Life in Action – Miracle Stories
“Look at my little baby brother!”
“Kiera” and her three sons stopped into Waterleaf for a visit during the Christmas holidays. What a gift for the staff to greet this beautiful family, all smiling from ear to ear.
Earlier in 2019, Kiera was not sure she could handle having, yet alone raising, a 3rd child and stated she intended to have an abortion. She told her advocate that her family was involved in drugs and illegal activities, but she has always wanted more for her children. At 15 she was forced to have an abortion, but this time the decision was hers…and the ultrasound she received during her first visit to Waterleaf changed everything. She told us that when she looked at her little baby on the screen and considered the sweet boys she already had, she wondered how she could take a sibling from them. Kiera expressed that Waterleaf provided a place for her to step out of chaos and make the best decision for herself as well as all of her sons. She reports the “big” brothers are a huge help and love showing their “baby” brother new things.
“I didn’t think I had another choice.”
“Hannah” confirmed she is considering abortion with her husband supporting her decision. She was struggling with the idea of ending this pregnancy and so had not told anyone about it other than her husband. During the ultrasound Hannah did not show much expression other than her slightly teary eyes that gave away her inner turmoil.
Hannah did agree to return for a repeat ultrasound, agreeing it would be good to confirm continued viability. During the repeat ultrasound appointment, the baby was very active and she heard the heartbeat. Hannah said her expected due date is only one day off from her Grandma’s birthday and that would make her Grandma happy. This was our first indication that Hannah and her husband are starting to adjust to the idea of having a new baby in their family.
Directly following her appointment, Hannah met with our Aspire Resource department for an assessment so they could help her address her financial hardships. The Resource Specialist is happy to report that Hannah is feeling positive about her pregnancy at this time. She plans to tell her children this weekend as she will have completed her first trimester. Hannah’s relationship with Aspire will continue as she moves forward with OB care for her pregnancy. Waterleaf provided her much needed support and information at a very vulnerable time.
“I was just getting ready to start my dream job.”
At 20 years old, “Karen” and her boyfriend “John” have already faced pregnancy difficulties together and this has been a cause for fear. In fact, Karen’s pregnancy history scares her so much that having an abortion seemed like her best option. She had a previous C-section at 23 weeks and lost the baby. They also have a three-year-old daughter after another high-risk pregnancy. On top of all that, Karen is starting a new “dream job” that will require all of her attention.
At their first ultrasound, the baby was very clearly seen. Karen’s response was “I’m undecided. I am further along than I expected to be.”
When she returned for her second ultrasound appointment, Karen was 13 weeks pregnant. She told us that she and John had changed their minds and decided not to have the abortion!
During the ultrasound Karen marveled, “I’m excited. I didn’t realize how big the baby was last time.” The couple was amazed at the baby’s heartbeat and movement. She and John happily accepted pictures of that ultrasound.
“I am determined to succeed!”
Dottie” was referred to Waterleaf through a national call center. During her intake she told us she had been at Planned Parenthood for an abortion at 7 weeks but couldn’t go through with it. By the time of her appointment, she was almost 11 weeks pregnant and still undecided what to do. “Dottie” is very young, lives with her mother and has a nine-month-old baby. The father of her nine-month-old lives with his parents and is also the father of this baby. After her ultrasound, “Dottie” said she was going to have the baby, but it would be difficult since the father wanted her to abort. “Dottie” has returned for a repeat ultrasound and a resource assessment and still intends to parent. However, there are still many challenges with the father that she will have to navigate. With the full support of her mom and the help available at Waterleaf, she is determined to succeed.
“Just when I thought carrying a baby would be impossible…I found out I was having twins!
“Lara” called for an appointment for a pregnancy test but was a no-show. Weeks later, she re-scheduled. During her appointment she shared that she was a single mom of two children and that the potential father of the baby was simply a friend who recently left the country. Although she works full time, “Lara” doesn’t have a car and faces financial challenges. She felt parenting another child would be impossible and was undecided between parenting and abortion. During her ultrasound, the sonographer asked if there was a history of twins in the family. The shocked patient responded that the father of the baby is a twin and exclaimed, “How did this happen?” “Lara” cancelled her repeat ultrasound and did not return for another three weeks. The growth of the babies over those three weeks was significant leading the patient to say, “I did not know they moved like that already!” After hearing a strong heartbeat for both babies and seeing this 3D image, the patient said, “I can’t believe I considered abortion!” With love of her family and continued support from our resource team, “Lara” has chosen to parent her two babies, and we are honored to be part of the journey!
“If the world were perfect, we could parent..”
“Jill” was very conflicted about her pregnancy. She felt she and the father were not ready to be parents, yet also felt if everything were perfect in their world, they could parent. She felt her parents would be disappointed in her, but they would not want her to abort. For three visits and ultrasounds, “Jill” did not know what to do and was leaning towards abortion. On her third visit, she agreed to meet with the Resource Team to explore the various avenues of support available to her. During these visits, “Jill” seemed physically and emotionally drained. Each time she was offered an opportunity to pray. While she didn’t accept every time, she was assured of continued spiritual support. On her fourth visit, she told the team she had decided to parent, and she appeared to have a weight lifted off her shoulders. The support of the father and a friend helped her come to her parenting decision. While she was happy with her decision, she was still struggling with how to tell her parents. On her fifth visit, “Jill” said her next step was to find a doctor. She also shared that when she finally told her mom, her mom said she already knew.
“I’m confused. I took Plan B and thought I took care of this…
“Georgia” came to Waterleaf and stated “I’m confused. I took Plan B and thought I took care of this pregnancy.” After taking the Plan B pill, she stopped having her period but thought nothing of it until a couple of months had passed. Georgia went to a clinic, where her pregnancy was confirmed. She told her Waterleaf advocate that she wants to confirm her pregnancy, wasn’t sure how far along she is and that she wants an abortion. Her boyfriend, “Don”, supported her in her in this decision. She took another pregnancy test which came back positive.
During her ultrasound, which confirmed her pregnancy to be at 25 weeks and 4 days, Don could not takes his eyes off the screen. Both he and Georgia seemed fascinated by the heartbeat and when the baby hiccuped, wanted to know if that was normal. Georgia said she was surprised to be 25 weeks pregnant and wondered how many months that equaled.
The couple returned for a follow-up visit and stated they have chosen to parent- “I’m worried about telling my parents, they may kick me out of the house!” she shared with her advocate. Still, they are determined to face any obstacles that may be presented. Georgia was interested in the support they can receive from the Aspire Education and Resource Center, including signing up for medical insurance.
Georgia has since been to see her OB doctor and continues to work with her Resource Specialist to begin parent education classes.
