Teen Was Forced to Abort, But Unknown Second Twin Survived

When I was fifteen I was pressured by my mother and stepfather to get an abortion. They drove me to the clinic and told me that if I came out of the clinic still pregnant, they’d disown me. The receptionist didn’t ask for my name first; she only asked whether I had the $450 in cash. Then she asked for my name. A half-hour later, a nurse called me into a room, and when I asked if it would hurt, she said I wouldn’t feel a thing. She lied. The doctor came in and told me to lay back and relax, that it’d be over with shortly. It seemed like forever. It was the most painful experience ever. After it was done, I remember looking at the table next to me and in a metal tray, seeing a baby about the size of a quarter with no arms and half its body gone. My eight-week-old fetus was gone.

I was never told about the emotional pain I would go through afterward, nor was I told that I had a right to receive an ultrasound beforehand. A few months later, I was rushed to the hospital for what I thought was a complication from the abortion. There was no complication. I was in labor. Come to find out I was carrying twins, and only one was aborted. I was only 23 weeks pregnant according to the doctors, and I delivered my baby that night by emergency c-section.

Fortunately, my daughter had no physical disabilities resulting from the abortion. She was as healthy as any 23-weeker would be. After five surgeries and 142 days in the NICU, I took my daughter home. I am so grateful that my baby girl survived. She is a true miracle and a blessing. Her name is Eva Rose. I can’t help but wonder what life would’ve been like if I hadn’t gotten the abortion. I learned later on that the premature birth was a result of the stress I was under, both physically and emotionally, stemming from the abortion. Eva Rose is now four years old and thriving. She has Retinopathy of Prematurity, so she wears glasses to correct that. I’m a firm believer that abortion is wrong.