Pro-Life/Pro-Baby ping!
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Posted on 12/12/2005 10:08:44 AM PST by Termite_Commander
Women who have an abortion can suffer mental distress, anxiety, guilt and shame even five years afterwards and sometimes even longer, research has shown. The study compared a group of 40 women who suffered a miscarriage with 80 women who chose to have an abortion, questioning them 10 days, six months, two years and five years after the event.
The team from Oslo University, found that women who had a miscarriage suffered more mental distress up to six months after losing their baby compared with those who had an abortion.
But women who had an abortion experienced more mental distress long afterwards - at two and five years - compared with the miscarriage group.
The researchers said that women who lost a baby through abortion should be given information about the psychological effects of losing a baby.
Pro-life campaigners said the research confirmed the emotional consequences of having an abortion could be massive.
Counselling needed
Women's health experts highlighted the importance of having proper counselling in place to deal with women having abortions.
The latest study, published in the journal BMC Medicine, used tests to measure the extent of intrusive thoughts, feelings and flashbacks about the end of pregnancy.
The researchers also assessed how much women avoided thinking, talking or feeling anything about the event.
The study found that, after 10 days, 47.5 per cent of women who had miscarried suffered from some degree of mental distress compared with 30 per cent of the abortion group.
The proportion of women who had a miscarriage suffering distress decreased during the study period, to just 2.6 per cent at two years and five years.
But levels of distress remained high in the abortion group. After two years, 18 per cent were still experiencing distress, with 20 per cent at five years.
High levels of anxiety
The researchers also said that women who had an abortion experienced high levels of anxiety, feelings of guilt, shame and relief.
They had to make an effort to avoid thinking about the event. Compared with the general population, these women also had more anxiety even five years after an abortion.
The researchers, led by Anne Nordal Broen, said they had predicted that an abortion would cause "a more protracted course of mental disturbance" compared with a miscarriage.
"The responses of women in the miscarriage group were similar to those expected after a traumatic and sad life event.
"However, the women in the induced abortion group had more atypical responses," the researchers said.
Anna Pringle, from pro-life charity Life, said: "As advocates for these women, we believe it is time that the Government acknowledges the fact that abortion carries with it psychological risks that can affect women long after the actual event."
Profound consequences
Richard Warren, from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said the consequences of an unplanned pregnancy were often profound.
"Most women who request termination of pregnancy do so after careful consideration and with appropriate counselling," he said.
"It has always been considered, and this study also shows, that the decision to terminate may bring with it long-standing feelings of anxiety and guilt.
"While most women are able to manage and cope with these feelings, when necessary, the need for ongoing support and counselling should be recognised and appropriate help given.
A spokeswoman for bpas Abortion Care - the leading provider of abortion services in the UK - said: "We don't see that many women for post-abortion counselling. We offer that service but women very rarely come back because they are able to cope with it by themselves."
A spokeswoman for the Family Planning Association (fpa), said: "There is no evidence to suggest that abortion directly causes psychological trauma.
"Before an abortion, women should be given the opportunity to talk things through if they need to so they can be sure they are making the right decision for them."
As with the anti-STD drugs being given to pre-teens, I believe that having the general abortion = birth control crowd get taxpayer funded counselling will only encourage more abortion. I wish it could be otherwise, but I just have to wonder about coddling those that would willingly murder a helpless child. You don't hear so much about the psychological effects of adoption, so it can't be all that bad. I'd say that is the better direction to pursue.
Liberal weenies always seem to love the idea of counseling or therapy for people, except when it comes to abortions, specially if that counseling might occur pre-abortion, because that might result in a child actually living! :o
the former suffer the mental distress over the loss of a child they were attempting to carry to term.
The latter suffer the distress of guilt that the can push down in the beginning but that can't be stuffed forever.
The thousands of abortionists living in multi-million dollar homes and vacationing in French Polynesia would disagree with you on that.
"A spokeswoman for bpas Abortion Care - the leading provider of abortion services in the UK - said: 'We don't see that many women for post-abortion counselling. We offer that service but women very rarely come back because they are able to cope with it by themselves.'"
Why would a woman go back to the abortion provider to get post-abortion counseling? There is no way an abortion provider is going to admit that maybe she made the wrong decision! The women don't "cope," they just slowly come apart at the seams all alone in their rooms.
Don't they mean... "women who CHOSE an abortion"? What happpened to the all-sacred wordspeak of "choice"?
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AMEN !
Don't they mean... "women who CHOSE an abortion"? What happened to the all-sacred wordspeak of "choice"?
Good catch!
Yup.
A woman who would be foolish enough to go back to the "abortion provider" who counseled her before her tragic decision for advice on how to handle it --- just plain nuts.
That would be like a rapist letting their victim know that they would be happy to provide them with counsel about the aftermath of the rape.
It is clear that it is about time abortions were condemned and regulated on the basis of their being extremely threatening to a woman's health - both mental and physical.
Typo?
There is no easy way to say this either. Women who have abortion(s)have a greater likihood of getting breast cancer. Planned Parenhood and the Cancer Institute liberals don't want women to believe this but 36-38 studies have now shown the connection between abortion and breast cancer. It's real and women should be made aware of these studies.
Surprise, surprise . . . killing your baby makes you depressed.
Who the hell pays for these studies?
Clearly you are a hater, because if you weren't, you'd celebrate the right of any woman anywhere to kill her baby at any time for any reason. (/sarcasm)
You forgot gratitude. Gratitude for the Lord's forgiveness once she has accepted the Savior Jesus into her life. Studies also indicate men suffer too.... It's on a different level, of course, because men and women are designed by the Creator to react differently.
Often, the woman doesn't understand what she's done, until she's become a Christian... Knowing intellectually that a 'fetus' has been aborted is much different than knowing a human being with a soul has been killed....
Gratitude is also what moves women and men of completed abortions to speak of it openly. (I will get off my soapbox at this time.)
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