Is It Legal to Preserve a Human Fetus?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the legality and methods of preserving a human fetus after a miscarriage at 10 weeks gestation. Participants explore emotional aspects of grief and the physical realities of miscarriage, while also debating the size and visibility of a 10-week fetus.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses a desire to preserve the fetus for personal grieving purposes and inquires about legal implications and preservation methods.
  • Another participant discusses the typical process of miscarriage, noting that many women may not realize they are pregnant at 10 weeks and that the fetus may not be physically identifiable.
  • A participant with previous pregnancy experience asserts that a 10-week fetus is larger than a peanut, describing its features and size based on personal knowledge.
  • Some participants argue about the size of a 10-week fetus, with conflicting claims about its dimensions compared to a peanut and a fig.
  • One participant references a medical source to support their claim about the size of the fetus, suggesting that it is approximately 1.25 inches long.
  • Another participant provides specific measurements for a 10-week fetus and compares them to common objects, indicating a disagreement on the size characterization.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the size of a 10-week fetus, with multiple competing views presented. The discussion on the legality of preserving a fetus remains unresolved, as does the emotional aspect of the grieving process.

Contextual Notes

There are limitations in the discussion regarding the assumptions about fetal size and visibility, as well as the legal considerations surrounding preservation, which are not fully explored.

kerrie king
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So my pregnancy recently ended at 10weeks gestation, I am still waiting for my body to realize this and start the process or expelling the fetus and remains of conception.

So any whoo, I was just wondering is it against the law to keep my fetus and preserve it?
As I feel this will help me grieve rather than burying it, please don't call me sick or twisted I just don't want to let go just yet.

So my other question is what do I preserve the fetus in? I don't have access to ethanol or anything else like that other than vodka, would this work?

Thanks i advance for your help :)
 
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kerrie king said:
So my pregnancy recently ended at 10weeks gestation, I am still waiting for my body to realize this and start the process or expelling the fetus and remains of conception.

So any whoo, I was just wondering is it against the law to keep my fetus and preserve it?
As I feel this will help me grieve rather than burying it, please don't call me sick or twisted I just don't want to let go just yet.

So my other question is what do I preserve the fetus in? I don't have access to ethanol or anything else like that other than vodka, would this work?

Thanks i advance for your help :)
At 10 weeks many women don't even know that they are pregnant. The fetus would be the size of a peanut. You wouldn't even find it, sorry but most likely it's gone. How did you miscarry without expelling it?
Complete miscarriage
About 80% of women who experience an inevitable miscarriage during the first 13 weeks of their pregnancy will have a 'complete' miscarriage. This means that their body will deal with it on their own, without the need for medical interventions.

As the woman's body starts to miscarry, her baby and placenta begin to separate from the wall of her uterus. This causes some bleeding but allows blood to form a clot around the relatively small baby and placenta, making it easier for the woman's body to expel them. This natural process causes the physical signs of bleeding, often accompanied by some blood clots (ranging from small ones about 1 to 3 cm in size, to larger ones the size of a golf ball, or occasionally a very large one up to about the size of an orange).

As the woman's cervix opens and her uterus contracts, this allows the blood and clots, baby and placenta to be passed through the vagina. The cervix opening and the uterus contracting also causes mild to moderate cramping and period-like pain. Occasionally the waves of pain will be more severe, or similar to labour pain. The bleeding and cramping will continue until everything has passed. This process may take a few hours or be on and off for a few days. Once the miscarriage is 'complete' the woman's cervix closes and her bleeding eases off over the next few days, stopping in about 1 to 3 weeks.

http://www.birth.com.au/pregnancy/pregnancy-difficulties/miscarriage/inevitable-miscarriage?view=full#.VbG4QaRViko

If you haven't experienced the normal bleeding, I would strongly encourage you to see your doctor. Perhaps you weren't pregnant and have other issues. Hormonal problems can cause false positives in OTC pregnancy tests, which is why doctors normally perform more definitive tests if a woman thinks she is pregnant.
 
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At ten weeks the fetus is around the size of a fig and has arms legs ect it looks like a tiny baby I have had 3 children previously to this one and i had a scan on friday which told me my babys heart had stopped and I am just waiting for my body to realize this a expell the fetus, my body hasnt realized what has happened yet and yes I would see it I have misscarried at around this stafe in pregnancy before Have you even see what a ten week fetus looks like? Its not that small suprisingly, the photo attached is the size approx of a fetus at ten weeks gestation
 

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kerrie king said:
At ten weeks the fetus is around the size of a fig and has arms legs ect it looks like a tiny baby I have had 3 children previously to this one and i had a scan on friday which told me my babys heart had stopped and I am just waiting for my body to realize this a expell the fetus, my body hasnt realized what has happened yet and yes I would see it I have misscarried at around this stafe in pregnancy before Have you even see what a ten week fetus looks like? Its not that small suprisingly, the photo attached is the size approx of a fetus at ten weeks gestation
No, the 10 week old fetus is the size of a peanut, the surrounding blood clot can make it appear larger.
 
Nope I think you will find it is bigger than that, a 6week fetus is the size of a peanut though
 
kerrie king said:
Nope I think you will find it is bigger than that, a 6week fetus is the size of a peanut though
I've quoted the medical source. It's about ~1 1/4 inches from any source you'll find. If you carefully checked all of your discharge at this point you might find it, that's up to you. You can keep it, it's not considered a human/person at this point. Like I said, most get passed unnoticed.
 
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I have found:
Fetus week 10 (= age week 8): 1.8 cm. Peanut: 2-6 cm. Fig: 3-5 cm
Make your choice.

Seems this argumentation is peanuts.
 
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