Natalia (62) was pregnant at the time of the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Although the baby was born healthy, she didn’t dare risk another pregnancy as she feared the effects of radiation. She also felt she could not cope with two children, so had an abortion the second time she conceived.

Alexandra (35) first had an abortion when she was 23 and living abroad, after her older boss had forced her into a sexual relationship. She says she felt relieved afterwards. Alexandra again chose to have a termination some years later, when she was married and expecting a second child. As a nursing mother at the time, she was not allowed a pill-induced abortion but had to delay and have a clinical procedure. Proceeding with a pregnancy she knew she was going to end upset her deeply.

Inna (46) became pregnant for a second time at a point where her husband was frequently away on business, she was a student, and she and her first child were living with her mother. Her doctor advised her to have an abortion, and she did so, but says she can’t let go of the fact that she took the advice without really realizing what she was doing.

Valeria (39) had her first abortion when she was 22 and in a relationship with a drug addict. Her mother took her to another city for the procedure, so that neighbors and the father would not know. After marrying, she had three further terminations, as diabetes made her pregnancies risky.

Victoria (41) has had two abortions. Following an extremely difficult first pregnancy that ended in an emergency Caesarean section, she says she chose to have the terminations because that first experience had been too traumatizing.

Maria (26) terminated an unplanned pregnancy as a student, because she felt she and the father were not ready to have children. She traveled abroad for the procedure as she did not want it on her Belarus medical record, but does not regret her decision.

Alina (35) fell pregnant soon after she started living with her future husband and had an abortion because she couldn’t see the two of them as parents. She was reluctant to do so, but felt the responsibility for the decision was hers. After they married, the relationship deteriorated and her husband raped her repeatedly. Alina was too frightened to go to the police, and had two further abortions because she did not want his child, giving a false name at the clinic as she thought doctors would condemn her.

Tamara (42) is a doctor and became pregnant in her sixth year at university after an affair with a man from Morocco. In the 1990s in Belarus, she felt people would see that as shameful. She especially feared her father’s reaction and being exposed in a small village. Although she wanted the baby, she did not feel strong or mature enough to stand up for herself and do it alone, so had an abortion in her twelfth week, an act she considered to be murder.

Tatjana (49) has had three abortions, each time because her husband was being unfaithful to her, and she did not want another child with him. She said she felt shame at having an abortion as a married woman, and was worried what her mother-in-law would think. 

Diana (91) had her leg amputated when she was very young and fell pregnant at the age of 20. The father and she were in a casual relationship and he left her when he found out. His mother said she did not want a crippled daughter-in-law. Diana felt nobody needed her with her disability, never again allowed anybody to come close, and never married.

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Kawhi Leonard’s Game 7 Buzzer Beater