Isabella

When I was 21, I was already living with my boyfriend at the time, but I knew that it wouldn’t end well. He wasn’t the type of man that I wanted to give my child. I knew that he would be in at the beginning, but since he just lived for his dream of being a superstar, he would eventually leave me all alone. It would have been extremely hard for me to care for this child because I couldn’t tell my family.

“Would I be here if I hadn't gone through with the procedure?”

My dad and I don’t have the greatest relationship, and I felt like I would be disappointing my mother because she’d been paying for my apartment and university. It was a horrible place to be in. I just told my best friend, and he took me to have the procedure done. I was already feeling guilt and shame.

I was forced to look at my sonogram, and that just made it worse. I remember that I was under anesthesia but I could hear the doctor talking about his kids—that didn’t help either.

There hasn’t been one day that goes by without me thinking about the pregnancy I ended. Sure, I’m good now. I graduated, have a great job that I love and a wonderful boyfriend. Would I be here if I hadn’t gone through with the procedure? What type of life would I have given my child? I want every woman to have the choice of giving her child the life he/she deserves, without feeling guilty every day. I want every woman to be able to look at other kids and not cry remembering how challenging the abortion process was.