CHOOSING whether or not to have an abortion is arguably the most distressing decision a woman will ever make and one which should be formed without outside judgement or presumption.

However, on the day that 21-year-old Kiah Hewitt had to attend the Marie Stopes Abortion Clinic in Ealing, she faced judgement from pro-life protesters who lined the pavements with plastic foetuses and pictures of babies.

Here, Kiah shares her experience in the hope that others in her position have the strength to continue to make their own choices.

ON the evening of Monday, October 20, at the age of 21, in my small family home in Boreham Wood after a long working day, I took a pregnancy test which came back positive.

I had spent the last two months seeing a genuine, warm-hearted and considerate 25-year-old man, who had agreed our exclusivity but who I later found out had been unfaithful many times over.

I considered these to be far from the ideal circumstances in which to raise a child, so making the decision to have an abortion was an easy one for me, but one which struck me in a more emotional way than I could ever have imagined.

I cried myself to sleep hysterically for the first two nights, out of fear, guilt and an overwhelming sense of responsibility.

On the second day, I had to take a morning off work to visit my GP, where I felt judged and looked down upon by my doctor. He referred me to the Marie Stopes Abortion Clinic to begin the abortion process.

On the third day, October 22, I was late into work again after experiencing morning sickness and I was aware my boss was getting suspicious.

I decided to speak to her in a quiet room about my situation, which was one of the most nerve-racking things I have ever had to face.

I spent my lunch break having a telephone consultation and booked in for the two-day process at the Marie Stopes Clinic in Mattock Lane, Ealing.

That night, following the discovery that the man I had been seeing had been unfaithful, he decided to cut off all communication and wanted nothing to do with our situation.

It left me extremely emotional and feeling very much alone and used, on top of what was already a highly stressful week.

I didn’t sleep at all that night and felt close to a breakdown, resulting in having to take a day off work. Later that day, I broke down and told my mum everything. She was very supportive, but I found myself drained of all emotional energy.

The first appointment of my procedure was on Friday, October 24, accompanied by my mum. At this point, I was exhausted physically, emotionally and mentally.

I arrived at an unfamiliar clinic and was sent to a waiting room filled with other women, most of whom are visually suffering the similar heartache I was.

I met with the nurse, who conducted a medical consultation, asked a series of questions, helped me to understand the (very scary) coming process and took me for my scan.

I am someone who is entirely pro-abortion, non-religious and had no hesitation with the decision.

No matter who you are and what your beliefs, however, seeing a visual graphic scan of a life that you are carrying truly brings home that you are now solely responsible for deciding whether that life continues or not.

You are now the person who is about to stop a life in its tracks.

Of course, I can also think logically about my decision. I am aware the life inside me is barely a life yet.

It is a tiny dot which the nurse couldn't even see at first. It can't move and it can't feel. I am also aware that allowing this life to continue is very unlikely to bring happiness for anyone involved. I am also aware this is MY decision and nobody else's.

After this, the nurse gives you your first pill, which makes you quite sick and I personally felt rather faint. The first stage is over.

The second appointment of the procedure was on Saturday, October 25.

Familiarly, you are called by the nurse. This time it is much quicker, you have already received the masses of information you will never quite remember.

I had taken my instructed dose of three Ibroprufen and two Paracetamol an hour before the appointment. This is to reduce the pain of the false contractions you experience.

I then had to take an anti-sickness pill, two antibiotics and four pills, which expel the pregnancy. I was also to take home four antibiotic tablets to have later.

After this, I travelled the hour and a half journey home with unbelievably painful stomach cramps, on top of overwhelming nausea and a faintness that could send someone asleep standing upright, presumably caused by the amount of excess blood that is released.

This excess blood can equate to using three high-absorbency sanitary pads per hour. This is on top of a serious amount of diarrhoea, due to all the drugs consumed.

At some point after, you then experience the pregnancy releasing and physically feel it. In some cases, even see it leave the body. Obviously, this can be quite a traumatic experience.

I am sharing my personal and graphic account, not to receive any sort of sympathy, but to provide an understanding of the horror of visiting the clinic to face the scenes shown in the accompanying photo.

Pictured are a group of religious believers who feel it is their given right to emotionally blackmail and guilt-trip women considering abortion.

For me, personally, this was one of the worst weeks of my life. For some, I have no doubt it is much, much worse.

I have no doubt there are women using this clinic that have been raped or abused and are already facing an astonishing amount of emotional trauma.

I have no doubt there are religious believers, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Islamic,and whatever else, who also use this clinic.

To witness these scenes is simply horrifying, unnecessary and one of the worst forms of bullying I have ever come across.

People are free to have their own opinions, free to protest and free to stand by their beliefs and/or religion.

They should not, however, be free to force these opinions on others, particularly in a passively aggressive, manipulative and emotionally abusive manner to already vulnerable and weakened people.

I can safely say the demonstrations presented are not even scientifically accurate, which is quite clearly false information and another manipulative technique.

Aside of the emotional wrong-doing here, the group unrealistically claim to be able to support new mothers.

Are these demonstrators going to provide financial stability to the mother and baby? Are they going to feed the baby when it wakes up screaming at 3am? Hire childcare for working mothers? Replace a runaway father? Whack out a magical wand which will save a mother facing a risk of her own life at birth?

It is an inconsiderate, abusive, manipulative act of cruelty and emotional blackmail.

There is a time and a place to express such opinions, but aiming them at vulnerable women outside the Marie Stopes Abortion Clinic is not it.