The Effects Of Abortion On Women's Mental Health

On January 22, 1973, the course of women's healthcare in the United States changed significantly. Roe v. Wade was the Supreme Court case that declared that the right to abortion is a constitutional right. While Roe v. Wade has been a very controversial subject, it has affected the physical health, mental health, and safety of women.

Ever since the legalization of abortion in 1973, the physical health of women has progressed in some ways and regressed in others. Before 1973, sixteen states made abortion in the cases of rape and incest, and by 1970, three states made on demand abortion legal (Lewis). But when women in other states couldn't have on demand abortions, they would use more dangerous methods to end a pregnancy. Unsafe
According to one source, women who have had abortions are 81% more likely to have mental illnesses and problems (After Abortion). Women who have had abortions are 55% more likely to have mental health issues than women who have carried an unplanned pregnancy to term (After Abortion). However, in 1989, U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop wrote to President Ronald Reagan explaining "the scientific studies do not provide conclusive data about the health effects of abortion on women" (Cohen). And according to a report by the Guttmacher Institute in 2006, women who receive abortions who either want to go through with their pregnancy or have little to no support from their loved ones are more likely to experience distress or anxiety (Cohen). Also, a majority of women feel depressed before an abortion, but afterwards, women say they feel relieved or happy
In the US, there are organizations called Crisis Pregnancy Centers (Planned Parenthood). Some crisis pregnancy centers are fake abortion clinics that are managed by antiabortion activists who give pregnant women false and biased information to scare them out of having abortions (Planned Parenthood). These centers may lie about affects of abortion, give incorrect information about abortion, adoption, and parenting, try to frighten women with biased films and pictures, and discourage women from safe forms of birth control (Planned Parenthood). Some clinics even tell women they are not pregnant in order to try to delay or prevent an abortion (Planned Parenthood). This is harmful because women will not receive prenatal care (Planned Parenthood). Prenatal care is important because it can prevent complications in pregnancy, such as preeclampsia, and complications infants, such as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (National Institutes of Health). Crisis Pregnancy Centers are legal in the United States, but California recently passed the Reproductive FACT Act, which requires these centers to post a piece of paper on their windows stating they do not provide abortions (McEvers). Some of these clinics, like First Choice for Women here in Muncie, do help women who need help with an unplanned pregnancy. While they do not