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.
Listen to Devra talk about her three abortion experiences — one of them an illegal abortion in 1966. She explains how much it helped her to be able to talk to other women about her reproductive experiences.
Watch this video posted by Feminism in India. Women tell their abortion stories. One of them talks about having two abortions. Find her voice at the 1:10 minute mark.
“No judgment or value should ever be imposed upon a choice not to bring a child into the world for whatever reason. It is rather a compassionate responsibility to acknowledge the extent of care that you would not be able to give to a child.” Click the green title to read more.
“I have no regrets about any of the decisions I made in my life. If my story taught me anything is that abortions are not something shameful, isolated, or sinful and the women who choose to have them are not monsters. They are girls just like you and me: your friends, your co-workers, your neighbors, single, married, divorced, teenagers, mothers, grandmothers and they are everywhere.” Click the green title to read more.
“Casting off the cloak of shame demands being straightforward about abortion. So, I have decided to push aside my unease and tell my story. To be clear: I don’t think I should have to justify having recreational sex, using birth control, or getting an abortion. I am not sharing my story because I feel the need to explain myself. I’m doing so because I believe “I want an abortion,” is a complete statement.” Click the green title to read more.
“I've always been very careful with contraception but about 10 years later I got pregnant twice within a year and had two abortions. It was devastating. I was raised in a very conservative family in a country that sees abortion in such a bad light.” Click the green title to read more.
“I’m not proud that I had to experience this three times. The first happened the second time I had sex, the second while taking birth control pills, and the third by a person who lied to me about being infertile—all during a time when getting pregnant was considered a disgrace and totally unacceptable.” Click the green title to read more.
Listen to Josephine tell about her two abortion experiences in this episode of The Abortion Diary Podcast.
“En ambas circunstancias tenía tanta negación sobre lo que había sucedido y sobre la posibilidad de embarazo que no busqué ayuda médica o apoyo hasta que ya era demasiado tarde para tomar una decisión sobre lo que le estaba sucediendo a mi cuerpo y a mi vida. Opté por el aborto en lugar del suicidio.” Click the green title to read more.
“I no longer feel trapped in a dark, cluttered place. I finally feel like myself and I am hopeful for my future. I have been told that God can punish me for my abortions, but I know that God’s love doesn’t work that way.”
“The doctor encouraged me to take the abortion pill so that I wouldn’t have to deal with all the waiting. He said, “Why subject yourself to this?” I’d wanted a surgical abortion. I also didn’t want to subject myself to the judgment of my friends and husband about a second abortion, so I was there on my own.” Click the green title to read more.
Robin tells of her two abortion experiences while a graduate student. Listen to her talk about what it was like for her.
“Definitely felt like a complete failure when I found out I was pregnant the second time.” Click the green title to read more.
“Only when it was pointed out to me that a woman’s reproductive years encompass about 40 years — and that even the best birth control is 98-99% effective — you do the math. A woman consistently practicing contraception is going to statistically have more than one unintended pregnancy.” Click the green title to read more.
“To be honest, the only time I ever feel shame about having had 2 is when I go to a new ob/gyn and I have to answer the “how many pregnancies” question in the new patient paperwork.” Click the green title to read more.
