Showing posts with label crisis pregnancy center. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crisis pregnancy center. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 23, 2016

My Daughter Made It Easier to Get Past the Rape, by Michelle Olson

It was one of the darkest periods of my life – I was going through turmoil with my parents, a bad split with the father of my two sons, betrayed by friends, and ended up on the streets, on a waiting list for a homeless shelter.  I had nothing and nobody left.  I prayed for death to come.  Within a week, instead of dying, I was raped.

I found out I had gotten pregnant from the rape.  Having been raped
many times in my life, I know that instinct which says to put it out of your mind -- don't think about it.  Having a growing belly which continually reminded me of the rape was indeed painful in the beginning, but forced me to deal with the pain, and to move past it.  I was so emotional, but I knew my baby needed me to get through it all.  Also, I was finally able to get a room in the homeless shelter.

I tried to call an agency about putting the baby up for adoption, but I couldn't make the call.  Every time I tried, I would cry so hard.  I finally decided I wanted to keep my baby.  

She made it easier to get past the rape. I got a beautiful baby girl from what happened to me.  She is sweet, loving, and beautiful.  What I went through was nothing compared to the joy my little girl has brought to my life.  God had given me a reason to keep going.  My little girl is my miracle baby.

My sweet angel helped me in more ways than I can count.  She makes the world a brighter place.  My daughter may seem like an inconvenience to someone who has never met her, being conceived by rape and having disabilities.  Anyone who knows her also knows love and kindness that is unconditional.  The neighbors smile when they see her and wait for the hugs.

We now live in Texas where Alice has gotten speech, occupational,
and physical therapy.  She still has no diagnosis other than ADHD, but she has come a long way.  She is the sweetest little girl who loves to hug everyone she meets.  I never had to teach her to share -- it comes naturally to her.  She is so generous by nature.  I love my daughter so much, and I have seen lives changed by her life.

Through all of this experience, I adopted my closest friend as my mom.  And it just so happens that her only child was also conceived by rape.  She has been a source of comfort through everything, and she is proud to call Alice her granddaughter.

I actually have two very close friends with children conceived by rape, but they don't really talk about it.  One was 16 and kicked out of her parents house for getting pregnant.  She never told her parents until her son was about 12 that she was raped by her boyfriend.  She had been raped before and the rapist father pushed her into an abortion at the age of 14.  She still feels bad about it to this day, but was determined not to let it happen again when she got pregnant with her son.  

The other was in college and didn't know she was pregnant until she was pretty far along.  She says had she known earlier in the pregnancy, then she’s certain that at that time, she would have had an abortion.  She was going to put him up for adoption, but changed her mind. She was never able to carry another baby to term and he is her only child.  After he grew up, she decided to volunteer at a crisis pregnancy center, and her son is the reason she is now pro-life!

So if you have a story like ours, know that you are not alone, and I hope this encourages you.


BIO:  Michelle Olson is a mother of three from Texas and a pro-life blogger for Save The 1.
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Wednesday, June 29, 2016

I'm One of Three and I Disagree! by Angela Grogg

Today I stumbled upon an article from The River Front Times discussing the barriers that the State of Missouri has for women seeking abortions. As a Missourian and a post-abortive woman, I take great exception with this glossed-over attempt to paint abortion as nothing more than an afterthought. Alison Dreith suggests that a woman who seeks an abortion does not need time to reflect or think, they "just need it.” 

 I fought for the 72-hour waiting period and even went to the State Capital to speak about my own abortion experience. I find it insulting that she can so casually dismiss the loss that I and millions of women experienced because of abortion. Yes, there is shame, there is loss, and there is a lifetime of emotional pain involved with abortion. It's not isolated -- it is widespread and the norm. This is the ugly little secret that the pro-abortion supporters don't want to talk about.  

Missouri is not restricting women from having abortions. The 72-hour waiting period is designed to provide the woman time to reflect and ensure she is making a truly informed decision. It is there so she does not feel pressured and offers her time to seek other alternatives if she so chooses. The thing that Ms. Dreith is missing is, once that decision is made, there is no going back. There is no returning to the clinic and having the baby magically placed back in our wombs. This is a decision that deserves, at the very least, 72-hours. 

 Let's be real here. This is not a decision to be taken lightly, we are talking about a life. No matter which side of this issue you are on, we can all agree that a life is being taken. Why does the 72-hour wait scare the pro-aborts so badly? Is it that they care more for the woman? No. Sadly, they know if they let those women go, then there's a chance they won't come back, and they will lose that money. It is about the money.

I received my abortion at Hope Clinic in Granite City, Illinois. My experience at that clinic was vastly different from the experience described by Ms. Dreith.  At first, they appeared very caring and genuinely concerned for me, but when I entered the abortion room, things changed. As I laid there and cried uncontrollably, the nurse kept telling me to "shut up" and the doctor repeatedly told her to get me under control. I can still remember the bruises on my shoulders from being held down. I was screaming that I wanted my baby and that I did not want to go through with the abortion. I had changed my mind, but it did not matter -- they were going to do it anyway. 

 I also remember every girl in the recovery room. There were no casual conversations or discussions, no smiles, no laughter. No plans were being made for BBQ's later in the day or week. A heavy cloud of death permeated the room and the painful reality of our "choice" was slowly and permanently closing in on us. That is my memory of The Hope Clinic. 

 I was unable to walk out of the clinic.  My father carried me in his arms. The pro-life sidewalk counselors weren't screaming and they weren't "shaming” me. They were praying for my soul and the soul of my child.  And as I was entering the clinic, they understood the weight of my decision and what I was about to face.  Don't get me wrong -- the clinic did offer counseling; however, it was at an additional cost.

I now work within the pro-life world and I am very confused by Ms. Dreith’s vague comments concerning the “lies" that crisis pregnancy centers tell women. What are the lies? Why didn’t she name them? I can tell you first-hand that there are no lies being told. Crisis pregnancy centers are very careful to tell the truth. They tell these young girls and women that it is going to be challenging and at times hard. The difference, though, is an abortion clinic affirms these women's fears that they can't do it, that there is no hope, and that abortion is the only answer. They do everything they can to affirm to them that they will not make it unless they have the abortion.  

 Crisis pregnancy centers walk with these women. They don't leave them or abandon them when the baby is born. They are there as long as the woman needs support, providing a hand up. Crisis pregnancy centers fight for women, we give them the tools they need to make it in life and to give their babies life! 

 I went through a post-abortion recovery program totally free at a crisis pregnancy center. At no point in time did anyone ever try to shame me or condemn me for my "choice." The love and compassion I received and thousands of women every year receive did not come from Planned Parenthood -- it came from a pregnancy care center.

I respectfully ask every woman in the great State of Missouri who is facing an unplanned pregnancy to please go to the nearest pregnancy resource center and talk to the volunteers before ever entering a Planned Parenthood. The services are free; from pregnancy tests to STI testing, from post-abortive counseling to helping her choose an alternative to abortion. They are literally waiting to serve these women with love, understanding, compassion, and HOPE! I promise you that if you walk into one of these centers, you will leave with hope!


There may be one Planned Parenthood which does abortions in our state but there are over 70 pregnancy resource centers which will give a woman all the love and support she needs during an unexpected pregnancy. Here is a link to all these abortion alternative centers in Missouri: https://ramahinternational.org/help-in-your-area/missouri/

BIO:  Angela Grogg is a founding member of Hope after Rape Conception and a pro-life speaker and blogger for Save The 1.  Her 14 yr old daughter conceived a son through rape.  Finding out early on that Missouri had no laws to protect rape victims and their children, she tirelessly lobbied to change that and on 8/28/12, SB 638 became law, protecting victims and their children from being victimized further by the rapist. Angela is also post-abortive. 
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