This story originally appeared onThe Cutand is shared here with permission.
In 1966, my mother flew from Seattle to Japan, alone, to have anabortion.
This is her story in her own words.
Francesco Sambati/EyeEm/Getty Images
I knew right away that I was pregnant,within six weeks.
I bypassed our family doctor and went to another GP.
She was the only female doctor in town [Everett, Washington, about an hour from Seattle].
At that time, abortion wasnt legally available where I lived.
So my boyfriend and Ithinking there was no alternativethought we had no choice but to have the baby.
When I told my sister what the doctor had said, she told me there was another option.
She presented the possibility of abortion.
Deciding was not a struggle.
It was a relief.
I was 16 and I wanted to go to college.
I was in no way prepared to have a baby.
Most girls I knew who got pregnant left high school; the teachers didnt encourage them to stay.
There were other things that I had in my mind for my life.
It was easy to arrange and far more discreet an option than asking around as my pregnancy progressed.
They knew what she meant and they gave her the name of the doctor and a planned itinerary.
When I arrived in Japan, I had an address to give the taxi driver.
It wasnt a dirty, back-alley-pop in place, but a typical doctors office in somebodys basement.
Just a nurse and the doctor were there.
They started with a vaginal wash and scrubbed me out with something that really burned.
And then they put me out.
In retrospect, I assume I had a typical D&C.
[When I woke up,] I had severe cramping.
Like I was in labor.
I remember screaming, It hurts, it hurts!
The doctor told me, Shut up in there!
In those days, doctors didnt necessarily have the best bed-side manners.
Maybe he was doing an abortion on somebody else and didnt want her to be scared.
But it all went so smoothly and was so swift.
The next day, I did indeed have that one day for sightseeing.
I walked around Ginza.
I didnt feel alone.
Ive never felt remorse.
I felt strong for who I was.
Although I discovered recently, after talking to my sister, that our family doctor had told my parents.
They just never mentioned that to me.
Still, nobody ever made me feel like I had done something wrong.
From day one, Inever regrettedhaving an abortion.
Nowadays the argument is Youre killing a child.
I still dont think that.
From a moral perspective, abortions not as black and white as everyone would like it to be.
Whats the womans background?
What are her financial means?
How far along is she?
Is the pregnancy putting her life at risk?
I had a privileged abortion, but many women lose their lives.
We all kept things so quiet before Roe v. Wade.
I fear this country is backtracking to thepreRoe v. Wade era, yesby eliminating more and more reproductive-health resources.
But millions of women are paying attention to this and fighting back.
That gives me hope.
Feeling motivated to act?
There are tons of ways to make your voice heard.
SELF’s resources onfinding activist opportunitiesandgetting involved in policy decisionsare great places to start.
Related:
You might also like:Trump’s Victory Has Some Women Considering IUDs (from Newsy)
