Wednesday 's Words from Women

Over one-third of women of reproductive age have an abortion by the age of 45. However, women who have chosen abortion are often absent from the public debate. In order to break the silence surrounding abortion, we will be featuring real stories from real women each Wednesday on our blog. If you would like to share your story with us or have it published on our blog, go to http://www.prochoice.org/pregnant/hotline/share.html.


I found myself pregnant after being a mom to three small kids at a time of tremendous financial strain. My husband and I are both college graduates. However, job loss and cutbacks in our fields caused things to be so tough that we can barely feed ourselves, let alone another child. I was using birth control but due to being on medication it was not fully effective, and I became pregnant. I was stressed and worried about this choice, but abortion seemed like the best decision.

I called NAF and the Hotline operator was caring, kind, and non-judgmental. I wish I had known about NAF earlier.

I do not regret my decision. If not for NAF, I am not sure what I would have done. In my eyes they were a beacon of hope and light in the darkest time of my life.

--Submitted by Noelle through our website


I had protected sex with a condom and unfortunately it broke. This was both scary and devastating but people must understand that this can happen to any woman, at any age, and it is up to her to decide what’s best for her. No man can have a child so therefore he has no right to tell a woman what she should choose. I will always be pro-choice and support any and every woman who is pro-choice. I’m thankful that abortion is an option. Pro-choice is my choice!

--Submitted by Marcia through a member clinic

South Dakota Governor Signs Longest Waiting Period in Nation into Law

On Tuesday, South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard signed a bill into law that would impose the nation's longest waiting period on women seeking abortion care, and force women in South Dakota to visit an anti-abortion pregnancy center before obtaining care.

Requiring a woman to wait 72 hours before she can obtain an abortion is burdensome and disrespects women’s ability to make informed choices. This type of waiting period would make it difficult for women even in urban areas like Washington, DC to obtain the abortion care they need. For women in South Dakota, where abortion care is only available a handful of days each month at a single provider, this waiting period could be extremely burdensome and result in women having to delay care or incur extra expenses they may not be able to afford to travel out of state.

Additionally, this law would require women to visit a crisis pregnancy center (CPC). These centers have a long history of intentionally misleading women and giving them medically inaccurate information to dissuade them from obtaining abortion care. Last week, the Argus Leader ran my op-ed opposing this bill, which details the deceptive and harmful tactics employed by CPCs in furtherance of their mission to prevent women from obtaining abortions.

This law is a blatant attempt to restrict women’s access to abortion care, and we expect it to be legally challenged at the state level.

>Learn more about laws restricting abortion