Thursday, February 16, 2012

Why I Have Never Had An Abortion

Because I have been lucky.

1. I've never been too poor to raise a child.
2. I've never been raped or coerced into sex.
3. I've never been pressured into having sex without protection.
4. I've never lacked access to birth control.
5. I've never had birth control fail me at a moment when I couldn't cope with a child.
6. I've never had my health threatened by a pregnancy.
7. I've never had my future fertility threatened by a pregnancy.
8. I've never been pregnant with a genetically damaged fetus.
9. I've never been pregnant with a fetus with a condition that would cause extreme pain, permanent disability, and/or early death.
10. I've never had a pregnancy threaten my job or livelihood.
11. I have never needed to take medication, for health, pain, depression, or any other condition, that was contraindicated for pregnancy.
12. I don't come from the sort of family or community that would have disowned me or cut me off financially because I was pregnant out of wedlock.
13. I don't have the sort of friends who would withdraw their friendship if I was pregnant and they did not approve for religious or personal reasons.
14. I have never been pregnant by a man who abandoned me when he found out.
15. I have never been pregnant by a man who threatened me when he found out.
16. I have never been pregnant in a situation that would threaten the stability of my family if they found out.
17. I have never been abused during a pregnancy.
18. I have never had to face depriving the children I already had of food, clothing, etc. by giving birth to another child I couldn't afford to raise.
19. I have never been given misleading information about birth control and emergency contraception.
20. I have never been given misleading information about how human biology works.
21. I don't live in a place where my pharmacist or insurance would deny me emergency contraception if I needed it.
22. I got excellent sex education in my public school.
23. My parents made sure I knew where to get additional information about sex if I needed it.
24. I have never lacked access to health insurance and to Planned Parenthood.
25. I have never gotten pregnant at a time when suicide seemed like an easier option than giving birth.

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