You helped Chloe make “the best decision she ever made.”
“It was so valuable to talk with your clinic staff. They spent so much time with me. And you made that possible! You helped me to make the best decision I ever made.”
Chloe* had been feeling really sick for about six weeks – so sick she spent most of her time on the couch. A medical appointment found nothing wrong and Chloe soon began to feel better.
Chloe and her best friend, Allison*, decided to vacation in the Madison area. While on the drive, Allison asked Chloe if she could be pregnant. “Absolutely not,” was Chloe’s reply. But she started to wonder. A pregnancy test indicated that Chloe was indeed pregnant.
“I was absolutely freaking out,” Chloe remembered. “I needed answers now and didn’t want to wait until we got back home. I was in total disbelief and just wanted to find out.”
Chloe searched online and found a clinic in Madison, Care Net’s First Care Clinic. “It said it was free. That was hard to believe, but I made an appointment and went in the next day.”
Chloe expected something “run down and shady—like something you’d see on a TV show.” But when she arrived at First Care Clinic she found something entirely different. “It was so, so nice. The facility was amazing and the people were extremely helpful. I was sitting there thinking, ‘They’re going to bill me for something.’ I was so nervous. It helped that they let Allison stay with me the whole time.”
First Care Clinic staff took the time to listen and heard Chloe’s worries. “One of my biggest concerns was talking to my parents. I’m not married. My parents are kind of old school and I didn’t know how to tell them I was pregnant. The clinic staff helped me talk through why I thought they’d be upset and how I could deal with different reactions and concerns.”
Clinic staff also gave Chloe the tools she needed to make decisions about her pregnancy. “I filled out a decision guide that helped me break down all my options and weigh the pros and cons of each one.
“If I chose to have an abortion, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to live with myself afterwards. But I also wasn’t prepared to be a mom and had so many worries. I wasn’t sure what to do.”
Having to make such a critical decision on her own was terrifying. But Chloe soon realized there was someone on her side. “It was so valuable to talk with your clinic staff. They took a neutral position on my options and spent so much time with me—I was at the clinic for four hours!”
“They did a pregnancy test and then an ultrasound. That’s where I got to see my baby for the very first time. I was in awe. I could see that he already had arms and legs and was moving around. It was pretty crazy.”
Chloe chose to carry her baby to term. Her son, Ethan Lucas*, was born earlier this year and is “doing great.”
“Since coming to First Care Clinic, I have definitely changed. I feel that I was a mature person before, but this experience helped me grow up even more. Becoming a mom and having my son has given my life a whole new meaning.”
And this new meaning extends beyond her relationship with her child. “I am closer with my family and closer with God. It was nice to be able to talk about my religion at the clinic because that played a big part in my decision.”
Today Chloe is renting a house down the street from her mom. She’s a teacher and looks forward to being home all summer with her baby boy.
Chloe would like to thank everyone who makes First Care Clinic possible. “You are lifesavers. You helped me to make the best decision I ever made.”