Over one-third of women of reproductive age have an abortion by the age of 45. However, women who have chosen abortion are often absent from the public debate. In order to break the silence surrounding abortion, we will be featuring real stories from real women each Wednesday on our blog. If you would like to share your story with us or have it published on our blog, go to http://www.prochoice.org/pregnant/hotline/share.html.
I am 17 years old, married to an amazing guy, and I chose to have an abortion. I chose to have an abortion because, while children are wonderful, I hope to be able to give my children more than I could dream of now. I plan to go to college, get a degree and hopefully open my own business. I want to be able to go to a career day at my child’s school, be proud of what I’ve done with my life, and be able to go to sleep at night not worried about how I’m going to pay a hospital bill from when I was 17. Children deserve the best things in life. They truly are our future. My baby would deserve too many things that I can’t provide right now, including all the love in the world. Someday I will be a mom, and I believe I will be an amazing parent when the time is right.
–submitted by Marissa* through a member clinic
I am already a struggling single mother of three children: four, seven, and soon to be one year old. This pregnancy was the result of a rape. It was not my intention to ever put myself in a position like this. I thought long and hard about what I was going to do about this pregnancy. I decided to have an abortion because I couldn’t see myself keeping this baby, but I also could not see myself giving the baby away and constantly wondering if I did the right thing and if it was being treated well.
–submitted by Toni* through a member clinic
>Learn more about women who have abortions.
>Learn more about women who have abortions.
*Names have been changed to protect patient privacy