Abortion Effects - 1

Abortion has a long history dating back to the 12th century. Throughout history, methods of abortion have become safer and have transformed tremendously. In the early ages, practices such as exercise and miscarriage-inducing drugs were widely used. Early folk remedies varied in effectiveness and had many risks of after effects. Some of these herbs used in the remedies included rue, Italian catnip, savory, sage, soapwort, and pennyroyal and were very poisonous. In German folk medicine, “abortifacient” teas included thyme, parsley, and lavender and sometimes even crushed ants, camel saliva, and deer tail hairs. Other methods include using sharpened tools and physical trauma.
The 19th century showed advances in the fields of surgery and sanitation. There were safer methods of abortion but the cost was high and most women seeking them could not pay for them. These women turned to extremely dangerous techniques such as drinking harmful chemicals or using sharp sticks, knives, or hangers to penetrate the uterus and end the pregnancy. In modern times, more than 40% of women have had an abortion. Over 95% of these women have or will endure some sort of physical, emotional, and/or mental injury.
Physical effects can take days, weeks, and even years to develop after an abortion is finalized. One-fifth of immediate complications are life-threatening. These effects depend greatly on the malignity or benignity of the procedure. While middle-aged women have a significant chance of physical effects, adolescents have a much higher risk. These side effects may include death, breast cancer, uterine perforation, cervical lacerations, ectopic pregnancy, septic abortion issues, autoimmune diseases, and infections. In a 1997 governmental study in Finland, women who have had abortions are four times more likely to die in the year following the procedure. These women are 60% more likely to die of natural cause, seven times more likely to commit suicide, four times more likely to die in accidents, and fourteen more times likely to die from homicide. (“Physical Consequences”, 2) During a study of 173,000 low incomes Californian women’s death records linked to MediCal payments for births and abortions, researchers discovered that women with abortions were twice as likely to die in the following two years. David Reardon said “During the first four years, higher rates of death from suicide and heightened risk taking behavior were the most pronounced area of difference. In later years, deaths due to natural causes rose.” Another study of pregnancy-associated deaths has found that the mortality rate for abortions is three times higher than pregnancies carried to term. This study resulted in non-pregnant women having fifty-seven deaths per 100,000 compared to twenty-nine for women who carried term, fifty-two for women who miscarried, and eighty-four for women who had an abortion. According to Gissler M. Burg, “The annual death rate of women who had abortions in the previous year was also 46% higher than that of non-pregnant women.” (2) Around 60% of post-abortion women reported that they thought about committing suicide. Out of these women, 28% actually attempted suicide and 14% have tried more than once. In one reported case, a twenty-three year-old women attempted suicide involving a drunken driving incident. She had two abortions, one at age seventeen and another at eighteen. She was too afraid to tell her parents and suffered six years of guilt. The only person she planned to tell was her uncle who suddenly died of a heart attack. She planned her own death to end her pain and reunite with her children and uncle. Since 1950, the relationship between abortion and breast and cervical cancer has been researched. According to the United States National Career Institute, “Women who have had an induced abortion have a 50% risk of getting breast cancer by age forty-five.” (Barnes, 10) Breast cancer is directly related to a woman’s hormone levels. Breast cells grow and divide in response to hormones. An abortion causes a drop in estrogen a woman’s body secretes and causes changes in breast tissue. For women under the age of eighteen having an abortion, the risk of breast cancer nearly doubles. In 1995, the California Teachers Study researched 100,000 women who have previously had an abortion. By the year 2008, 3,300 of these women developed invasive breast cancer. Uterine perforation is a hole in the wall of the uterus, made by the placement of an instrument. Most abortion patients that suffer perforation of their uterus remain undiagnosed. The risk is increased for women who receive general anesthesia at the time of the medical procedure. Damage to the uterine can cause problems in later pregnancies and can lead to a hysterectomy, and even osteoporosis. The results from a Swedish study show that about one-third of uterine perforations happened at the end of a suction abortion. Cervical lacerations are wounds or irregular tears to the cervix uteri during an abortion. One percent of first trimester abortions lead to cervical damage that requires sutures. This is greater for teens, and second trimester abortions. These lacerations may also result in reproductive damage, miscarriage, premature birth, and labor complications during later pregnancies. An ectopic pregnancy is one where the fertilized egg grows in any location other than the uterus lining. Most of these pregnancies occur in the fallopian tubes. Women who have had an abortion are five times more likely to have an ectopic pregnancy. Unless treated early, 40% of ectopic pregnancies rupture and cause dangerous bleeding in the abdominal cavity which can be fatal for women. According to Willke in his study, “There has been a 300% increase in ectopic pregnancies since abortion was legalized.” (“Physical Consequences”, 13) Among 160 Israeli women in a study, 4% attempted suicide within one year of an ectopic pregnancy. A septic abortion is any type of abortion associated with infection of the uterus and its appendages. Some symptoms include fever, uterine tenderness, and foul discharge. Complications include respiratory distress syndrome, septic shock, death, renal failure, abscess formation, and septic emboli. In one case, a young woman who underwent an induced abortion recorded that fetal parts were still present after the abortion. She was discharged from the hospital after the procedure without being told about these parts. Soon after, she began to have cramps, vaginal bleeding, and a fever so she went to the hospital. When she went into shock, she was immediately transferred to a larger medical center that saved her life. Before the fetal parts were removes she developed renal failure. Autoimmune diseases such as myocarditis, diabetes and arthritis can become present after an abortion. Myocarditis is the inflammation of the myocardium, the middle layer of the heart. According to Grimes and Cates, “Only 59 women in the United Sates of childbearing age (15-44) were reported to have died from acute or sub-acute myocarditis in 1975.” (238) Type 1 diabetes is when the body fails to produce insulin and can occur after a spontaneous abortion when hemoglobin levels are significantly higher than women who have planned it. Arthritis is painful inflammation and stiffness of the joints. When an Italian study was reviewed, Scarpa recorded that 9% of patients with psoriatic arthritis had an abortion right before the onset of the disease. Some infections that have been found after an abortion include endometritis, genital tract infections, pelvic-inflammatory disease, and bacterial vaginosis. Endometritis, or febrile reactions, is an inflammation or irritation of the lining of the uterus caused by bacteria and can lead to infertility because it obstructs the fallopian tubes. Teenagers are two times more likely than women to obtain endometritis after abortion. A study in Sweden reported that chlamydia positive women ages 13 to 19 were 28%, ages 20 to 24 were 23%, and ages 25 to 29 were 20% more likely to get endometritis post-abortion. In the same study, chlamydia negative women aged 13 to 19 were 10%, ages 20 to 24 were 5%, and ages 25 to 29 were also 5% more likely to get endometritis. (Osser, 699) Prior to the abortion, none of the women showed any signs of genital tract infection. After the abortion, 14% of these women required treatment because of mild or severe infection of the upper genital tract. Abortion patients with chlamydia have a 45% chance of developing PID within four weeks. Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID) is a bacterial infection involving the uterus, fallopian tubes, cervix, and vagina. More than one million women are diagnosed with PID each year. Almost 50% of these women have had an abortion. (“Pelvic Inflammatory”, 1) After therapeutic abortion, one study shows readmission rates to hospitals were 4% with PID being the main cause. “A follow-up examination four to six weeks following abortion by vacuum aspiration found 4.8% with retained fetal parts: 11.1% had post-abortion bleeding greater than normal menstrual period, and 4.1% had PID.” (Dalaker, 334) Although physical effects are what usually change a woman’s mind about an abortion, the emotional injury can be just as bad and lead to other, more serious problems. Emotional effects are more likely to result from an abortion. Studies show that relief is often the first emotion felt after an abortion but later on these feelings can and most likely will change. These emotions effects women different and are usually based on one religious beliefs, moral character, and/or previous psychological problems. Some of these severe emotional effects include post-traumatic stress disorder, guilt, anxiety, and depression. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is defined as “a psychological dysfunction which results from an experience which overwhelms a person’s normal defense mechanisms resulting in intense fear, feelings of helplessness or being trapped, or loss of control.” (“After Abortion”, 14) Most symptoms of PTSD include re-experiencing the trauma, avoidance behavior, increased arousal, anxiety over fertility, and subsequent children. This disorder results when a traumatic event causes the hyper arousal of these “flight or fight” defense mechanisms to be disorganized and take on a life of their own causing abnormal behavior and personality disorders. The lowest incidence rate of PTSD after abortion is 1.5%, or over 600,000 cases. Barnard’s study showed a 19% rate of PTSD among women who had abortions three to five years earlier. The most common form of PTSD related to abortion is post-abortion syndrome (PAS). At some point after the abortion, the memories of this experience resurface and the loss can no longer be denied. Guilt is something a person feels when they have violated their own moral code. One study showed that more than 70% of women aborting their pregnancy did not approve of abortions but considered themselves the “exception.” The guilt of an abortion usually comes when woman has consented to the killing of her pre-born child. These women may express their guilt through anger directed towards herself and others, including husbands, doctors and even future children. Anxiety is defined as an emotional and physical state of apprehension. Post-abortive women may experience tension, physical responses, and disturbed sleep as symptoms of anxiety. Once again, going against their moral values about abortion can bring on anxiety. Women who abort unintended pregnancies are more likely to experience anxiety than women who deliver their unintended pregnancy. According to the National Survey of Family Growth, women who aborted an unintended pregnancy were 30% more likely to report all the symptoms of anxiety disorder. (Cougle, 2) This study showed that there may be as many as 400,000 GAD cases due to aborting an unintended pregnancy. Depression is a medical illness that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. It is known as one of the most frequent recognizable abortion effects and associated with pathological grief like the loss of a baby. Some of these women have reported feeling restrained and unable to be interested in anything or anyone since the abortion. In one study, 768 women between the ages of fifteen and twenty-seven that had pervious abortions were surveyed and asked questions that had to do with symptoms of abortion. The results say that women that have had induced abortions between these ages are at a higher risk of subsequent depression. These mental effects can cause women to do other dangerous activities to hurt themselves and even the people around them like their husbands, doctors, and even children. Women’s availability to cope psychologically after an abortion is often turned to other abuses. Some of these activities include substance abuse, eating disorders, sexual dysfunction, divorce and relationship problems, repeat abortions, and child abuse. Because of a particular stressful event or situation, like an abortion, women are more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol. Women who have had an abortion are more likely to use marijuana, other illegal drugs, and alcohol during their next pregnancy. Speckhard reported after her study, out of thirty post-abortion women, 60% admitted to increase alcohol use. Only 10% of these women had already abused substances before the abortion. (Reardon, “New Study”, 4) About 54,000 women per year begin using drugs or alcohol as a means of dealing with post-abortion stress. Almost 33% of these women are teenagers. In a study of more than 700 women in New York State, illegal drug use was six times higher in women with a history of abortion compared to those with no history. For women that do not continue to live with the father of their aborted baby, there is an increased risk of substance abuse. This is because an abortion leaves an emptiness they are trying to fill. In a survey of 917 random post-aborted women, 13% of the heavier drinkers reported non-spontaneous abortion, 13% for moderate drinkers, and 5% for lighter drinkers. (Wilsnack, 1235) Alcohol abuse post-abortion can lead to violent behavior, divorce or separation, auto accidents, and jobless. Physically is can lead to HIV/AIDS infections, congenital malformations, and assaultive behavior. The consequences of alcohol and/or drug abuse do not suppress symptoms, they only make them worse. The biggest factor in an eating disorder developing is a substantial weight gain or severe weight loss and unattractiveness. Women Exploited by Abortion held a study of 252 post-aborted women. Seventeen of these women suffered from anorexia and forty women suffered excessive weight gain. (Reardon, Aborted Women, 7) Unattractiveness is a form of self-punishment and can make a woman believe she is not worthy of anyone’s attention. In a study of 68 religious women, 9% suffered from bulimia and/or anorexia nervosa. Of these, 67% increased their problems with their eating disorders after their abortion. Overeating behaviors increased 55% following an abortion. Anorexia or bulimia makes a woman feel some sort of control. These problems can eventually shut down the menstrual cycle and prevent future pregnancies. A study on one woman with severe bulimia showed that she would get repeated abortions to give her the same calming feeling as binge eating and vomiting. Later studies suggested she was suicidal. (El-Mallakh, 217) Sexual dysfunction could mean loss of please, increased pain, aversion to sex and/or even men, or promiscuous behavior. There are four kinds of sexual dysfunctions in women: desire disorders- less desire for sex than before, arousal disorders- cannot stay aroused, orgasmic disorders- pain during an orgasm or no orgasm at all, and sexual pain disorders- pain during or after sex. Almost 50% of women report some kind of sexual dysfunction starting immediately after the procedure. One study shows that 24% of American women reported problems with sexual dysfunction due to a past abortion. Another showed 31% reported at least six months after an abortion. (Barnes, 17) Most post-abortion women have difficulty forming lasting relationships with a male partner which may cause most post-abortion couples to separate or divorce. Bad future relationships may be due to lowered self-esteem, male distrust, depression, anxiety, and volatile anger. Women who have had more than one abortion are more likely to be single parents in the future due to those problems. The National Health and Social life Survey recorded that among women, abortion led to more positive attitudes towards sex with strangers and with being forced into having sex. Out of all abortions in the United States, 45% are now repeat abortions. Compared to women with no history of abortion, women with a history of abortion are four times more likely to have another one. (“After Abortion”, 24) In a study of fifty women having their third legal abortion, twenty-three claimed their contraception failed, twenty-four because of erratic contraceptive use, and three changed their mind after welcoming the pregnancy. This study found that no women were using abortion as a form of birth control. (Brewer, 99-105) The majority of women having repeat abortions were using highly effective contraceptives. This shows that these women were trying to avoid unintended pregnancy. Repeat abortions occur because of unwanted desires to become pregnant, continued pressure to abort, abandonment of male-partner, and even self-punishment. Every time a women has a repeat abortion, her chances of complications doubles. On study of Canadian women found that women having repeat abortions were more tolerant of the procedure and were having intercourse more frequently. Some repeaters were described as “childlike” (a women with fifteen abortions in twenty-three years); “doll-like” (history of suicide attempts); “rage, confusion” (mentally ill mother); and depressed, cold, and detached.” (Fisher, 83) Many repeaters did not keep appointments and did not finish therapy. These women were found to refer to their unborn child as a “monster”. According to the Guttmatcher Analysis, “Women at risk of having a repeat abortion share many of the same characteristics as women at risk of having a repeat unintended birth, including age, number of prior births, race, and ethnicity.” (Cohen, 4) A history of abortion is associated with acts of physical aggression towards children. The first ten years after abortion was legalized, child abuse increased 500 percent. There are many personal testimonies from women and men that report there is a correlation between post-abortion feelings and desire to abuse children. According to researcher Phillip Ney, “It appeared that the rate of child abuse did not decrease with freely available abortions. In fact, it increased.” (10) Priscilla Coleman, a professor at Bowling Green State University, suggested the link between abortion and child abuse may be influenced by grief and being pressured into an unwanted abortion. Even though the abortion procedure has come a long way, the risks of effects are still high. Physical effects cause pain to a women’s body and can affect her future in having children. Emotional effects may cause the woman to get in to other bad habits and dangerous everyday activities that go back hurting her health. Mental and long-term effects can mess with a woman’s future relationships with her family.