Its not a memory I used to be able to share, but I have realized how necessary it is to accept who one is. I was 15, and my boyfriend was 16. I was raised in a strict Christian household, to the degree that sex and even more, contraception, was not a conversation in our household.

I should also mention I was raised by my grandparents after my mother died when I was 4. My boyfriend and I used the “pull out” method and safe to say it was not effective. When I realized, or accepted, I was pregnant, I was already 4 months along, and knew I could not provide the life that a child would need. Due to the fact of my grandparents religion, I realized I would have to deal with this on my own. My boyfriend became abusive right before I had the abortion, and decided he could not be there for me as I had the procedure. I had to tell my grandparents my decision to have an abortion, and while they did not accept it, they ultimately took me to the clinic. After the abortion, my boyfriend and I broke up, and he thought it would be “funny” to tell a wide group of people we both knew. This made an already hard decision into a horrible dream, as many people in my high school asked me if it was true that I had an abortion. Overall, I now realize that choosing to have an abortion allowed me to be able to pursue an education and a career. I have now graduated with a bachelor’s degree, live in my own apartment, and have a healthy relationship with a man who supports every decision I have and will make. This is my story, and I would not change the decision I made to have an abortion.