Mexico:

Dear reader,

Today, I want to tell you something about my story. Many people do not talk often about such things, nor in an open manner. But I want to try and share an important part of me.

I was 22 years old and I had a young daughter. I had gone back to my studies with the help of a scholarship. One day, I found out I was pregnant again. I thought about the relationship with my partner and all the instability we had faced, like any other young couple. Economically, I was not OK. I was receiving a small scholarship, but with another baby coming, I wouldn’t have been able to continue with the same rhythm of life, and, the quality of life that my daughter and that baby would have had, would have been limited. So, I made the decision to have an abortion. One of the first thoughts that crossed my mind was: how is it possible that I, a mother, could be thinking of getting an abortion? I, who knew the joys of having an angel, a being that fills my life with blessings? So, I asked myself: am I a bad mother? That question echoed in my mind again and again. But I was certain that I did not want to become a mother for a second time. I found an organization that provides support to people seeking the service, and since I was 11 and a half weeks pregnant, they accompanied me throughout the procedure. I was really afraid. And, as I looked at the ultrasound, I kept asking myself the same questions: am I a bad person? Am I a bad mother? Am I the worst? But, I was 11 and a half weeks pregnant, and I couldn’t wait any longer, because in Mexico City, abortion is only legal up to 12 weeks. It was now or never. I’m not going to say that it was easy. I cried, and I cried a lot; until I realized it was not something bad. From when I was a little girl, others had me believe that abortion was something bad, that it was an attack on another life. But what they didn’t know, was that continuing with that pregnancy, would have been an attack on my life and that of my daughter’s. For, what kind of quality of life would we have been able to have? For me, that would have been something even sadder.

I’m infinitely grateful to those who helped me, those who listened to me, didn’t judge me, nor asked for an explanation.

And now to you, how would it feel to be in my shoes?

Yours truly,

 


The testimonial from this video comes from #Mexico thanks to the #YoAborto Campaign by FondoMaria. In 2007, Mexico City legalized abortion on all grounds, up to 12 weeks of pregnancy. However abortion remains criminalized in 21 out of 32 states.