Monica was no stranger to the joys and challenges of motherhood; she’d already been a mother for 18 years.
As her son prepared to graduate from high school and move into his college dorm, Monica prepared to embrace life as an empty nester.
She was nervous about the transition, but she had high hopes for her son and for herself.
Early one morning, she noticed an onslaught of strange symptoms and discomforts.
The sensations seemed vaguely familiar… but she couldn’t quite put words to her experience.
Late that evening, she finally identified that “slightly off” feeling:
Was she… pregnant?
For a moment, Monica was excited.
She’d been wrestling with the sadness of “losing her baby boy” all too fast.
The thought of having another baby to hold and snuggle was enticing!
But those thoughts only lasted seconds as they quickly evolved into anxiousness.
Monica “believed she was too old” to have another baby.
She felt too old to, essentially, “start over”.
With these thoughts top of mind, Monica began searching online for an abortion facility.
Thanks to your support of Heroic Media’s OAASYS (On-demand Alternatives to Abortion SYStem) Emergency Response ads, she was connected with OAASYS’s Pregnancy Help Center partner in Phoenix, Arizona instead.
She made an appointment to be seen.
At her appointment, Monica shared her story with her client advocate.
She was in a relationship with the father of the baby, but she had yet to share her news with him.
She worried that he “would be too enthusiastic” about the baby, and she would “lose her opportunity” to make the choice on her own.
The father of the baby already had young children, and Monica felt certain he would want to parent this new baby, close in age to his older children.
She felt conflicted… and as she thought about herself and the “starting over” with a new baby after 18 years… she became less and less sure that parenting would be “a good option”.
After a long talk, including hearing about the physical, emotional, and psychological risks of abortion, Monica’s client advocate encouraged her to share the news of the baby with the father.
Monica agreed.
Within days, the couple appeared at the pregnancy center, hand in hand, asking if they could take the center up on the offer for a free ultrasound!
Together, the couple watched their 11-week-old baby bounce around on the screen, and exchanged a smile.
In that moment, Monica let go of her thoughts of abortion – and they began making a list of names for the baby they chose to parent!
Praise God – and Thank You!
Isaiah 46:4: “And I will still be carrying you when you are old. Your hair will turn gray, and I will still carry you. I made you, and I will carry you to safety.”
