Posted on 11/03/2009 3:55:10 PM PST by wagglebee
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- A new report from researchers at a university in New Zealand indicates 85 percent of women who had abortions report negative mental health issues as a result. The report is the latest from professor David Fergusson and his team showing abortions cause problems for women.
The University of Otago team examined the medical history of over 500 women and concluded having an abortion generally “leads to significant distress in some” women who have them.
It noted women reporting adverse reactions to their abortions were up to 80 percent more likely to have mental health problems and risk of mental illness was “proportional to the degree of distress” associated with the abortion.
The study, which appears in the latest issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry, examined data from women who had been interviewed six times between the ages of 15 and 30 and who were asked if they were pregnant and, if so, the outcome of the pregnancy.
More than 85 percent of women reported negative reactions to their abortions including sorrow, sadness, guilt, regret, grief and disappointment.
The study revealed that women who have abortions face more negative mental health problems resulting from that pregnancy outcome as compared with women who keep their baby and carry to term. Women having abortions had rates of mental health problems “approximately 1.4 to 1.8 times higher than women not exposed to abortion."
Ultimately, Fergusson and his team said there is little justification for saying that legal abortions should be promoted on the basis of a improving a woman's mental health.
“Collectively, this evidence raises important questions about the practice of justifying termination of pregnancy on the grounds that this procedure will reduce risks of mental health problems in women having unwanted pregnancy," the team wrote.
The team said the study showed no reason to “support strong pro-choice positions that claim unwanted pregnancy terminated by abortion is without mental health risks.”
The new study is a follow-up to previous studies Fergusson and his team conducted showing women who have abortions are more likely to become severely depressed.
The original 2006 study found some 42 percent of the women who had abortions had experienced major depression within the last four years. That's almost double the rate of women who never became pregnant. The risk of anxiety disorders also doubled.
According to the study, women who have abortions were twice as likely to drink alcohol at dangerous levels and three times as likely to be addicted to illegal drugs.
A second study Fergusson's team released found that women who had abortions had rates of mental health problems about 30% higher than other women. The conditions most associated with abortion included anxiety disorders and substance abuse disorders.
The authors concluded that anywhere from 1.5 to 5.5 percent of all mental health disorders seen in New Zealand result from women having abortions.
British Victims of Abortion, which helps women who suffer medical and mental health problems after an abortion, has welcomed the results of the new report.
Margaret Cuthill of BVA commented: "What we at British Victims of Abortion hear in the counseling room confirms the truth of Professor Fergusson's results."
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It’s horrifying. My wife had one when she was 20(before she met me)and still has nightmares and many regrets 25 years later. She’s from Vermont where it’s almost a prerequisite to living there.
I would guess that the guilt only increases with time.
But what do I know?
my wife had one when we were first starting out and every day we wish she had never.
We look at our 3 children now and think how they could have had older sibling and it is heartbreaking.
Anyone thinking about an abortion should be made to look at ultrasounds and then asked if they think that it is a living baby in there.
my wife did when we first started out and believe me we have to live with that decision every day not just once a year, read my other post above this if you get a chance
I wonder what the effects are on the men who insisted on the abortion and even offered to pay for it.
Only”Nut-Case”murderers have NO regrets!”Rationalization”doesn’t get it done!!
“Post-abortive women ALWAYS have to face the reality of what they’ve done’’. Gives new meaning to “The Tell-Tale Heart’’.
I agree. My best friend paid for four abortions for various girlfriends over the years. It took me a long time to convince him to go back to church, because of the horrible guilt he felt. (Catholic Guilt’s a powerful thing :)) My last girlfriend whom had a 15 daughter when I met her (due to not having an abortion) used to be a counselor for women whom had abortions. Abortion is not without consequences. Truly a difficult burden to carry for many. Sad.
one could argue that females are already....oh nevermind. :P
I do not believe it.
If you want a good cry, read “Tilly”.
I’ve talked to promoters of abortions who would never get one for themselves or their daughters, but parrot proudly the right to choose as if they’re so much more sophisticated and intelligent than those “narrow-minded religious fanatics.” I see no difference between the ovens in Germany and the abortion industry. And I’ve known too many dear women over the years that have suffered because they were talked into or intiimidated into getting abortions.
What’s wrong with the other 15%?
They have mental health issues. It is called liberalism.
The only people who can go through an abortion unmoved are either stone psychopaths or persons already traumatized by some previous event and psychically numbed out. That doesn't mean that everyone will succumb to PTSD. They may simply become alcoholic, sex addicted, clinically depressed, or some other disorder.
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