MADISON, Wis. — After an abortion, a patient may need a trained and sensitive listening ear.  

That’s why over 20 years ago, a national nonprofit, with current ties to Southern Wisconsin, began offering volunteer-staffed counseling services.  

Following the overturn of Roe V. Wade, leaders of the organization, Exhale ProVoice, said their text line saw a surge in call volume.

“To our knowledge, we are the only ones specifically focusing on providing after-abortion, emotional support to this to this extent,” Exhale ProVoice Executive Director Rachel Dyer said.

Dyer, also a UW-Madison Psychology PHD candidate, said the organization’s anonymous texting line offers a free and non-judgmental abortion-positive approach.

“It’s a very stigmatized experience,” Dyer said, regarding why she and 60 other trained volunteers give their time to continue the mission.

Their team helps patients cope with the difficult experience by offering timely advice.

“We are saying things like, ‘Hey, here’s some questions that you might ask a potential therapist,’ or ‘Hey, have you considered this or maybe you have a therapist already? Is that something that you have talked about with them? How has that gone?’ And sort of supporting them and finding additional care that way,” Dyer said.

Dyer added that the former call line, which is now a texting only service, can be a lifeline for people dealing with challenging emotions. She said texting was often a direct way to address these needs.

“Sometimes people are more willing to say things written down and they’re willing to say them out loud, and so we’re able to support more people in their experiences,” Dyer said.

Currently, the text line is in high demand.

“We saw a 250% increase in our text line utilization over the last month,” Dyer said.

Fellow Board Member Natalie Croul said serving for the nonprofit helped her feel like she was making a difference.

“After the Dobbs decision, I dove deep into exhale work because it was sort of this respite of feeling, like I’m not totally helpless in this cause, like I have something I can do to contribute and to help those who are struggling right now,” Croul said.

Croul, visiting from California, where the service is based, was collaborating with Dyer on the nonprofit’s first fundraiser. The women are hoping to bring in $20,000 by the end of September when the fundraiser ends.

“It’s hard. It’s emotional and especially now, after the Dobbs decision. So yeah, hopefully we can grow and we can continue to serve even more people once we have a staff and the funding to do so,” Dyer said.