{"id":279352,"date":"2022-11-09T10:37:31","date_gmt":"2022-11-09T16:37:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=279352"},"modified":"2022-11-09T09:19:48","modified_gmt":"2022-11-09T15:19:48","slug":"film-biology-deborah-chose-life-open-adoption","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/film-biology-deborah-chose-life-open-adoption\/","title":{"rendered":"Thanks to a film from biology class, Deborah chose life… and open adoption"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

For most of her life, Deborah McClue contended with one challenge after another. Growing up in an abusive home perpetuated issues which later resulted in an unplanned pregnancy. When she was 22 years old, McClue was living with her mother and had been struggling to cope with the depression and anxiety she’d had since she was 13 years old by engaging in a risky lifestyle.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

McClue told Live Action News, \u201cI was eventually diagnosed by a psychiatrist with major depressive disorder and given medication to help me manage it. But transitioning to adulthood brought much difficulty for me and I used alcohol and promiscuous sex to help me cope \u2014\u00a0but of course, it only resulted in more problems.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

McClue discovered she was pregnant by a co-worker whom she had been casually dating for only three months. When McClue informed the young man she was expecting his child, he responded that he\u2019d support whatever decision she made regarding the pregnancy. But when McClue told her mother, the older woman became angry.<\/span><\/p>\n

URGENT:\u00a0<\/b>For every dollar given, 34 more people can be reached with the truth about abortion. Will you join us in this life-saving work as a monthly donor today?<\/i><\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cShe yelled at me to go immediately to Planned Parenthood and get an abortion,\u201d McClue said. \u201cI had been raised in a pro-choice household by a fiercely feminist mother and never considered a pro-life stance. While I wasn\u2019t surprised I didn\u2019t get any support from her, I was intimidated by her strong reaction and acquiesced to her wishes.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

At Planned Parenthood, McClue was taken aback when a staff member performing an ultrasound told her she was still very early in her pregnancy and would have to delay the abortion for a couple of weeks. She was advised to return when her pregnancy was more advanced. McClue had been asked during the procedure if she wanted to see the ultrasound, but she had refused.<\/span><\/p>\n

McClue said, \u201cI was so upset at having to wait another couple of weeks for the abortion. I started talking to people about what to do and got different messages. I was so confused. Everybody acted as if my decision around my pregnancy was no big deal. According to them, I could have the child and deal with it or just get the abortion and get on with my life as if nothing ever happened.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Raised by a single mother, McClue didn\u2019t want that same scenario for her child. She felt marrying the baby\u2019s father was not an option as the couple was not in a serious relationship and wasn\u2019t particularly compatible.<\/span><\/p>\n

An unexpected solution spurs life-saving choice<\/b><\/p>\n

Sleepless nights produced no answers to her dilemma until one day when McClue remembered a film, \u201cThe Miracle of Life\u201d she once saw in biology class. Luckily, a friend had the feature on DVD, and she watched it again.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEverything just clicked for me,\u201d McClue said. \u201cI knew I was carrying a living human being who already had a heartbeat. I just couldn\u2019t go through with the abortion. Still, I was worried about what to do once my baby was born. I didn\u2019t feel ready to be a parent.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Little did McClue know the answer would come from her mother. Talking with her younger sister, Deborah, whom McClue was named after, McClue\u2019s mother confided to her sister that she didn\u2019t know how to help her distraught daughter. Her sister responded in an unexpected way.<\/span><\/p>\n

McClue said, \u201cApparently, my aunt was having trouble conceiving another child. She asked my mother if she could adopt my baby. When my mother told me this, I just knew it was the right thing to do.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Four months pregnant, McClue packed her bags and moved across the country to Berkeley at her aunt\u2019s request. She wanted the adoption done legally and offered to assist McClue financially as well.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Surprisingly, McClue\u2019s boyfriend also decided to relocate with her.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMy partner was very helpful during this time which I appreciated,\u201d McClue said. \u201cMy aunt was also very caring, and it reinforced for me that I had made the right choice.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Because McClue\u2019s labor and delivery had been difficult (she underwent an emergency C-section), she stayed three days in the hospital to breastfeed her daughter, Gina, allowing her some time to bond with her.<\/span><\/p>\n

McClue said, \u201cThe hardest part was letting her go. While I never had any doubts about placing my daughter with my aunt, it was still an emotionally raw time for me. Some people urged me to change my mind, even two to three years afterward. I thought about how crazy that advice was.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Open adoption offers win-win solution<\/b><\/p>\n

The couple finalized the adoption through an open adoption agency to enable McClue to have a continual presence in her daughter\u2019s life. McClue lived in Berkeley for a year after her daughter\u2019s birth, then returned home to South Carolina, knowing her daughter was in good hands. She traveled west to visit whenever time would allow and attended her daughter’s high school graduation.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMy aunt was a very successful artist and well established financially,\u201d McClue said. \u201cShe and my uncle were very good parents to my daughter who had a solid relationship with them. Later, when it was determined my daughter had [some other health concerns] they dealt with these issues very effectively.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Today, Gina is a talented animation artist who has a successful career with a company helping to create health education videos. McClue is proud of the young, sweet woman her daughter is and credits her adoptive parents for her ability to be resilient amid life\u2019s many trials.<\/span><\/p>\n

A woman transformed<\/b><\/p>\n

McClue later married and raised three children but says she never really got her life together until she was close to 40 years old. Growing up with a pro-choice foundation, McClue has done a \u201c180-degree turn\u201d and is now staunchly pro-life. When her children were young, she would take occasional trips to abortion facilities to pray and talk about her adoption experience with the women who would listen.<\/span><\/p>\n

McClue said, \u201cI\u2019m glad for the challenges I went through because I have such compassion and love for these women. It\u2019s sad that women don\u2019t feel empowered to make better choices, that they\u2019re led to think abortion is their only option. I lost a lot of friends when I converted to pro-life. But abortion is wrong, and I never regretted not ending my pregnancy. Adoption is a beautiful and life-sustaining choice.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For most of her life, Deborah McClue contended with one challenge after another. Growing up in an abusive home perpetuated issues which later resulted in an unplanned pregnancy. When she was 22 years old, McClue was living with her mother and had been struggling to cope with the depression and anxiety she’d had since she […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":798,"featured_media":279354,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false},"categories":[9455],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nThanks to a film from biology class, Deborah chose life... and open adoption<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\""[A]bortion is wrong, and I never regretted not ending my pregnancy. 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