The Conversation, April 26, 2018 12.36pm AEST
This week, the website Mamamia published, and then quickly removed, an article about the existence of “post-abortion syndrome” – a disorder apparently experienced by many women who have had an abortion. The article claimed this disorder has been concealed from the public and that the trauma of an induced abortion can be comparable to the experience of child sexual abuse or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) suffered by war veterans.
Neither the term “post-abortion syndrome”, nor the claims about its characteristics, are supported by any national or international psychological societies. Of course, many women experience emotional responses to an abortion, which are normal reactions to a significant event.