How Planned Parenthood made me a better parent

PLANNED Parenthood is no stranger to media assault, political criticism or downright defamation. From vicious attacks, like the 1994 shooting that killed receptionist Shannon Elizabeth Lowney, to the recent video campaign claiming they’re in the business of selling baby parts, the fight to keep women from claiming complete ownership of their bodies is never ending.

Facts like the number of women who visit Planned Parenthood to receive an abortion, 10 percent, or the percentage of Planned Parenthood’s services that are dedicated to abortion, 3 percent, are either overlooked or disregarded.

Facts like Planned Parenthood’s 30-year-old federal authorization to give women the option of donating aborted fetus tissue to legitimate research facilities, are considered erroneous.

However, there is one fact that even the most passionate of pro-choice adversaries cannot deny — a fact I’m happy to share with a skeptical nation as Planned Parenthood endures another baseless attack.

Planned Parenthood made me a better parent.

When I was in college, it was Planned Parenthood who provided me with contraceptives and information. I was tested for sexually transmitted diseases, as were my partners, to ensure our continued health and well-being.

It was their staff that held my hand as I shared my story of sexual assault after enduring a painful Pap smear. I wasn’t asked about the clothes I wore or the number of drinks I had. I was simply, unequivocally, supported. I wish I could say the same when I reported it to police. I wish I could say I found justice as easily as Planned Parenthood had provided me comfort.

When I found a lump in my breast, I called Planned Parenthood. Visions of a hospital room and chemotherapy treatments replayed in my head, as a physician performed a breast exam, took blood samples and asked me to pee in a cup. She kindly explained possible outcomes — like a benign tumor — that weren’t nearly as scary. And as it turned out, it was a false alarm.

When the doctor told me I was pregnant, a consequence of poorly scheduled birth-control pills and interfering antibiotics, she didn’t urge abortion, like so many assume these health-care providers do. She provided me with options, including birth centers and OB-GYN contact information, even taking the time to explain the importance of prenatal vitamins.

When I realized I wasn’t capable of being a mother, it was Planned Parenthood who handled a painful decision with grace and concern. From the time I walked into the clinic to the time I left, I was cared for — physically, emotionally and continually.

And later, when life’s circumstances shifted, it was Planned Parenthood that celebrated life with me. It was its ultrasound tech who told me I would have not one, but two children. It was its doctor who explained high-risk pregnancies. It was their receptionist who laughed and cried with me as I told my partner the news, hugging us both and wishing our soon-to-be family luck.

And if it weren’t for Planned Parenthood, I wouldn’t be the mother I am now. I wouldn’t have had access to the wealth of knowledge that made me capable of making hard, sometimes even devastating, decisions.

If it weren’t for Planned Parenthood I wouldn’t have the ability to look into my son’s eyes — after enduring a painful pregnancy and heartbreaking birth that left one twin dead and the other alive — and tell him he was a well-thought-out choice.

I could tell him that I had options. And thanks to an amazing and supportive organization, I was able to choose him.

When the world tells me I am not capable, it is Planned Parenthood that reminds me that I am.

So while opponents continue to claim Planned Parenthood is a killer of babies and a discourager of potential parents, it is actually an organization that provides necessary health services that more than 2.7 million men and women use each year and assists people as they begin their journey into parenthood.

Because, like me, when they do become parents, it would be by choice.

I proudly stand with Planned Parenthood, and thank them for giving me the chance to be a better mother.