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A Life Changed From Darkness To Hope - Lyric's Story

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Meet Lyric, a young woman from South Dakota. She toured the Abstinence Clearinghouse and was touched by our mission that she chose abstinence herself. Read her story below:

What was your life like before you chose abstinence?

"My life before I chose abstinence was a mess. I drank and smoked, but I grew up understanding very little about dating or relationships. The first thing is that we didn't even call it dating. The second, everyone was in a relationship or... you weren't really someone to hang out with. I lived on the reservation where drugs, alcohol, gangs, poverty, violence and teen pregnancy were just right outside. Even though I was very sheltered by family, and with good loving parents who had rules, it still happened. I still had sex.

I was in a very dramatic and emotional relationship my freshman year. At the time, I thought I didn’t really have much going for me so why not be with this guy? Things happened so fast with us by the end of my first semester of high school I had my first pregnancy scare. When this happen, the feelings and emotions I felt were hard to understand. I couldn’t help but feel unclean and worth nothing. This guy made me feel happy about myself (for the moment) as he would say “romantic gestures” and stuff to get what he wanted.

Then I felt awkward, disappointed and heartbroken when we decided that we weren’t going to be together anymore.

My life before I chose abstinence, is a part of my life I look back on and say "wow" I'm very proud of myself to see how far I've come."

Why did you decide to choose abstinence?

I choose abstinence because I knew deserved better. I was made for so much more than what I was born into knowing about love and myself. I wanted to change my ways, I was done feeling used and worthless. I wanted to believe that I could make a difference and find a healthy and safer way to be happy. I wanted to focus on school and set goals for myself and stand alongside other youth who have the chance to start over.

I also chose abstinence because I wanted to make my family proud of me. I didn’t want them to be faced with a bad situation or be embarrassed by the bad decisions I would have made.

What is your life like after you chose abstinence; how has it changed?

My life now is so much more then I could ever imagine, I stopped drinking and smoking and most importantly I’ve been abstinence strong for 3 and half years. I got the chance to make new friends and graduate high school. I’m in college and I have goals/dreams I have set for myself that I’m stepping closer to every day.

 Is it ever too late to choose abstinence? Why not?

NO!!! Besides STD's and teen pregnancy, it’s healthier for you overall physically and emotionally.

What is a good piece of advice that you were given or you wish you had been given when you were in 8th grade?

  • Don’t make permanent decisions on temporary feelings.
  • Set values and boundaries for yourself in a relationship. You know your limitations.
  • Commit to yourself
  • Set goals for yourself and know what you want to do with your life.