U.S.: Being denied an abortion could be more traumatic than getting one

Abortions don’t harm women’s mental health, new study says
by Rachel Becker Dec 14, 2016, The Verge

Women who receive abortions experience less short-term anxiety and low self-esteem than women who are denied them, according to a new study. This is consistent with previous findings that the vast majority of women who receive abortions feel relief. And it’s another nail in the coffin of the tired misconception that women who terminate their pregnancies are psychologically damaged by the experience.

In the United States, 35 states require a waiting period and counseling before a woman can terminate her pregnancy. In nine of those states, women are required to receive information about the supposed long-term psychological consequences of getting an abortion, such as post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. But a new study published today in the journal JAMA Psychiatry reveals that those warnings aren’t actually based on scientific evidence.

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Source: The Verge