‘This already broken system will collapse in on itself.’: CPS worker explains importance of upholding Roe v. Wade

“When I worked at CPS, my hair fell out from the stress.

I saw things that no one should have to see or investigate, let alone have a child live it.

I worked with families that desperately wanted their children but knew no other way to care for them, but I also worked with some that were incapable.

Incapable of giving their child anything but irreparable trauma.

Incapable of stepping outside of themselves to recognize the harm they were causing.

I worked with parents who simply did not want their children, but couldn’t bear the thought of anyone else having them.

The layers and layers CPS workers have to peel back to make the best decision for a family in an overrun and broken system is beyond daunting and my fear for the future of this system is palpable.

If Roe is overturned this already broken system will collapse in on itself.

Poor sex education.

Costly contraception.

Inadequate health care.

Poor paying jobs.

Social programs that are broken, mocked, and demonized.

Ectopic pregnancies that have a 99.9% chance of killing the mother if left alone may no longer qualify as an emergency.

Miscarriages subject to criminal investigation and public scrutiny.

Babies in trash cans.

People dying of sepsis or blood loss from DIY abortions.

Doctors afraid to save their patients’ lives due to the fear of a murder conviction.

Foster care systems filling up.

Children dying.

These are the things that keep me up at night.

This is the list that played on repeat at 2:30 in the morning after reading the opinion.

Nowhere on my list was there space for whether someone should or shouldn’t get an abortion.

My concern is for the very real failure that is the American social system that would allow this list to happen.

My concern is for the children and families here, now, and how we fail them over and over but are bound and determined to add misery.

There’s no plan to reinforce the limited safety nets we have in place.

There’s no agenda item to make sure people can get to the doctor and feed themselves.

There’s no line item that says there will be a federal mandate that schools teach accurate sex education because I can assure you, a lot of parents are not.

For years we’ve danced around things that could’ve helped lower the abortion rates (which are already low) because the idea of these things are considered too liberal.

I ask, who will care for these children when foster care and adoption are already oversaturated?

Who will heal the inevitable trauma for the child and parents?

Who will save us when pro-life ends after birth?”

This story was submitted to Love What Matters by Jacalyn Wetzel. Submit your own story here and be sure to subscribe to our free email newsletter for our best stories.

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