i had an abortion at 16 years old because i wasn’t ready to be a mom. i wanted to graduate high school and go to college. i was always ashamed of my decision but i never regretted it.

i felt like i needed to be the “person” i wanted to be before i had children. when i turned 22 i felt like i was that “person” i wanted to be, but i was wrong. i got pregnant and really wanted to keep it but i had an abortion. i still wasn’t ready to be a mom. i thought i was finished growing up, but i wasn’t. i always thought kids were supposed to be fun and unplanned, but no, not in this era.

so, me and partner decided to write down things we wanted to accomplish before we decide to have kids. having a written plan/ goal really helped me put things into perspective and made me feel less ashamed of my actions. women have been having abortions for centuries and i am one of those women. i felt so dis-empowered the first time i had an abortion because of all the stigma associated with that choice, but it’s a choice that’s been made for centuries. after learning that fact, i feel empowered. and writing down a plan to have children with my loving and supportive partner, made me feel even more empowered.