L.

Share your story

2020 United Arab Emirates

I felt grief to have to abort the pregnancy given that I am older (42), conceived naturally with a partner I feel committed to and would like to have a child with, and feel it is unlikely that I could get pregnant again. However it was necessary given the legal risks in this country. So I felt very sad to have to do it. I was also scared of the physical process, worried about the pain and the potential for complications.

Although I was scared, the information I received was thorough and reassuring. I followed all the instructions exactly as written and it was a very smooth experience. I did feel cramping and had heavy bleeding and it took about 5 days after the procedure to feel completely normal again, but it was much easier than I expected.

I am married, but separated from my husband for the past 3 years. He is living outside the country at the moment due to COVID travel restrictions returning to the UAE after what was supposed to be a short trip, and we're in the process of a divorce. In this country, it is illegal to have sex with someone other than one's legal spouse. Since I am technically still married (having a divorce in process doesn't make a difference to the law here) and my spouse is outside the country, conceiving a child with my boyfriend of 2 years is technically illegal. Although I would love to have another child, I would face severe legal ramifications if I chose to continue the pregnancy since going for any prenatal care here and/or giving birth would implicate that I had sex outside my marriage. Under normal circumstances I would have traveled to Europe to obtain a legal abortion, but travel restrictions due to the COVID would not allow me to return here to my country of residence thereafter, so I felt that I had no choice other than to try to figure out a way to obtain an abortion here.

Did the illegality of your abortion affect your feelings?

The fact that it is illegal in my country of residence did make me feel more nervous and fearful than I would otherwise. I was nervous about receiving the medications via mail and the potential of having to seek medical help if anything went wrong. However, the emails from the Women on Web team were incredibly helpful and reassuring and everything went very smoothly.

Ani

Yo aborté, a mis 25 años y en Chile. No es menor, es un país institucionalmente…

YoungWoman NotReadyNow SecretsAreComplicating

This website gave me the confidence that I could do it. It gave me all the…

Daniela Moraes

É fácil defender o aborto das outras. Difícil é decidir quando a gente precisa…

Zuzanna

Chciałabym opisać moją historię, która zakończyła się dokładnie trzy dni temu.

Julieta Iovaldi Curutchet

Decidí desde el principio no compartir esa experiencia con la pareja de ese…

Mónica

Aborté por motivos de edad (demasiado joven)y económicos (era estudiante y no…

Natasha

I had come off the contraceptive pill as it had me feeling un well, we thought…

Jezzi

Yo aborte con cinco semanas de gestación.... En el mi corazón siempre vivirás.

María

Aborté y no me arrepiento. I do not regret my abortion.

Liz Price

I had an abortion

Emilia Aguilera

Tuve un embarazo inesperado y por una medicación que tomo de por vida, mi hijo…

Maria

La decisión más difícil de mi vida

Beta

La única opción

Raquel

Perdón a mis angelitos!

Anonymous

The wrong idea that abortion is a sin.

Karolina

Przez problemy z tarczycą, totalnie rozregulował mi się cykl… i doszło do tego…

Embrace So

aku aborsi karena aku tidak ingin mengecewakan banyak orang. pasangan saya sama…

xjustynax

Od stycznia tego roku, poczułam, że w końcu zdobyłam mężczyznę którego tak…

Jennifer

Mi cuerpo, mi decisión

Uma Mulher

Pra mim, fazer um aborto foi um ato de responsabilidade