My Mother’s Day post is a little late, but the message is evergreen… There is #NoRightWay to have a family and become a mother. My own story includes two miscarriages that I don’t typically talk about. Never publicly. With my first miscarriage, I wanted to let my body pass it “naturally.” I thought it would help me process the miscarriage emotionally. I was completely unprepared for what I was about to experience. As I sat on the toilet changing pads every 10-20 minutes, feeling many large blood clot pass, I knew something wasn’t right. I moved to the bathtub as I simply couldn’t keep up with this much blood. I called to my toddler in my best “nothings wrong with mommy” voice and asked her to bring me the phone. I stood in the tub, with blood flowing down my legs, covering myself with a shower curtain, smiling when my toddler toddled in and then immediately called for help as I couldn’t manage a miscarriage and my little one at the same time. My husband drove me to the ER. After 3+ hours of bleeding, with several large blood clots sliding out of my body, I thought, “Surely this is almost over.” But no. They still recommended a D+C. (Medically known as an ab*rti*n.) When I woke up from the surgery, groggy and crying, a very kind nurse held my hand and spoke to me in gentle tones. She told me it was a good thing we did the D + C because all the tissue would not have come out on its own and I could have suffered an infection or worse. Thankfully, I never had to find out what “or worse” meant. And when my second miscarriage struck, I immediately *chose* a D + C. So grateful I had complete autonomy over my body and my choices. There is #NoRightWay to becoming a mother. Every single journey I know has taken unexpected twists and turns. Every single journey involves countless personal and private medical decisions. If you care about this issue, be sure to follow @forfactssake_ make sure you’re registered to vote and donate to critical state races to protect IVF and reproductive freedom at @oath.vote Also, please consider sharing your own story using the hashtag #NoRightWay to raise awareness. #MothersDay #Miscarriage #ReproductiveFreedom #NoRightWay

When to Say When…