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Thread: Abortion not seen linked with depression

  1. #1
    Indifferent to bacon Julie's avatar
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    Default Abortion not seen linked with depression

    This is a few months old, but I don't remember seeing any chatter about it.

    Quote Originally posted by Reuters
    No high-quality study done to date can document that having an abortion causes psychological distress, or a "post-abortion syndrome," and efforts to show it does occur appear to be politically motivated, U.S. researchers said on Thursday.
    From here.

    I've heard pro-lifers use the argument that women who choose abortions will regret it and wallow in depression. This study puts paid to that, but were their arguments persuasive to anyone not inclined to agree with them in the first place?

    In other words, does a study like this matter to anyone? If it had found the opposite, would it matter?

  2. #2
    Elephant
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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    The argument was always pretty absurd anyway. Being compelled to continue an unwanted pregnancy would be exponentially more depressing than getting an abortion, I would think.

  3. #3
    Indifferent to bacon Julie's avatar
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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    Quote Originally posted by Diana
    The argument was always pretty absurd anyway. Being compelled to continue an unwanted pregnancy would be exponentially more depressing than getting an abortion, I would think.
    I figured it was part and parcel with the breast cancer threats. I haven't seen anyone bring that one up in a while.

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    Stegodon
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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    Diana nailed it. Seems easy enough to understand the anger, anxiety and depression you might feel from not being in control of your own body and decisions about it have to trump any make-believe What-If nostalgia you might have years later.
    Science flies you to the moon; religion flies you into buildings.

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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    I remember hearing on some religious radio show out in Colorado a report about women having "coerced" abortions. The report claimed that every day there were thousands of women being coerced into having abortions by their doctors, families, and trusted professionals and as a result were suffering from an extremely high rate of PTSD. These women were debilitated by the psychological trauma of having a "coerced abortion", and it was then only reasonable that we should want to protect these women by making abortion illegal. I couldn't listen to very much of it.
    "Fairy tales do not give the child his first idea of bogey ... The baby has known the dragon intimately ever since he had an imagination. What the fairy tale provides for him is a St. George to kill the dragon."

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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    A single data point: I never regretted it for one moment. Best choice I ever made for myself, given all the circumstances and where I was in my life at the time. I've had a couple of fleeting 'what if' moments in the 20 years since, but shrugged them off just as quickly. I can't imagine my life any other way than it is right now and I'm still glad I made that decision.

    I may be the only woman on the planet who thinks that way, and I realize that one data point does not a trend make.

    Just sayin'.

  7. #7
    Indifferent to bacon Julie's avatar
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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    Quote Originally posted by Dogzilla
    I may be the only woman on the planet who thinks that way, and I realize that one data point does not a trend make.
    No way. I think statistically speaking that you're in the majority, though I don't feel like looking up the stats to back myself up.

  8. #8
    Stegodon
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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    Even if there was a correlation, it wouldn't prove causality. There are a lot of other aspects of life that would coincide with your likelihood to have an abortion that could also affect your mood. For instance, I imagine abortion is more common among single women then married women, and I've heard that married people are happier, on average, than singles. Religious people also seem to be happier than non-religious people, and they are probably less likely to have abortions. All those rape and molestation victims probably would affect statistics as well.

  9. #9
    Stegodon
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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    Hit quote instead of edit.

  10. #10
    Stegodon
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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    Hit quote instead of edit.

  11. #11
    Stegodon
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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    Quote Originally posted by Dogzilla
    A single data point: I never regretted it for one moment. Best choice I ever made for myself, given all the circumstances and where I was in my life at the time. I've had a couple of fleeting 'what if' moments in the 20 years since, but shrugged them off just as quickly. I can't imagine my life any other way than it is right now and I'm still glad I made that decision.

    I may be the only woman on the planet who thinks that way, and I realize that one data point does not a trend make.

    Just sayin'.

    Everything that I have read is that the most common emotion felt by a woman post-abortion is relief. Not regret, not depression, not disgust. Relief.

    Thinking 'what if' does not equal regret. I still think 'what if' about a lot of decisions I made. What if I made the other one? All in all though, I would not change any of them.

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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    mozg, that nails it.

    I lived with my mom and grandparents at the time and my mom took me to the place. When I got home, my gramma kept giving me nasty glances because I was cheerful and back to my normal perky self. I wasn't delighted about my choice; it was difficult and I wouldn't wish all that on anyone. Anyone who claims women have abortions habitually as birth control has never been through one. It's painful physically, mentally, and emotionally. That said, I was so relieved, I was bouncing around the house, chattering away, being Miss Perky McPerkster and my gramma, evidently, thought I should be more morose about the whole thing. I was just grateful that I had a choice and that an affordable, clean, safe, sterile procedure was available to me.

  13. #13
    Head Heathen Katriona's avatar
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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    Quote Originally posted by Dogzilla
    A single data point: I never regretted it for one moment. Best choice I ever made for myself, given all the circumstances and where I was in my life at the time. I've had a couple of fleeting 'what if' moments in the 20 years since, but shrugged them off just as quickly. I can't imagine my life any other way than it is right now and I'm still glad I made that decision.

    I may be the only woman on the planet who thinks that way, and I realize that one data point does not a trend make.

    Just sayin'.
    There used to be a website, something like, ImNotSorry.com but I haven't been able to track it down. It had many stories that ended in feelings like yours.

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    Elephant
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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    And another single data point - I chose to keep the kid and I don't regret that decision at all. I'm just freaking grateful it was a choice, not something I was forced to do. Just because I didn't have an abortion, doesn't mean I'm against them.
    There's no point in being grown up if you can't be childish sometimes. - Doctor Who

  15. #15
    Elephant
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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    Well, to join the chorus, I've had one kid and two abortions and I'm quite pleased with all three choices.

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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    To add one more anecdote, I didn't experience any debilitating depression either.

    It was a very difficult choice that was upsetting for a bit (I blame this mostly on residual Catholic guilt leftover from overly zealous CCD teachers), but the clincher for me is that no matter how hard the decision was, I wouldn't go back in time and change it if I could. I think I was more upset with myself for being stupid enough to put myself in that situation in the first place than I was about the actual procedure.

    I always get a chuckle when I see old, white dudes posturing about all the evil psychological side-effects of abortion.

  17. #17
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    Default Re: Abortion not seen linked with depression

    Quote Originally posted by ladyfoxfyre
    I remember hearing on some religious radio show out in Colorado a report about women having "coerced" abortions. The report claimed that every day there were thousands of women being coerced into having abortions by their doctors, families, and trusted professionals and as a result were suffering from an extremely high rate of PTSD. These women were debilitated by the psychological trauma of having a "coerced abortion", and it was then only reasonable that we should want to protect these women by making abortion illegal. I couldn't listen to very much of it.
    We all know that doctors spend their free time rubbing their hands together and plotting to force every woman they see into abortions. Teenage mother, rape victim, married woman with the baby clothes already purchased and the nursery planned out, it doesn't matter. The medical murder industry is insatiable.

    If you disagree with this post, that's Satan speaking through you.

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