This article contains discussions about mental health, including suicidal ideation. For confidential post-abortion support, contact\u00a0Exhale Pro Voice<\/a>\u00a0via text at 617-749-2948. If you experience suicidal ideation,\u00a0contact 988<\/a>\u00a0via phone, text, or online chat.\u00a0<\/p>\n When Melanie walked out of the abortion clinic in her city, it felt like a weight was lifted off of her shoulders. The 32-year-old, who is using a pseudonym to protect her privacy, had a procedural abortion at 10 weeks of gestation after unintentionally getting pregnant with her then-partner.\u00a0<\/p>\n But a week later, Melanie said, fatigue and listlessness set in. She lost interest in certain life activities, like caring for her beloved cat. They were the familiar symptoms of depression, which Melanie recognized because she\u2019s experienced depressive episodes in the past.<\/p>\n \u201cThis was such an intense phase of depression\u2014all of those coping skills and resources, everything that I do normally went out the window,\u201d Melanie told\u00a0Rewire News Group.\u00a0<\/p>\n Still, she said, she didn\u2019t regret the abortion care.\u00a0<\/p>\n Research shows<\/a>\u00a0that most people do not have emotional distress after getting an abortion. Yet Reddit message boards are filled with threads written by people with similar experiences as Melanie, who are seeking information about the negative emotions they felt after getting an abortions. Their posts have titles like, \u201ccrazy mood swings after abortion<\/a>?,\u201d \u201chormones after abortion<\/a>,\u201d and \u201cis postpartum depression a thing if you got an abortion<\/a>?\u201d<\/p>\n To better understand the experiences of such patients,\u00a0Rewire News Group\u00a0spoke with both patients and mental health experts. Mental health symptom exacerbation after abortion, experts said, has little to do with the decision to end a pregnancy and is more likely linked to social and medical factors, including previous mental health history.<\/p>\n Assessing for mental health risks<\/p>\n Researchers who spoke to\u00a0RNG\u00a0confirmed that most people do not have emotional distress after an abortion. Still, they said it\u2019s still crucial for providers to evaluate these patients\u2019 mental health.\u00a0<\/p>\n Abortion providers should continue to assess for \u201cpreexisting mental health concerns that may be related to the pregnancy and abortion decision,\u201d said Lawrence University psychologist\u00a0Rachel Dyer<\/a>, who contributed a chapter about post-abortion emotions for a clinical guide called,\u00a0The Handbook of Abortion Care for Mental Health Professionals<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Preexisting mental health concerns don\u2019t preclude someone from having an abortion, Dyer emphasized. And because abortion access is already so restricted in many places, experts who spoke to\u00a0RNG\u00a0say, adding more barriers to care, like a mandated mental health screening, would do more harm than good.\u00a0<\/p>\n But in a perfect world, there would be more research on the abortion for people who have preexisting mental health conditions and stronger networks of emotional support in the medical system. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Anti-abortion rhetoric can cloud real mental health concerns\u00a0<\/p>\n Spreading the false idea that abortions cause mental illness is a common tactic of anti-abortion groups.\u00a0<\/p>\n Anti-abortion organizations like Care Net and Heartbeat International\u00a0started to promote this claim<\/a>\u00a0in the 1970s, with the rise of conservative Christian anti-abortion pregnancy centers that offered psychological counseling for people who had or were considering abortions. Coined \u201cpost-abortion syndrome<\/a>,\u201d these groups have claimed that having an abortion is associated with a trauma response like post-traumatic stress disorder.\u00a0<\/p>\n But medical experts confirm that there is not any mental health diagnosis linked to having an abortion.\u00a0<\/p>\n The concept of \u201cpost-abortion syndrome\u201d has been \u201cwidely debunked,\u201d said Dr.\u00a0Sarah Oreck<\/a>, a reproductive psychiatrist and co-founder of the Los Angeles-based virtual reproductive mental health clinic\u00a0Mavida Health<\/a>. It \u201cfalsely suggests that abortion inherently leads to regret or mental illness,\u201d she added.\u00a0<\/p>\n Most people do not experience regret or significant mental health changes after an abortion, Oreck said, citing multiple studies. A 2011 article in the\u00a0New England Journal of Medicine<\/a>\u00a0found that 1.5 percent of people who had a first-trimester abortion sought psychiatric care in the year after their abortion.\u00a0<\/p>\n This and\u00a0other research<\/a>\u00a0has also found that stressful circumstances surrounding the unwanted pregnancy \u2014 economic, interpersonal or otherwise \u2014 could\u00a0contribute to mental health distress<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n The physiological changes that happen after pregnancy termination may also contribute to symptoms like fatigue, mood swings and sadness for some people.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIn early pregnancy, the body undergoes major hormonal shifts \u2026 when a pregnancy ends, whether naturally, by medication, or procedure, hormone levels drop suddenly, which can trigger mood instability and depressive symptoms,\u201d said Oreck.\u00a0<\/p>\n That\u2019s true \u201ceven when the decision feels right,\u201d Oreck added.\u00a0<\/p>\n The risk of that could potentially be higher for people with a history of mood disorders, Oreck said, but emphasized that everyone\u2019s experience with abortion is different.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cPre-existing vulnerabilities, such as anxiety, trauma, or lack of support, can intensify distress,\u201d Oreck added.\u00a0<\/p>\n But sound scientific data on how a history of mental illness could impact post-abortion mental health is limited, according to experts who spoke to\u00a0RNG. That makes it hard to improve care and identify those most at risk.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhat we need is better research on supporting people who already have mental health conditions when seeking abortion care, and how to identify those at higher risk during unwanted pregnancy, regardless of outcome,\u201d Oreck said.<\/p>\n Dyer, the Wisconsin-based psychologist,\u00a0agrees. She would like to see more \u201cquality research\u201d on the complex relationships between mental health history and emotional experiences following abortion, particularly for patients already accessing psychological care.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to \u2026 account for their whole history and not just assume that \u2026 if a person has had abortion and they are depressed or experiencing some other mental health concerns, it must be\u00a0because of the abortion,\u201d Dyer said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Because of limited data, researchers are left to extrapolate on some of abortion\u2019s potential hormonal and emotional effects based on what they know about\u00a0 other reproductive experiences, like spontaneous miscarriage, and postpartum hormones.\u00a0<\/p>\n According to Dyer, the dip in estrogen and progesterone that occurs after an abortion or miscarriage may be similar to the hormonal changes that cause\u00a0postpartum \u201cbaby blues<\/a>,\u201d a short phase after birth where a new parent may experience heightened emotional distress, tearfulness, and sadness for a few weeks after birth.\u00a0<\/p>\n For some people, these symptoms, combined with other factors, could progress to a more severe mood disorder akin to postpartum depression. But there\u2019s not enough data to confirm that, Dyer said.\u00a0<\/p>\n More commonly, hormonal changes after an abortion could trigger some short-term symptoms similar to mental health conditions associated with the immediate time period of pregnancy ending.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cOur bodies do not know why we are not pregnant anymore; they merely act accordingly,\u201d Dyer said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Abortion stigma affects mental health\u00a0<\/p>\n It can be difficult to separate the hormonal changes that come from ending a pregnancy from the social factors that may exacerbate mental health problems, said Danika Severino Wynn, a certified nurse midwife and the vice president of care and access for\u00a0Planned Parenthood Federation of America<\/a>. These external stressors include logistical and financial stress, social stigma, and shame around abortion.<\/p>\n The three abortion patients\u00a0RNG\u00a0interviewed did have a prior history of mental health conditions, including anxiety and depression, before having an abortion.\u00a0<\/p>\n J., who requested only her first initial be used to protect her privacy, had experienced prior mental health difficulties and said her mental health deteriorated after a medication abortion.\u00a0<\/p>\n She had gotten pregnant by a then-partner she was not proud to be involved with, and decided to end the pregnancy with a self-managed abortion. J. said she had her abortion alone, without anyone she felt she could turn to for support.\u00a0<\/p>\n That experience took a toll on her.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I laid in bed and had my body go through the pill\u2019s bloody aftermath, the depressive mental and physical state truly proved to me that I was on my own in my suffering,\u201d J. said.\u00a0<\/p>\n But, she said, her mental health was worse than her baseline prior to abortion.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cShame, guilt, and depression, anxiety do follow me,\u201d J. said, explaining that she had palpable thoughts of no longer wanting to be alive and of attempting to end her life. \u201cThe abortion elevated it and turned it physical.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Melanie, too, has a history of mental health challenges. She has a diagnosis of bipolar II disorder \u2014 which includes major depression \u2014 and has experienced suicidal ideation. And she still undergoes regular mental health treatment.\u00a0<\/p>\n Immediately after she had her abortion, Melanie said she felt nothing but relief. But within a week of the procedure, a deep depression set in. In this period, she felt the closest she ever felt to acting on those thoughts of self-harm.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI have experience with suicidal ideation and depression \u2014 it was so powerful that my suicidal ideation turned to planning,\u201d Melanie said. \u201c[I] was looking to rehome my cat.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Yet both Melanie and J. emphasized that they don\u2019t regret their decisions to end their pregnancies; both definitely did not want to be parents.\u00a0Research has repeatedly found<\/a>\u00a0that people who have had abortions overwhelmingly report feeling relieved, both immediately after and in the years that follow.\u00a0<\/p>\n There\u2019s also\u00a0evidence<\/a>\u00a0that carrying an unwanted pregnancy to term can be associated with poor mental health outcomes, including depression during the pregnancy, postpartum depression, and even years after birth.\u00a0<\/p>\n Even with the feeling of relief, social stigma around abortion for some still contributes to significant psychological distress.\u00a0Synclaire Warren<\/a>, a writer, speaker and content creator, grew her social media following her decision to share her abortion story publicly after the overturn of\u00a0Roe v. Wade\u00a0in June 2022. Before that, she had barely told anyone.\u00a0<\/p>\n Warren and a former partner got pregnant completely by surprise: Her intrauterine device didn\u2019t work, and it led to an unplanned pregnancy in the winter of 2021. Warren said she went to the doctor after feeling sick, and found out she was pregnant at the doctor\u2019s office.<\/p>\n In a state of shock, Warren described \u201crocking back and forth\u201d all night, before coming to the decision to have a medication abortion.\u00a0<\/p>\n It was \u201cindescribable how alone and scared and painful it was for me,\u201d Warren told\u00a0RNG. She recalled \u201cfeeling like your body isn\u2019t yours\u201d while going through the process. She said she felt isolated and was paranoid that people would find out. Not telling her loved ones about her decision weighed on her.\u00a0<\/p>\n At the same time, Warren said ending the pregnancy was the right choice for her. \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAll the joy I have in my life is because I made that choice: finishing my master\u2019s at Fordham, working freelance, having a partner I live with, and living in New York City,\u201d Warren said.\u00a0<\/p>\n J. echoed the sentiment of internalizing societal stigma about abortion.<\/p>\n \u201cI wish I was stronger to ask my sisters for help, but I was so riddled with shame and guilt that I wanted to do it on my own.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Still, J. said she\u2019s grateful abortion was an option in Pennsylvania, where she lived at the time. Because of a combination of life stressors, it took some time for her to finally feel more like herself; after a few years, she saw larger improvements in her mental health.<\/p>\n Abortion bans impede research and care improvements<\/p>\n Abortion restrictions further complicate attempts to better understand how abortion affects mental health. As of November 2025,\u00a012 U.S. states<\/a>\u00a0have total abortion bans.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhat we know for sure is that denying abortion care can have long-term negative effects on mental and physical health,\u201d Severino Wynn said.\u00a0<\/p>\n She pointed to research like\u00a0The Turnaway Study<\/a>\u00a0by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, which found a link between a lack of access to abortion care and the risk of pregnancy complications like eclampsia, anxiety, and staying in abusive relationships as a result of continuing an unwanted pregnancy.<\/p>\n \u201cBetter research should examine how existing psychiatric conditions interact with abortion access and timing, barriers to mental health care for people seeking abortion in restrictive states, and evidence-based screening approaches for those with known mental health histories,\u201d Oreck said.\u00a0<\/p>\n If people have a mental health condition history and are considering an abortion, a pre-procedure screening that can connect someone to psychiatric support they may need afterward is appropriate, according to Oreck.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re supporting them through a stressful time, not because the procedure causes mental illness,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n But in the current abortion access landscape, it won\u2019t be logistically feasible, nor would it be good practice to mandate universal mental health screening, Oreck added.\u00a0<\/p>\n It may be possible for some people with a history of mental health issues who wish to get support to do so at a reproductive health clinic.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cMany providers, including some Planned Parenthood health centers, offer mental or behavioral health counseling,\u201d Severino Wynn added. \u201cThey may also be able to refer you to expert, judgment-free care through platforms like\u00a0Pro-Choice Therapists<\/a>.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Mental health providers can also do their part to create an open space for discussing abortion experiences in standard clinical encounters.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis means validating a range of emotions, addressing fears or uncertainties, and integrating abortion care into routine mental health conversations \u2014 just as we do with pregnancy, miscarriage or postpartum experiences,\u201d Oreck said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Other resources that Severino Wynn directs Planned Parenthood clients toward for processing any emotions, including anxiety and depression, after an abortion include the\u00a0Miscarriage+Abortion Hotline<\/a>\u00a0for\u00a0medical provider-led guidance<\/a>,\u00a0Reprocare\u00a0<\/a>for anonymous peer-based support during an abortion,\u00a0The Doula Project<\/a>\u00a0for text-based medication abortion help, and\u00a0Exhale ProVoice<\/a>, which offers free post-abortion\u00a0text support<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0support groups<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2018I\u2019m so glad you told me\u2019<\/p>\n Anti-abortion groups have tried to weaponize the mental health effects of abortion as a reason to justify bans. But that logic, experts say, does not hold up.<\/p>\n \u201cThe bottom line is abortion is a very safe and common form of health care,\u201d Severino Wynn said. \u201cEach person\u2019s experience can be different, and there are resources available for those who need them.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n That\u2019s one of the reasons why Melanie emphasized sharing abortion experiences and support with her own personal network.\u00a0<\/p>\n After her abortion, Melanie spoke with a friend who also decided to have one. Because her friend struggled with her mental health, Melanie felt compelled to warn her and remind her to take extra care of herself after her abortion.\u00a0<\/p>\n Melanie checked in with her friend on her experience months later. The first thing her friend said was, \u201cThank God you told me.\u201d<\/p>\n ![](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/pixel.gif\"\/)
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