I was pregnant with my second child and was so happy. In my mind I had no reason to believe there would be any problems, but I got a rude awakening at my 12 week ultrasound.

The ultrasound showed soft markers for a congenital heart defect or chromosomal abnormality. My high risk doctor and I mapped out a plan of testing to determine what, if anything, was wrong. I would have the results of all the tests by the time I was 18 weeks pregnant. However, sadly, the first tests showed the baby, a boy, had down syndrome. After much thought, sleepless nights, and so many tears, we decided to end the pregnancy. I never thought I would have an abortion. That was something that happened to other people. At 15 weeks, I had an abortion. Though I am sad to this day that I had to make this decision, I never doubted my decision, because I knew I couldn’t bring a child into this world knowing that he would suffer for much of his life, and that I wouldn’t be able to ensure he was taken care of for his entire life.