251. Dr. Shelley Sella with Amelia Bonow: Beyond Limits — Stories of Third-Trimester Abortion Care

For 20 years, Dr. Shelley Sella saw patients whose diverse backgrounds and circumstances led them to the same difficult decision: to end their pregnancies. In her new book, Beyond Limits, Sella draws from her experiences to offer a window into a typical week at her clinic, weaving together patient stories—including those of a mother navigating a devastating prenatal diagnosis, a woman confronting unexpected test results after IVF, and a parent weighing safety and stability for her existing children.

Dr. Sella offers a testament to a standard of care grounded in competence, compassion, and sensitivity, as well as a call for a paradigm shift that moves beyond Dobbs, beyond Roe, beyond limits to provide care. It is a tribute to the real people whose hearts, reasons, and stories are more complex than politicized conversations about abortion lead us to believe.

Dr. Shelley Sella is a board-certified OB-GYN and the first woman to openly practice third-trimester abortion care in the US, which she did for 20 years. She was prominently featured in the Emmy Award–winning documentary After Tiller. Dr. Sella served two terms on the board of the National Abortion Federation and in 2022 was awarded its highest honor, the Christopher Tietze Humanitarian Award. She is retired from clinical practice and now focuses on advocacy.

Amelia Bonow is the Cofounder and Executive Director of Shout Your Abortion, a nationwide organization working to normalize abortion and elevate safe paths to access, regardless of legality. Amelia is the coeditor of SYA's eponymously titled book, which sits in the recovery rooms of hundreds of abortion clinics, as well as Abortion is Everything, a new children's book about abortion. Amelia is honored to serve as the Co-chair of the Board of Directors of Abortion Care Network, the national organization that serves and represents independent abortion providers.

Elliott Bay Book Company