God recently brought us a young woman who came in already decided that an abortion was what she needed.
When *Kaylee arrived, she shared that, although she had hoped to be a mom someday, this seemed like a terrible time to bring a new life into the world. Kaylee was very open and shared with me about how she came to her decision and how torn and alone she had felt while making it. She said she felt bad about choosing abortion but thought that this would be the most responsible choice for this time in her life. She told me about some people in her life who were trying not to sway her decision, but she assumed they hoped that she would choose abortion, and she wanted to please them.
Kaylee hadn’t told most people, especially her mom, that she was pregnant. She and her mom were very close, and Kaylee knew that news of an abortion plan would break her mom’s heart. I tried to encourage her to consider confiding in her mom, since she would otherwise be keeping a heavy secret long-term from someone she loves dearly. Kaylee started to tear up, and said, “It has been a lot to sort through alone and has felt heavy not being able to talk to people about it.”
During the ultrasound, we were able to clearly see her tiny, 7-week-old baby. Kelly, our sonographer,gently pointed out the baby’s heartbeat and the fetal development taking place. Kaylee responded with surprise and referred to her child as “baby” several times throughout the scan. She then looked at me and said, “Wow... I think I’m undecided again. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
After the ultrasound, Kaylee was open to learning about her parenting, abortion, and adoption options. It was clear that she had never felt good about choosing abortion, and that she needed to be encouraged by hearing truth and being cheered on. She left encouraged but undecided and said that she would seriouslytalk with her boyfriend about their options again. I encouraged her to please reach out any time she needed to talk and reminded her that she is not alone.
When she left, I quickly sent out a request asking our prayer warriors to pray for her courage, hope, and love for this baby to grow, and for the same to be true of her boyfriend who would be such an essential piece of her decision-making process.
Sadly, we often aren’t able to hear what happensto the women, men, and babies we see here once they leave. But the following week, we got the best voicemail ever... Kaylee had reached out to let us know that she and her boyfriend had decided to parenttheir baby! She had also told the news to her mom, who responded with excitement and support. Kaylee repeated how appreciative she was and accepted our offer of a dresser filled with newborn items for when her baby arrives.
It cannot be overstated that God is so good! Thank you for praying for this ministry and our patients, and thank you for providing Kaylee with a place to learn, be loved, heard, and to see her baby for herself.
“I cannot thank you enough for today!” - Kaylee
*Patient names and photos are changed to preserve confidentiality