“So, I was 21 and living in America when I became pregnant by my boyfriend at the time. We were in a very intense and active relationship, and often used the withdrawal method for contraception. But by the time I knew I was pregnant he had left the country, so I went to have a backstreet abortion.” Click the green title to read more.
“It is hard not to write a list of justifications why.” Click the green title to read more.
“We both sat down and decided to have an abortion. Soon after, cracks started to show, but I was so scared of being alone and leaving him after what I had just been through. 7 months later it got worse, the mental abuse started, the blackmailing, the name calling, the outbursts of nasty stuff and nasty words, and then it became physical and I found out I was pregnant. I was so scared because I knew what this boy was, he was evil to me. I was worried about me, my body, the pregnancy, my life and even more so my future.” Click the green title to read more.
Actress and author Karrine Steffans talks about how the stigma of having three abortions silenced her, prevented her from seeking help from her own trusted gynecologist, and caused fear of returning to him to have a baby. “I know he’ll ask why I didn’t come to him, and I know I might be afraid to admit that I didn’t want him to think less of me — because that’s just silly, isn’t it?” Click the green title to read more.
“I came from a teenage mother myself. My mom was 14 when she had me. She didn’t want to have me, she didn’t want to be a parent — but she had no choice. I think about what I would look like as a parent in that situation, having a child who knew they weren’t wanted the way I knew I wasn’t wanted and I can’t imagine doing that. I think a lot of people think about the choice to have an abortion as a selfish one, but for me, the choice to not have one would have been the selfish one. A child deserves to be parented.” Click the green title to read more.
“What having two terminations doesn’t mean is that I am a stupid person, that I am useless, that I should be shunned by society, suffer punishment or live the rest of my life in a state of trauma. It also doesn’t mean that I don’t deserve to be loved. It was not easy for me to accept that. I have made these judgements about myself, consciously or unconsciously, at one time or another, in the five years following my terminations. I don’t want you to do the same.” Click the green title to read more.
Elizabeth says she envies the ‘free rhetorical space’ in the anti-abortion movement, where people who’ve had multiple abortions can talk openly about their experiences, as long as they frame their stories to punish other people who’ve had abortions.
“In my culture, talking about sex and birth control is forbidden. There’s an unspoken rule about sex – don’t have it. I had to find resources and answers to my questions on my own. . . . When I sought out resources I came across Aid for Women, a crisis pregnancy center that gave me misleading medical information and basically tried to talk me out of my abortion. It was incredibly belittling and hurtful.” Click the green title to read more.
“My mom has told me time and time again that she doesn’t understand why I share my story publicly. ‘You’re giving people a reason to judge you,’ she’ll tell me. But I’ve never seen it as that. Instead, I see speaking out as a way to show people that they don’t have to feel ashamed for having an abortion.” Click the green title to read more.
“In my opinion that’s the reason why women aren’t as successful as men in the art world. There’s plenty of talented women. Why do men take over the important positions? It’s simple. Love, family, children – a woman doesn’t want to sacrifice all of that.” Click the green title to read more.
“I am devastated, angry with myself for being so stupid, on the brink of a nervous breakdown, totally distraught. But I know that I cannot have this child. And to ensure that this never happens again, (hopefully), I am having my tubes tied on the same day.” Click the green title to read more.
“I was using a form of birth control each time I conceived, so I wasn't irresponsible, just unlucky. I have an unbelievable amount of guilt from these abortions, but I know I made the right decision.” Click the green title to read more.
“There are lives that are meant to happen and there are lives that never were, but those decisions belong to the bodies incubating the cells within them. I will drive, escort, and support any woman who decides that termination is the best thing to do with her pregnancy.” Click the green title to read more.
Listen as Maryann tells of her two abortion experiences.
“I have very few options for birth control. I am on pregnancy number eight right now. I have an appointment next week for an abortion. I have one beautiful daughter, have had three miscarriages, and three previous abortions.” Click the green title to read more.
Comedian Chelsea Handler says her abortions were wise. “We have 7.3 billion people on this planet. Anybody who carefully decides not to become a parent—let alone a bad parent, which is what I would have become—should be applauded for making a smart and sustainable decision.” Click the green title to read more.
Emily tells of feeling embarrassed and yet grateful that she was able to access abortion healthcare three times in her life. Click the green link to read more.
Genesis as she tells of her two abortion experiences. Listen and share.
“To be alive and human is to be in favor of life, but to bring an unwanted child into this world—or to force any woman to do so against her will, her health, her future, her finances, or her well-being, because that is your moral stance, not hers or her doctor’s—is not pro-life. It is control wearing the mask of virtue.“ Click the green title to read more.
Feminist writer Polly Vernon says of her abortions — “Three messy, silly scenarios; but then, messy, silly scenarios are often all that lie behind unwanted pregnancies." Click the green title to read more.
