Women Who’ve Had Abortions Suffer Negative Effects: New Study

A new study of post-abortive women has found that women suffer long-term negative emotions after having an abortion.

The research, published in the Winter 2017 issue of The Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons, involved an anonymous  survey of 987 women who contacted a crisis pregnancy center for post-abortion care.  The women ranged in age from their 20’s through their 70’s. Most of them had had one abortion; others had several, up to nine in one case.

The study, led by Dr. Piscilla Coleman, professor at Bowling Green State University,  asked women about the “most significant positive and negative aspects” of their abortions.

“… their responses were far from simple, echoing themes that are not reflective of contemporary feminist rhetoric,” the researchers wrote. “Women generally did not speak of empowerment, the ability to control their reproductive destinies, liberation from abusive partners, the need for abortion in order to be competitive in the workplace, etc.”

“To the contrary, … many women expressed no personal benefits of the experience. Scores of others reported spiritual growth, involvement in pro-life efforts, and reaching out to other women who were considering the procedure or had obtained an abortion.”

Psychological Effects of Abortion

Most of the women reported good psychological health prior to their first abortion.  Afterward,  a significant number of women sought professional mental health services (67.5 percent compared to 13 percent prior to the abortion), and used prescription drugs for their psychological health (51 percent compared to 6.6 percent prior).

Many women stated they faced strong pressure to abort their unborn babies, even though many said they remained unsure about their abortion up through the day of the procedure.  This finding is a reiteration of previous studies that found that abortion is frequently not fully a ‘choice’ because of the pressure from a boyfriend, husband, parents, or others to abort, and a lack of support for keeping the child or placing the child for adoption.

According to the study, “58.3% of the women reported aborting to make others happy, 73.8% disagreed that their decision to abort was entirely free from even subtle pressure from others to abort, 28.4% aborted out of fear of losing their partner if they did not abort.”

When asked about the most significant positives of their abortion, 31.6 percent of women said there were none, and another 22 percent did not answer the question.

Post Abortion Depression, Suicidal Thoughts

The most significant negative reported was that they took a life/loss of a life or lives, at 23.7 percent. Others reported depression, guilt, self-hatred, addictions, self-destructive behaviors, anxiety and suicidal thoughts/tendencies.

“At the extreme, 49 women voiced a lack of desire to continue living based on the reality of their choice and the heartache that ensued,” the researchers wrote. “The vast majority of women did not cite only one or two negative outcomes, but instead described a complex constellation of adverse consequences, often centered on the life lost.”

When asked about positive aspects of their abortions, many women said the “excruciating pain” that they went through gave them a desire to help other women make better choices for themselves and their unborn babies. They fulfilled this by volunteering at pregnancy centers and pro-life groups, sharing their abortion stories publicly and helping other post-abortive women heal.

Others said their abortions brought about a deepening of their spiritual lives.

“The one positive is that it has brought me to my end and brought me to my knees before God” was a common theme among the women.

For testimonial videos of women who’ve suffered an abortion, visit www.AbortionChangesYou.com

She Was Praying on the Way to Her Abortion Appointment

dreamstime photo: abortion is profoundly negative for most women