I have finally made the decision to leave him.  He has hit me for the last time.  This time I think he almost killed me—or at least, really hurt the baby I am carrying.  His baby.  That he really doesn’t want anyway.  I think he was trying to make me miscarry so he didn’t have to deal with another child.  He has four kids from another relationship that he doesn’t take care of now.  What was I thinking?  How could I be attracted to a guy like this? 

If I am honest with myself, though, I stayed with him because in between the bouts of anger and flying fists, he was a fun guy to be with.  Very loving and nice!  That is the guy I fell in love with.  I wasn’t aware of the violent tendencies until later.

Now, I am pregnant.  I have made a safe plan to escape.  When I went to this place, MyLife Medical Center, they confirmed my pregnancy, gave me an ultrasound, and helped me make a plan of escape so that I, hopefully, won’t be caught leaving and endure his rage again.

This place, MyLife, has a program called A2A that helps women who are struggling financially during their pregnancy and for even 12 months after I give birth!  They can help pay things like rent, car payments, and so much more.  In my case, they ended up paying for a hotel for me for almost two weeks!  Then they helped me pay my security deposit for a place of my own, they even helped me get furniture for my new place! 

Not only, though, is it financial help, their Case Managers helped me find other resources around me that I had no idea was there!  With their incredible help, I was able to see I had options with my pregnancy.  I was really leaning toward abortion when I went in there.  I just didn’t see any way a homeless woman could have and take care of a baby!  They helped me see that I could really think about keeping her and they helped me really dive into the option of adoption. 

I chose to keep her.  We struggle, that’s for sure.  It is not easy being a single mom.  But, I know I am surrounded by places that will help me along the way, when I need it.  I am getting stronger every day.  More independent.  And, my baby girl, Gabby, is doing wonderful.

Hey, if you find yourself in a similar situation, if you need to leave an abusive relationship (no, he isn’t going to change!), or you find yourself unexpectedly pregnant, centers like MyLife are there to help YOU, too.

Mindy, a MyLife Medical Center Client