Colorado banned ‘abortion pill reversal’… but this woman is glad she had access to it

There’s a legal battle taking place in Colorado, as lawmakers there banned the use of “abortion pill reversal” (APR) in April of 2023. Now, one woman in the state, who used APR to successfully stop the effects of the abortion pill and save her baby’s life, is speaking out in defense of the life-saving protocol.

In late 2023, Mackenna Greene, who had a young son at home, learned she was unexpectedly pregnant with her second child, and she was scared. Though she was in a “great relationship” with her baby’s father, she had recently started a new career position, and she worried that having a newborn baby could present a potential hindrance to her success at the new job — a common fear instilled in women for years — one the abortion industry preys upon. She’s not alone.

Studies have shown that 64% of women who obtained abortions felt at least some form of pressure to abort — whether that was from their boyfriend or family members, or it was due to educational or financial pressures they felt at the time.

With pressure looming in her mind, Greene turned to the internet to find a way to get the abortion pill mailed to her home.

She found a business that would ship the abortion pill to her after she filled out an online questionnaire. When she received the kit in the mail, she was hesitant to go through with taking the pills, but ultimately, she took the first drug.

The abortion pill regimen includes two drugs. Mifepristone — which blocks the naturally occurring pregnancy hormone progesterone, depriving the growing child of nutrients — is taken first. Misoprostol, which causes contractions, is the second drug in the regimen and is taken up to 48 hours later, sometimes in multiple doses.

“In the days leading up to taking that first pill, I was unsure and I had to try to talk myself into taking it, trying to convince myself that this was the right decision for me, my life, my family, speaking financially, professionally, relationally — the whole kit and kaboodle,” Greene told Live Action News.

After convincing herself to take the mifepristone, Mackenna felt immediate regret.

Abortion pill regret

“I knew taking it in that moment that… I was not 100% confident or comfortable in taking it but I just felt this really big pressure from all areas coming down on me, and that’s why I’d taken it. I felt very anxious leading up to it and immediate regret after taking it,” she explained.

She quickly went online to search if it was possible to reverse the chemical abortion pill process. That’s when she found the Abortion Pill Rescue Network, which connected her to Chelsea Mynyk, a licensed nurse practitioner and certified nurse midwife who runs Castle Rock Women’s Health in Colorado and has helped 10 women (since 2022) who were interested in APR. Greene was speaking with Mynyk just an hour later.

After taking mifepristone, it is possible to counteract its effects by taking progesterone through a medical provider. The medical professional administers progesterone to the woman either through injections or orally. This same process of administering progesterone is used when a woman has a threatened miscarriage or a history of miscarriage early in pregnancy.

Once Greene met with Mynyk, she had hope that the chemical abortion process could be stopped and her baby would survive.

Greene said she felt a “lot of emotions” when she took the first dose of progesterone. “I’m someone who doesn’t like to count my chickens before they hatch or give myself false hope. I wanted to be very realistic that I had maybe done something irreparable, and Chelsea was great about making me feel not judged and that she was going to help and do everything that she could to help me feel supported. By no means did she make me any promises that this was going to be successful, so I was anxious but very, very hopeful.”

Thankfully, the APR process worked, and her baby girl was born healthy and happy in August.

“We’re doing great. She’s perfect,” said Greene.

Colorado prohibits the use or advertising of abortion pill reversal

While there is joy and gratitude for the life of Mackenna’s daughter, there are countless women in Colorado who take the abortion pill and regret it. Unfortunately, many may be unaware of the existence of APR because the law has restricted individuals from advertising for it. 

Despite progesterone being used as a treatment for miscarriage for decades, the pro-abortion media launched attacks against APR, calling it a “scare tactic” and “medical theater.” Pro-abortion politicians in Colorado bought into this, passing the April 2023 law prohibiting the use of APR.

After that law was signed by Gov. Jared Polis, The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty sued Colorado on behalf of Bella Health and Wellness, a pro-life Colorado pregnancy center. A judge issued a preliminary injunction, blocking the law as the lawsuit progresses, but that injunction only applied to Bella Health and Wellness. While that center could continue to administer APR, other medical establishments could not.

In April of 2024, Chelsea Mynyk received a letter from the Colorado State Board of Nursing, notifying her that she was under investigation for potentially violating the law based on an anonymous complaint that she was providing APR to patients. She began working with the Christian legal advocacy group Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), whose attorneys were able to have the legal injunction applied to Mynyk as well.

“When I first got the notice that I was being investigated by the State Board of Nursing, I was very disheartened and kind of confused because I had thought that with Bella’s injunction, that that applied to all providers,” Mynyk told Live Action News. “So I was proceeding, with some caution of course, because of the impact this law would have on providers. I would still take on any APR clients that would contact me. So I’m really thankful for Alliance Defending Freedom coming beside me and helping me be a part of that injunction so that I can, for now, safely practice this.”

ADF Senior Counsel Kevin Theriot explained that even though the injunction doesn’t apply to every healthcare provider, it is likely discouraging the state from prosecuting anyone who does provide APR. Mynyk is now a part of the lawsuit against Colorado and is due to give her deposition in early October. According to Theriot, expert witnesses will also be providing their deposition in the coming months.

“There are many women who regret their abortions and some want to have that choice to reverse the effects of the chemical abortion. It’s very sad that Colorado law is trying to deny these women that freedom to continue their pregnancies and they’re trying to silence us as professionals, as medical providers to offer this life-saving treatment,” said Mynyk. “I think we’re on a cutting edge here in Colorado trying to allow this freedom for women and for medical professionals.”

The discrimination of blocking access to “abortion pill reversal”

Mackenna Greene explained that after she learned Colorado had banned the use of APR, she “couldn’t believe that there would be a law in place prohibiting women from saving their babies and saving their pregnancies.” She added, “These women that change their mind, they want to support a healthy pregnancy just as much as the women who are at risk for miscarriages and Colorado is essentially saying that only one of those women has the right to support that pregnancy.”

She thinks APR should be “more appreciated, definitely legalized.” She added, “I think there’s a lot of misinformation out there about what the abortion pill reversal process looks like. This is the same medication given to women at high risk of miscarriage and I don’t believe that one group of women should be excluded from receiving life-saving care.”

It’s discriminatory, she argues, that one group of women who are at risk of miscarriage “is told they can support their pregnancy over another group [of women]” — women who regret taking the abortion pill.

“And the fact that it is easier to obtain the abortion pill than it is to obtain help to reverse those effects — how backward that is,” she said. “I had to actually speak with Chelsea in order to get the help and support from her but I didn’t have to do that to obtain the [abortion pill] to stop a life.”

Urge Walmart, Costco, Kroger, and other major chains to resist pressure to dispense the abortion pill