As we have learned from nearly two decades on the All-Options Talkline, receiving unbiased, radical, and person-centered care can be truly life-changing for someone in need of support with their abortion, adoption, parenting, infertility, or pregnancy loss experiences. This support can come from midwives, community health workers, abortion doulas, hotline volunteers, and even friends and family members.
That’s why All-Options is excited to present Support Unseen, a podcast about giving and receiving abortion support! In collaboration with Ibis Reproductive Health, we dive into person-centered care, intersectionality, and reproductive justice over six episodes. Hear from the people who embody these roles to understand what it’s like to provide abortion support and navigate the highs and lows of the abortion landscape in the United States.
Whether you’re deep in abortion work, have had an abortion yourself, supported someone who did, or don’t know where to start, we welcome people from all walks of life to listen to Support Unseen!
Episode 1: What is person-centered care anyway? With Elena Colón, LAMP
Episode 2: How does non-medical support and the medical industrial complex work together? With Safiya, full-spectrum doula
Episode 4: What’s in store for the future of abortion care? With Chanel Porchia-Albert, Ancient Song Doula Services
In Episode 4 of Support Unseen, Bri shares space with Chanel Porchia-Albert (she/her), founder and Chief Executive Director of Ancient Song Doula Services, to envision what the future of abortion support looks like given our current social and political context and how we can move forward toward this new and imaginative world. Ancient Song Doula Services is a reproductive health organization focused on providing resources and full-spectrum doula services to women of color and marginalized communities throughout New York City and northern New Jersey. Chanel’s work in birth and reproductive justice spans across research and methods of care for marginalized people and people of color. Her efforts within infant and maternal health has led her across the globe to Uganda where she has served as a maternal health strategist in rural war torn areas. She also brings a human rights framework into birthing rooms by highlighting institutional reform and accountability measures within healthcare to address implicit bias and racism.
Episode resources and social media handles can be found in this episode’s show notes.
About the mSEAS project
Support Unseen was developed from the Mobile, Social, and Emotional Support (mSEAS) project at Ibis Reproductive Health. The goals of this project were to develop evidence about experiences of abortion seekers with non-medical support, and understand its effect on abortion quality and attitudes. mSEAS was a two part project that included in-depth interviews with abortion seekers who called the All-Options Talkline, and focus group discussions with abortion support providers. The All-Options Talkline provides unbiased pregnancy options counseling and emotional support for decisions and experiences with pregnancy, parenting, abortion, and adoption. This podcast builds on the findings from the study’s focus group discussions.
To learn more about the experiences of those who called the All-Options Talkline, check out these resources: