Lauri responds to the question of creating television shows.
About Bump+
In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court gave women a choice. Thirty-seven years later, we're giving them a voice. BUMP+ is a provocative web series from Yellow Line Studio that follows the fictional stories of three women facing unintended pregnancies.
Watch the episodes. Share your story. Join the conversation.
Emily's Blog
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Blog
Katie, Hailey, and Denise have been through so much—so much heartbreak. Each journey has been difficult and painful. They’ve made their decisions; and in that sense, each journey is at an end. But now they have to figure out how to live with the choices they’ve made.
I worry for Katie and John. I [...]
New Features
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Bump+ The Conversation Continues
To Our Audience -
Bump+ The Show has come to an end – but the conversation it has sparked is just beginning.
When we launched this experiment, the only thing we knew for sure was that the time for a new kind of conversation about the sensitive topic of abortion had come. We hoped that story [...] -
No Voting
The creators of Bump+ would like to address several errant media reports. Headlines around the world have said Bump+ trivializes the issue of abortion. Fox News has suggested that Bump+ is an “abortion game show.” It is not. We take the stories of our characters and the choices that lie ahead of [...]
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Lauri Deason – Producer
Lauri responds to the question of creating television shows.
To Our Audience -
Bump+ The Show has come to an end – but the conversation it has sparked is just beginning.
As word about Bump+ spread to 64 countries across the globe, controversy and criticism from people on both sides of the debate followed; but instead of listening to them, you found the courage to listen to each other. Six weeks and more than 125,000 site visits later, your responses not only to our characters, but also to each other has proved to the world what we suspected all along – we were right to trust in the goodness and intelligence of our audience. We are intensely humbled by the stories you’ve shared and the respect you have shown to each other. Your partnership has challenged us to see this debate in new ways, and reminded the world that we don’t have to agree to listen and respond with compassion. Thank you for that gift.
Comments on individual episodes have now been closed in order to preserve what was The Bump Experience as it unfolded. A new comment thread has been opened here to keep the conversation going. Please visit this link to share your story and join the conversation.
My sister in law has seizures as well unless she takes her medicine. She however, opted to not take the medicaiton to enseure that her baby would be healthy and she had seizures, quite a few but she stayed tough, had the baby and went back on her medicine. I was so lucky to be able to spend time with her during this trial she had to endure.
Vi -
What a horrible decision you faced! I am so sorry for all the suffering you’ve had to deal with, including the emotional pounding you’ve received from your family.
I’m not sure how it is in the US, but here in Canada, I’m pretty sure no one would be forced to come off medication if they are pregnant. I used to work in a clinic that counsels pregnant women about effects of various chemical, drug, radiation exposures on their unborn child and we saw numerous women who were epileptic and needed to take medication. It was always best to see women before they became pregnant, and we could suggest switching to alternative medications that were less harmful and then try them out to see if they were effective. I would think that having seizures during pregnancy would not be a great thing for the fetus either, if oxygen levels in the blood drop dramatically. I don’t ever remember urging women to stop medication if they truly needed it. Risks to the developing baby do exist with certain anti-seizure meds, but the chances of having a healthy baby far exceed them. Apparently, with proper pre-pregnancy counselling, taking adequate vitamin supplementation before and during pregnancy and good medical care overall, over 95% of expectant mothers have favourable outcomes. Please try counselling with a local Teratogen Information Centre. You may be better off than you think.
Why don’t you try featuring women with real issues? I am disabled with epilepsy, and my husband and I tried to have a child a few years ago. We got pregnant pretty quickly after our wedding, but after the first month or so of gestation my seizures got so bad that I was having them every day. I wasn’t able to take the epilepsy medication because it might harm the fetus. In my 12th week I had a small stroke because of all the seizures, and my obgyne suggested that I terminate the pregnancy because it could kill me. I am very grateful that I was able to get a fast, legal abortion without having to wait for some court or legal battle to be able to start my epilepsy medications again, and to have a D&C.
Not everyone who needs an abortion gets them because they don’t feel like having a baby. Some of us try, but in my case, the pregnancy threatened my life. I have no shame for making the choice I did.
Vi
I can’t speak for all pro-life people, however I think most believe that there is no ethical problem with aborting to save the life of the mother. It is an instance where both will die, or one can be saved. These situations are very rare, however. I am so thankful that you survived! It would be wonderful for you adopt! Have you considered it?
I do know one family where the mother was diagnosed with cancer during her pregnancy. She refused chemo to save her baby. She died, and the baby lived.
I would like to adopt, but many agencies won’t give a child to a disabled person. My seizures are mostly under control now with medication, but nobody will consider us, unless we want to be foster parents.
There are ultra-religious people in my family that told me that God would have saved mine and the baby’s life if I had remained pregnant, and that my illness during pregnancy was just due to a lack of faith, and that I would burn in hell for my sin of aborting. Apparently I didn’t believe in God strongly enough, so I was punished with a stroke. I pray every day that these people don’t ever gain any real political power. They are crazy and really believe this nonsense. If abortion were illegal, I would have had to go in front of a court or a judge to plead my case to take my epilepsy meds or have an abortion, which would have lengthened the time I was in mortal danger. These religious fanatics would rather see a woman die to prove their point.
Thank you Kris, for your kind reply.
Lauri-
How about you instead create a series that shows mothers that had at one point in time considered abortion but instead decided to keep their baby? I had, for a split second, considered aborting my son. As I look at him at this very moment, the idea sickens me. He is an amazing 8 month old with big brown eyes and dimples that loves to learn new sounds to make, loves to dance with me, loves to have his Daddy make him laugh… I could go on and on. He is HANDS DOWN the best thing that has ever happened to my life. I’m sure MILLIONS more would feel the very same way if they gave their baby a chance. Please reconsider what you’re doing here.
Sincerely,
Stephania
[COMMENT HAS BEEN EDITED]
I understand this is a hot topic and usually brings with it a lot of heated emotion. However, the second we start judging, name calling and closing off is the second the conversation stops.
Why do you see this is a terrible idea. It’s using a visual and technical way to get real people to come to terms with an ongoing problem across the globe. A way to help people talk, under the protection of the internet, openly about their circumstances, experiences and beliefs. Why would you ask her to reconsider this?
The more you read on this site the more you’ll discover it has very little to do with “condoning the murder of babies” and very much to do with finding a new way to communicate.
It is interesting the none of the comments so far, especially from those who have had an abortion, did not regret their decision in doing so. Actually, most of the women I have spoken to do not regret their decision to have an abortion. Further, I am working on a masters in communications and I am using this show to write a communication topic that is interesting. What is intersting about this show is people are talking and the talk is not all hating and bashing. I am interesting to see where this experiment goes. Also, all of these scenarios could be very real. The only thing fake about this show is they arent pregnant. Everything else is real. Or, at least should be viewed as real.
JoshN -
I’m confused about your opening comment that none of the commenters (especially those who have had abortions) did not regret their decision. We have had several comments from women who regret their decision to abort, as well as a number of comments from women who do NOT regret their decision to abort. It’s possible you haven’t seen those (I’ll confess I can hardly keep up, and I read every comment). Frankly, I’m interested in both viewpoints – but I wanted to clarify that for you, especially if you’re writing about the show from an academic perspective. And if there’s any other help we can provide with that endeavor, please don’t hesitate to contact me at lauri@yellowlinestudio.com.
For the record, we’ve also been very pleased to see that not all the conversation here is hating and bashing. We really didn’t know what would happen. And we’re interested to see where the experiment goes as well. I guess we’ll find out together.
Regards -
Lauri Deason
BUMP+ Producer
I think all the women need to ask themselves “What kind of person am I?”. Am I someone who takes the easy road or the hard road? When difficulties arise in life, am I the type of person who steps up to the plate, or do I take the apparently easy way out? For instance, if my parents or brother or loved one becomes physically impaired, will I do whatever I can to care for them? Will I sacrifice my own time and convenience to care for someone I love? When I have a child, will I put their needs over my own? Am I that kind of person? Will I choose to help the weak and helpless. And if the answer is “yes, that is the kind of person I want to be”, then apply that line of reasoning to the child that begins to grow into a new human life at the moment of conception. Abortion is not the only solution to an unwanted pregnancy. These women can be heros to their children by giving them life, and heros to an adoptive couple by giving up their child. This show is an utterly false situation. None of these women “should” have an abortion, and allowing people to vote for someone to get an abortion is encouraging some sort of hatred. There really is something sick about it, don’t you think?
Once a relationship or one night stand or marriage (or whatever it is) creates a baby, it’s about the life of the baby… the baby. Not Mom or Dad. If you are telling it all, show real situations where the reality of regret of abortion is shown. Show people who tell the horror of living with that mistake day after day. Show the regret of those who wish they had used adoption. Those are realities too. Put their stories on. Go to those “regret abortion” sites and read stories from women who are dealing with the negative effects of abortion and the regret many years later. They are shunned and have to keep their hurt inside. It is easy to show the emotional struggle of being pregnant when you don’t want to be. That is a given. Of course it is hard. You should be stressing acceptance for your actions and positive ways to deal with it. Your show is not about choice. It is selfish because in the end, it is about making Mom’s life okay.