My husband and I had taken precautions, but obviously not enough. I found out I was pregnant on a Wednesday morning after almost a week worth of denial after missing my period. I’ll never forget that day. I cried all day long, I didn’t know what to do and I was so scared. My husband said that he would support me no matter what I chose to do. I called the abortion clinic in my area and made an appointment for the following Wednesday just in case, because they fill up pretty quick and I didn’t want to wait if I did decide to terminate.

The next week was the longest week of my life. I didn’t want to tell friends or family, and I was SO sick and fatigued that it was hard for me to function as normal. The first few days I cried most of the time, but it did get better once I realized I was making the right decision to terminate. Then I just wanted it to be over.

When the day of the appointment finally came around, I was ready. Scared to death, but ready. I had been sick and exhausted the whole week and desperately wanted to feel normal again. The clinic was full of wonderful people. They only did abortions on Wednesdays, so there were about 8 other girls besides me in the waiting room. At first, we all kept to ourselves. I sat with my husband reading magazines and trying to make each other laugh. There was a girl across from me who you could tell had been crying for a while. She was with her boyfriend who didn’t seem to care at all about how she was feeling. I felt really bad for her. We got called one by one to first take a Xanax and an ibuprofen, then come upstairs and change into a gown. I remember sitting in the small waiting room right before the procedure in my gown praying for strength. Then they called me in. The procedure was over pretty fast, and the nurse held my hand and talked to me throughout. It was kind of painful at the end, but when the nurse said “it’s all over,” I felt nothing but relief.

They wheeled me into the next room which was for recovery where all the girls who had gone before me were waiting. There was one other in a bed like me, and two in chairs. I knew that was how it was going to be and I was very nervous because I’m a very private person. The thought of being in the recovery room with a bunch of other girls made me very uncomfortable. I was wrong. The girls were so nice, and we shared a plate of cookies while sipping on cherry Pepsi and talking about how far along we were and why we were there. I felt so much better about the whole procedure from sitting in that room. I wish I knew the girls so I could give them all a big hug today and let them know how much better they made that day for me.

My husband told me later that the girl in the waiting room that looked so upset told the lady at the desk she changed her mind and was having her baby. She made her decision and I’m happy for her. I made mine, as well as the other girls there that day, and I do not regret it. I know I made the best choice for me and my family.