Former abortionist finds forgiveness, now advocates for the unborn

After encountering God’s love and forgiveness, a former abortionist returned to the faith and now advocates for the unborn, according to a recent report.

Dr. Catherine Wheeler, a board-certified OB-GYN, shared her experience with abortion and her return to God in a recent Pregnancy Help News report.

Wheeler recalled how abortion was introduced during her medical training.

“For the first time, we didn’t talk about the baby, or healing,” she said. “We instead talked about terminating and ending. And for the first time, we completely disregarded, and, actually, intentionally took the life of one of our patients.”

Wheeler had been raised in the faith but said she first began to fall away amid the changing cultural tides she encountered in college.

“My parents were very clear about grace and the gospel,” Wheeler said. “The world thinks one can be ‘good enough’ or moral without God. What my parents didn’t realize was the growing impact and depth of the sexual revolution and what we were walking into in college.”

An unexpected pregnancy during medical school initially left Wheeler questioning the future of her career. With support from those around her, however, Wheeler continued her studies and embraced motherhood.

“So, I immediately fell in love with this little one,” Wheeler said, describing “the love and the miracle of getting to grow a baby.”

Following the birth of her own child, Wheeler returned to medical training.

“And there I was, in the room, watching my first birth and just falling apart weeping at the beautiful miracle of life,” she said. “It became a passion for me. I was absolutely hooked. It was my greatest joy, right underneath having my children.”

During residency, however, Wheeler soon encountered abortion. 

“In residency I was introduced to abortion, specifically for babies with special needs that we called ‘birth defects’ and ‘anomalies,’” Wheeler said. “And we were told in that situation, it’s a woman’s right to choose. You’re not here to judge. If you care about women, this is one of the things that we do in medicine.”

For Wheeler, the path that led to her involvement in abortion had begun years earlier.

“I would trace it back to an intentional turning away from God as the primary cause,” she said. “I chose a sexual relationship with a boyfriend, knowing it was wrong. This changed the whole course of my life and ultimately left me vulnerable to engaging in performing abortions.”

While performing an abortion, Wheeler said she sensed what she described as evil and heard a warning in her mind: “You’re about to murder a child.”

Although she completed the procedure, Wheeler recalled “the horror of it” and said she tried afterward to shut out what had happened.

“It’s so horrible when you know you’re a murderer,” she said.

Years later, Wheeler said she was able to face her involvement in abortion through Christ’s forgiveness.

“It’s a process when you’re controlled by the evil one,” she said. “I couldn’t talk about it or deal with it until I knew Jesus had paid for all of it.”

Wheeler now serves on the board of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists and as president of its Colorado chapter, according to the outlet. She also reads ultrasounds for Life Network Pregnancy Center in Colorado Springs and speaks at pregnancy centers and other pro-life events.

“[Pregnancy resource centers] brought me into the fold with such love and compassion, when I had believed the lies of the abortion industry that [they] deceive, manipulate, force, lie, and only care about the baby,” Wheeler said.

Wheeler has since taken her advocacy into the public square, including an address at the national March for Life in Washington, D.C., in January 2025 and testimony before the Colorado Legislature, according to the report.

“I came to know Jesus, and I came to know His love,” Wheeler said. “I came to know His love and forgiveness.”