Chelsea Handler Discusses Her Teenage Pregnancy And Decision To Have An Abortion, On 'The Rosie Show' (VIDEO)

Abortion can be a delicate topic of conversation, but Rosie O'Donnell and Chelsea Handler dove right into it on "The Rosie Show" (Weeknights, 7 p.m. EST on OWN). Handler talked about her own experience as a 16-year old girl who got pregnant. At the time, she felt determined to keep the baby.

"I was so delusional," she said. "I was like, 'I'm ready for a baby.'"

Her parents had a very different perspective, pushing her toward having an abortion right away. "You're throwing your entire life away," they told her. "You're supposed to create a life for yourself. We want you to enjoy your life and not be raising a child, and we're certainly not going to raise it for you."

O'Donnell cited opponents of the landmark Roe v. Wade court case that legalized abortions coming out and saying that the abortion they had ruined their lives. "That's not the stuff I've heard from my friends who've had abortions," she said. "Listen, not that it was a casual thing that they never think about again, but it wasn't a life-defining negative thing."

Handler has no regrets about her decision, feeling that she certainly wouldn't have been a good mother to the child. "You should do whatever you want with your body and you shouldn't let anyone tell you what to do," she said.

Chelsea Handler can be seen Wednesdays at 8:30 p.m. EST on "Are You There, Chelsea?" and on "Chelsea Lately" weeknights at 11 p.m. EST on E!. "The Rosie Show" airs weeknights at 7 p.m. EST on OWN.

TV Replay scours the vast television landscape to find the most interesting, amusing, and, on a good day, amazing moments, and delivers them right to your browser.

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Comments

[NealtheDeal]

05:05 PM on 03/10/2012

All Conservatives should be sterilized at birth. You folks are just not human.

[cuteliberalchick]

04:31 PM on 03/10/2012

Abort, If you or a s/o is in no position of taking care of a child and you are in no position of taking care of a child or you are in healthy risk or raped or incest.Abort immediately.

[cuteliberalchick]

04:25 PM on 03/10/2012

Do abortion if you have to.It is a woman choice to keep or abort the pregnancy depending on the circumstances.

[anthonybrown]

07:03 AM on 02/17/2012

And as we all know, her ONLY choice were raising the child and "throwing away her life" or paying someone to scrape the child from her womb. I mean, with adoption being illegal in this country, what other option did Ms. Handler have?

[shanefox]

03:02 PM on 02/14/2012

Every pregnant girl and/oe woman should be forced to term and a red-letter "A" should be tatooed on her forhead; also wear clothing, back and front, with a flashing red LED six inches high.

How come the guys always walk free? How come he didn't say "NO!"

[anthonybrown]

07:04 AM on 02/17/2012

No, they don't "walk free." Men are tied to 216 months of child support with ZERO choice. Women can just have their daughters aborted and be done with it all.

[shanefox]

02:12 PM on 02/17/2012

If the fetus is aborted there is no child support.

There IS a choice: using contraception.

When people are poor, they have little choice.

No job, no prospect of education makes a bleak future that often leads to alcohol and/or drugs.

With no viable diversions what's left? Sex, nature's second most compulsive instinct.

(Number one is primitive survivial: fight or flight, safe dwellings, sustinance, protecting their young thus perpetuating their genetic progeny. Religion also dwells here, that's why when one's religion is threatened, real or not, there is a often a fight to the death.)

These two instincts are part of our animal nature and no matter how civilized or how pious we think we are, these instincts will kick in when we are threatened or aroused.

So sex is problematic. Saying NO to drunk teens on "Lover's Point" is difficult to restrain. One option is what I call a "Prophylactic-abortion." Prophylactic meaning prevention or protective, like a vaccine.

Isn't 7,000,000,000+ enough people already?

To repeat an old phrase, "No deposit, no return."

[openmindguy]

09:56 AM on 02/13/2012

De-bunking the pro abortion argument is not difficult. They almost always follow the same patterns. First, they will try to remove any mention of humanity when describing the aborted child. Look at these posts and you'll find phrases like "unwanted growth", "parasite", "unwanted pregnancy", "fertilized egg", "sea monkeys", even "cancer" to describe the child. Second, they will falsely couch the argument as a matter of denial of women's choice when there are several choices available to the woman at any point in the process. They deflect the real question being posed about abortion, which is the denial of the child's right to live. Third, they attempt to describe the beginning of life, or the nature of human life in terms that are subjective. When examined, these always fail. The only fact that we know about life is that it begins at conception. Finally they will flail around by making personal attacks and calling the opponent names. The earlier in the process this occurs, the more quickly you win the argument. Focus on the facts, pro lifers and don't be afraid of the name calling. Those on the fence regarding this issue cannot help but see the truth. Winning this debate logically is the easy part. Our biggest challenge is getting our society to look itself in the mirror and face the truth of this horrible practice. It can change.

[beyondcomprehension]

03:09 AM on 02/13/2012

If there's anything that everyone can agree upon, it ought to be Handler's statement that she wouldn't be a good mother (which is obvious from her lifestyle).

[Angie Daniels]

10:28 PM on 02/12/2012

Well I didn't like Chelsea before and I still don't like her. So this is a non-issue.

[FreedomLady10]

02:00 AM on 02/13/2012

Then why waste time commenting on it.
Believe it or not it is an issue and it matters.

[WarriorLemming]

10:24 PM on 02/12/2012

Chelsea Handler QUOTE:
"Handler has no regrets about her decision, feeling that she certainly wouldn't have been a good mother to the child. "You should do whatever you want with your body and you shouldn't let anyone tell you what to do," she said."
______________________________________________________________

Agreed, same here.

[beyondcomprehension]

02:58 AM on 02/13/2012

Then she went out & put on her seat belt even though she didn't want to.

[WarriorLemming]

01:18 AM on 02/14/2012

Was her boyfriend 'driving the car'? That might be important to know.

[EStreetShuffler]

02:29 PM on 02/14/2012

So you'd give your daughter that exact same advice?

"Do whatever you want with your body."

Terrific.

[openmindguy]

01:21 AM on 02/12/2012

I watched a program on one of the History channels the other night about John Merrick, more commonly referred to as the Elephant Man. The story also profiled a person living today named Brian. He suffers from a horrible condition referred to as Proteus Syndrome. For a brief moment, as I listened to this man describe the 20+ surgeries and all the pain he had to endure, I thought that perhaps it would have been better if he had never been born. Shame on me for even thinking that. Brian, now 27, is college educated, has a girlfriend and loves life. He does not regret it. Imagine had his mother chosen abortion. He clearly is happy to be alive. His rights would have been taken away without any say on the matter. How callous and self centered we are to even think that anyone other than the person living it can determine whether their lives are worth living. It is the height of arrogance. Abortion kills. A woman's choice is made at the bedroom door. Abortion infringes on another human being's right to live.

[WarriorLemming]

10:35 PM on 02/12/2012

I'd agree with you if the Repug/baggers treated healthcare as a human right and not a privilege only those who can afford it are allowed. All those surgeries Brian had what if he had no health insurance his quality of life would have been compromised. The situation would have been dire I'm sure without the needed surgeries and the mother would have had to watch as her "little-bundle-of-joy" suffered agonizing pain with no remedy. So let's paint this picture, openmindguy, with a hue of reality.

[openmindguy]

09:16 AM on 02/13/2012

All of your points regarding the realities of Brian's physical and financial hardships are well taken. Despite what many pro abortion folks say, those of who oppose it as a practice do not proceed without the understanding that many of these children, like Brian, will face incredibly difficult challenges. However, to argue that as a result of these challenges, he should not have been granted the opportunity to live fails both both on logical and moral grounds. He is the one who would tell you today that he is glad he is alive. His right to live was not denied to him by another person, nor by the state. Further, his presence helps us to study, understand and hopefully cure this terrible disease. Even if this last part weren't true and he chose to live his life in quiet anonymity, nobody should have had the right to determine that his existence was not of value. I'd also remind you that despite the many surgeries and associated costs that went with them, Brian was not denied any treatment. We are a society that shows compassion even when the child is not aborted. I did appreciate your comments.

[lhs500]

12:19 AM on 02/12/2012

She is disgusting.

[cuteliberalchick]

11:49 PM on 02/11/2012

Need my shower and catch up with my sleep

[cuteliberalchick]

11:24 PM on 02/11/2012

If you do not have enough money and not prepared emotionally to raise a child.Do not spread legs or use contraceptives.

[WarriorLemming]

10:46 PM on 02/12/2012

Your post seems directed towards woman as though it were a one-sided deal. And you are intelligent enough to understand that every child born isn't necessarily from a woman willingly "spreading-her-legs". You did say, "If you do not have enough money and not prepared emotionally to raise a child." and that's an important component in the decision whether a woman decides to carry her pregnancy full term or has an abortion. Regardless of the circumstances under which she became pregnant.

[cuteliberalchick]

11:26 PM on 02/12/2012

I kno where you are going I have been there.If somebody is pregnant as a result of rape they should make decisions that are right to them.

[FreedomLady10]

02:01 AM on 02/13/2012

Have you ever heard of rape? Incest? Forcible sex???

Your comment is very immature.

[cuteliberalchick]

04:57 PM on 02/13/2012

I have been through all you have mention above.

[cuteliberalchick]

04:57 PM on 02/13/2012

yes if you have been raped you can do abortion immediately

[cuteliberalchick]

11:17 PM on 02/11/2012

She has guts to admit.Kudos to her

[Robert Manuel Estrada]

08:16 PM on 02/11/2012

I admire her honesty. In my life experience many women in different walks of life have made the same decision or albeit with the help of their parent's. The ones who ultimately "made it" might look back and think, "I would not have had these life experiences if I were a teen mom". On the other hand, I have also known far more women who never realize their goals and find that the clock has run out and are no longer able to have children. It's a personal choice and not one to be made lightly.

[beyondcomprehension]

02:47 AM on 02/13/2012

Why shouldn't it be made lightly? You agonize much over the decision to have a tooth pulled?

[Robert Manuel Estrada]

11:30 AM on 02/13/2012

...if it weren't such a serious topic that would be pretty funny, because last year I procrastinate over having a tooth pulled.

[beyondcomprehension]

12:27 PM on 02/13/2012

Ouch!

Still don't know why it's such a serious topic on this board. Sounds like the "choice" posters are only concerned with the expense of the extraction, not any moral qualms.

[anthonybrown]

07:09 AM on 02/17/2012

Yes, they would have had those "life experiences" if they had given their child up for adoption. Why do you continue to insist that raising a child as a teenager or aborting your child are the only options?

[Robert Manuel Estrada]

01:29 PM on 02/17/2012

I am merely commenting on my observations. Obviously, people who have chosen adopyion don't go around advertising it

[daigz]

05:18 PM on 03/09/2012

No, I would argue that carrying a baby full-term would certainly affect ones "life experiences". There's always PPD, not to mention the effect of hormones ravaging through your body for several months. Also, if the mother is in school, she will likely be ostracized. I think one's life would change dramatically.