In the mid 1990s, I found myself faced with an unplanned and very much unwanted pregnancy. There are definitely two kinds of unplanned pregnancies. I had stopped taking the pill. I started getting the shot. I only had gotten the shot once. I did not care for it. I should have gone back on the pill right away. Instead I used foam and condoms. One night I made a mistake by having unprotected sex.

I did not have health insurance. I was living paycheck-to-paycheck. I was working in the restaurant industry. The job was already physically challenging without the burden of pregnancy. I also have very bad lower back issue due to being hit by a car when I was a teenager. I know that pregnancy can be very hard on the back. I do not believe my back could take it. I had no desire to become a mother.

My partner at the time was also living paycheck-to-paycheck. He was not mature enough for fatherhood. I terminated the pregnancy at six weeks with a surgical abortion. I knew very early. I knew at four weeks that I was pregnant. I would have selected a medical abortion if RU 486 had been available. I wish Plan B had been available at the pharmacy. It may have prevented the pregnancy.

After the abortion, I went back on the pill. About five years later, I had a tubal ligation at the age of 35. I have never had a desire to be a mother. I often say that I was born without the mother gene.

I have no regrets about my decision. It was the right decision at the time and still is the right decision. I know for some people it is a hard decision. For me it was not. I did not agonize over my decision, and I never felt remorse. I just felt relieved that I was able to get a safe and legal abortion.

About a year or two after the abortion, I went to work as a clinic receptionist where I had the procedure. I had always been very active in the pro-choice movement. I attended three large abortion rights marches in DC. I was there in 1989, 1992, and 2004. I had also volunteered as clinic defender when Operation Rescue descended upon our city and clinics.

Today I am happily married going on 15 years. I am married to a different person than the person in the abortion story. I still have no regrets about my decision. I am just grateful that I had a choice.