Women who have had an abortion overwhelmingly report it was the right decision for them

In Christopher Ingraham’s July 14 Wonkblog post, he artfully describes the results of a recent study published by researchers at ANSIRH. They followed 667 women who had either a first trimester abortion, or a later abortion within two weeks of a clinic's gestational age limit. In order to measure their emotional responses and beliefs about their decision to have an abortion, researchers contacted participants by phone and used surveys to record their responses for three years after obtaining an abortion. Women’s responses were consistent across all years of the study. Regardless of whether they received a later abortion or a first trimester abortion, 95% of participants reported that they had made the right decision. Even though women in the study also reported some negative feelings related to their decision, such as sadness, they still reported overwhelmingly that it was the right choice for them. As Ingraham points out, "Experiencing negative emotions after an abortion is not the same thing as regretting it."

References:

Ingraham C. (2015). 95 percent of women who’ve had an abortion say it was the right decision

Rocca CH, Kimport K, Gould H, Foster DG. Women's emotions one week after receiving or being denied an abortion in the United States. Perspectives on sexual and reproductive health. 2013; 45(3): 122-131

Photography:

Flickr/Becca