my name is heather. i've had 3 abortions. i had them at ages 21, 27 and 35. the reason why? i didn't want children, didn't want to go thru pregnancy and delivery. putting a child up for adoption was simply not something i was willing to do. it was as simple as that.

i was 19 years old and had just started casually dating a guy. he was a nice guy, but he worked with me at my part-time job and i definitely wasn't interested in anything serious. i was going to college and he was content with his lack of ambition. i was taking the pill at the time, but my class schedule and work schedule made it difficult to take it at the exact same time each day.

forty years ago i had an abortion when i was 19. it was december 1971, two years before roe v. wade.

i was 21-years-old, in college, in my first long-term relationship and working part-time at a corporate book store when the condom broke. having a baby was not a possibility as i was in debt, had no health insurance (this was before you could stay on your parents' policy). neither i, nor my partner at the time wanted a kid, so we made the decision together to not.

i was only 14 when i had an abortion. i hated myself for a very long time afterwards, because that's what society says is the appropriate feeling to have after an abortion.

the first time, i was 18, a freshman in college, and should've known better. i was a smart girl. but my erratic (and oftentimes absent) periods made me think i was safe. when i found out i was pregnant, my sophomore boyfriend helped me find a clinic, paid for the procedure, and stayed with me.