Stacey’s Story

Dear Amy,

When I was in my mid-thirties, my husband of 20 years and I decided we were ready to start a family. We had intentionally waited until we were emotionally and financially in a position to start a family. We were overjoyed when our pregnancy test came back positive, only to be devastated when I started to bleed. It was not an early miscarriage, and it was an "incomplete miscarriage", where the miscarriage begins but doesn’t fully pull away from the womb. Extreme hemorrhaging, sepsis, infection, horrible cramping and further harm to the body are all possibilities when a partial miscarriage occurs. A surgical procedure (a D+C) was the safest and best option. Essentially, an abortion. We were devastated emotionally that the pregnancy wasn't viable, and I can't imagine adding to that sadness a prolonging of the miscarriage or physical complication as a result of not getting proper treatment.

In addition to my personal story, I have helped many friends through abortions. There are a multitude of reasons for their want/need for them, but needless to say, they all were valid. Reproductive rights are imperative. Period. In addition, while mine is simply one story, I felt it relevant to share. I went on to have a second miscarriage, and after a long period of trying, had a son who is now a thriving 14 year old. I am so deeply grateful that I received the level of care that I did, and can't imagine how it could have gone had I not been able to access and be offered the completion of that first miscarriage.

Thank you for reading this,
Stacey