad]

67. Of course they won't. But the images, and the truth, will be out there.

[Lucinda]

23. ...

[crickets]

26. Another big thank-you! K&R

[niyad]

68. You are most welcome.

[liberalla]

27. Wow, this is excellent information! Bookmarking.

Thank you.

[niyad]

64. You are most welcome.

[sheshe2]

28. Excellent and highly informative.

Thank you.

[niyad]

69. You are most welcome. It is far past time to have this information out there.

[sheshe2]

71. It should be posted everywhere.

[niyad]

73. I am not on social media, but I hope that those who are spread this as much

as they can.

[sheshe2]

77. I will try tomorrow.

I am rather new to Twitter and don't have much of a voice. Also you have a very limited space to make your case. Mostly it would have to be a link which doesn't tell the story.

[niyad]

79. Thank you for whatever you can do to share.

[sheshe2]

82. I did it.

I figured out how to make an extended/multiple tweet.

Not sure anyone will read it but it is up.

Here is the beginning

Link to tweet

[niyad]

83. wow! Thank you so very much. Please let us know what kind of response

you are getting.

[sheshe2]

84. Not a word.

Nothing.

[niyad]

85. Sadly, not surprised. Women's issues seem to receive scant attention

almost everywhere.

But thank you again so very much for putting it out there. One never knows who jut miht see it and "click".

[Meowmee]

29. It won't make any difference

Those people are bat shit crazy, nothing gets through to them. You can be sure they will be the first people to get a secret abortion if they need it.

[niyad]

70. Of course!

[pansypoo53219]

30. BUTBUTBUT its a GERBER pile of snot.

[jmowreader]

31. Unfortunately...

…if you showed these pictures to a MAGAt, they’d be all “fake news! Everybody knows it looks just like a baby at 3 weeks of pregnancy!”

There’s a RW group called Pro Life Across America that puts up these billboards claiming the embryo could smile 12 weeks after conception. In reality, the embryo has no mouth and no muscles 12 weeks after conception so how could it smile?

[niyad]

72. Exactly.

[PurgedVoter]

34. The selfish want to seem like they care

It isn't like they are trying to make sure pregnant mothers have good conditions and good nutrition. Instead they want what they think is moral high ground that doesn't cost anything. This is the cause they use to try and appear more caring than thinking and empathetic people.

So many people want to be heroes without paying the dues required. This is stolen valor in the form of moral high ground. Sadly we can see that this cause of their is tainted from the beginning. It is not biblical, the organizations that decided to break the ten commandments entirely and make Sunday their holy day, are the same organizations that decided that birth control and abortion were sins. No basis but there you have it.

They have lied on the science, and they sneak out for their own DNC so they have nothing. No basis apart from wanting to be morally superior when they have no cause for feeling morally superior. They want the short cut to be heroes. They want to skip compassion, charity, ethics and mercy. They want to go right past doing good to being good. They claim to be holy when their messiah told them that if you claim it now, you won't be getting it later.

Worst of all, they want the credit for their confused and wrong decisions while forcing other to go through the cost, burden, risks, and demolished lives. Yes if they take the decision in their own lives and do the best they can, then they have some right to feel heroic. But if they feel heroic they should understand it is not something to force others to go through. Otherwise, it is the false valor of a penguin, after pushing another off the ice, bragging they made it safe for everyone to swim.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

35. Too bad MAGAts already believe what they've been told.

They like that story better. They love drama, not reality.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

36. Awww. That last one looks just like what dad coughed up. So cute at that age.

[SunSeeker]

37. K & R & Bookmarked!

[babylonsister]

38. We passed huge billboards in N. Florida

Friday that claimed a heartbeat can be detected at 18 days.

Why anyone is allowed to blatantly lie about stuff like this is beyond me.

[Emile]

39. Thanks for posting this!

So much disinformation out there!

[burrowowl]

40. Kick!

[momta]

55. K&R

Thank you, niyad!

[wryter2000]

58. Awesome find

I wish they’d show 15 weeks, which is what Lindsey Graham is pushing.

[dalton99a]

59. Kick

[JudyM]

63. Eye opening post. Would be great to find a way to make an ad out of this

without seeming indifferent. It could shift the dialogue enough to sway a sufficient number of voters.

[MustLoveBeagles]

74. Thank you for posting this niyad

Bookmarking for future reference

[niyad]

76. You are most welcome.

[SYFROYH]

75. I support a women's right to an abortion absolutely

Last edited Mon Nov 7, 2022, 03:44 AM - Edit history (1)

But saying there isn't a “visible” embryo is weird word play because its there in the sac, albeit very small.

There is no way around it that a fertilized egg, a blastocyst, and embryo, and a fetus are all genetically complete human organisms at different stages of development.

[AngryOldDem]

80. Excellent post, but they'll still argue it's "life".

Potential life. There is a difference, and I wonder just how many of these “babies” never make it much beyond these stages because things just aren’t coming together right, and the woman has no idea that she’s even “pregnant”?

[niyad]

81. If I remember correctly, about half.