WOMEN AND ABORTION: EMOTIONAL ASPECTS
The emotional aftereffects of abortion have been the subject of much interest. Do women who have had abortions exhibit symptoms similar to those of posttraumatic stress syndrome? Are they forever haunted by the experience of having had an abortion?Although a variety of feelings, such as regret, guilt, sadness, relief, and happiness, are normal, no evidence has shown that having an abortion causes long-term psychological trauma for a woman. In a longitudinal study, by Russon and Dabul, of over 5,000 women who had had abortions, they found that the best predictor of a woman’s emotional well-being following an abortion was her emotional well-being prior to the abortion. Even factors such as marital status or affiliation with a religion that is strongly anti-abortion were found to have no effect on a woman’s post-abortion sense of self-esteem and well-being.A small percentage of women who have abortions experience depressive symptoms similar to postpartum blues but the vast majority expresses no regrets about their decision and state they would make the choice again if they found themselves in similar circumstances. Certainly the presence of a support network and the assistance of mental health professionals would be helpful to any woman who is struggling with the emotional aspects of the abortion decision in her own life.*16/277/5*
