2009 was a great year- i was on my way to pursuing a doctoral degree in psychology, had fallen in love with a wonderful man, and was living a happy healthy life. at 23, i was in my first adult relationship and then it happened- i found out that i was pregnant. millions of thoughts clouded my mind but one thought was clear for me. i knew that i was not ready to become a mother and that an abortion was the best choice for me. after making this decision for myself, i shared it with my boyfriend and my mother. my mother supported my decision but my boyfriend did not. he insisted that we could raise the child and i would still be able to go to school. i wanted to believe him but i knew it was not true. i knew that the moment the child arrived i would want to pour every ounce of love and energy into our little one and the idea of pursuing a doctorate would soon become a distant memory. the decision was made and the challenge was helping my partner understand why this was the best decision for us both.

the night before the procedure, i played a song for our unborn child and prayed for him/her. i haven’t listened to that song since. i had my abortion mid-march 2009. i cried and grieved the loss of a soul, a spirit.

my partner and i got engaged the following year and will have our 1 year marriage anniversary in august. i will graduate from my program in may of next year and am very excited about becoming a licensed psychologist. my husband and i are in the process of planning for our first child. we are excited and both feel that we are ready to become parents.

although an abortion is not something that i ever anticipated i would have in my lifetime, it was something that happened and i’m okay with it. i don’t regret my decision and am grateful that in my most confused and scared state, one thing was very clear to me. i did not have to have a child when i was not ready. i could have a procedure in a clean and empathic environment where i knew i would be safe and well taken care of. in my most vulnerable state, i was empowered by the fact that i had a choice. this choice is crucial and must be protected.