i had been in a stable relationship for over a year when, despite using birth control, i got pregnant. i had just started college that year and he hadn't started yet.

the hardest part about having an abortion has been allowing myself to mourn the loss of a potential child. i started to share my whole story, but the part that i want to shout from the rooftops is that i can mourn a loss and know i made the right decision at the same time.

i had an abortion in 1978. i was 17. it cost $200 and i never told my parents. i was absolutely not ready to be a parent. at the time, i was a high school drop out working as a cashier at a cafe.

i was 22 years old, working a retail job which is where i met my boyfriend at the time. my pregnancy came from bad sex during which he forgot to pull out.

i was in my last year of university when i got pregnant with my boyfriend at the time. he and i were already sort of falling apart. he was three years younger than me.

i wish i could tell everyone my story without enduring judgment, but the sad fact remains that few people seem capable or willing to try to understand this situation and they react with irrational emotion rather than empathy and thus no productive discourse can happen.