Inconvenient! How Roe v. Wade Changed My Life

Abortion was legalized nationwide by the Supreme Court in the 1973 decision, Roe v. Wade. The court ruled that a state law that banned abortions (except to save the life of the mother) was unconstitutional.

A new analysis published by the National Right to Life Committee indicated there have been an estimated 60,069,971 abortions since the Supreme Court handed down its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision allowing virtually unlimited abortions.

Planned Parenthood, a nonprofit organization that advertises women’s reproductive health, states “There are two ways of ending a pregnancy: in-clinic abortion and the abortion pill. Both are safe and very common. If you’re pregnant and thinking about abortion, you may have lots of questions. We’re here to help.”

In 1973 I was seventeen years old. My boyfriend and I had been sexually active for several months when I discovered I was pregnant. Until that year, I had never heard the word ‘abortion.’ I knew about birth control but was naïve enough to think I couldn’t get pregnant.

One of my friends suggested Planned Parenthood. The lab test revealed what I had already suspected. I was pregnant. The workers at PP counseled me on my options, up to and including abortion.

They seemed gleeful about being able to offer this brand-new service to their patients. I was referred to a doctor who explained the out-patient surgery in clinical terms. A simple D and C would be performed, and I’d be home in a few hours, complication-free.

It’s been more than forty years, and I remember clearly how excited the doctor was to have his first legal abortion patient.

I wish I had known then what I know now. Roe v. Wade did not save my life from an inconvenient pregnancy. Instead, it gave me a lifetime of regret and shame.

Documents leaked today indicate the Supreme Court may overturn Roe v. Wade as a constitutional right, returning the power to individual states to determine if they will allow a woman to terminate her pregnancy.

If abortion hadn’t been legal in 1973, how would my life have been different?

I wouldn’t wonder if my baby was a boy or a girl.

I wouldn’t think about what he or she would look like as an adult.

I wouldn’t hesitate to share my story for fear of judgment.

In the Fall of 2015, abortion activist Lisa Bonow proudly announced she had terminated her pregnancy. Thus began the #shoutyourabortion campaign to end the stigma women face by having an abortion.

In her 2019 interview with Magazine, she says “You don’t have to feel ashamed. You don’t have to feel bad. In fact, you should feel proud of yourself for making a choice that is best for you.”

The word that stands out to me is ‘choice.’  A women’s right to choose. What about the baby’s life? He or she would choose life, not death by poison, dismemberment, or decapitation. Women have been sold a lie. We’re told that an abortion will take care of that little problem of getting pregnant accidentally.

Shout my abortion? No way. Shout my redemption – yes. Shout the grace shown to me – every day.