I have to admit it upsets me when I see studies like these coming out and getting publicity. Not because I believe them or think they are accurate, I know what they say is not true, but because those living in silence and shame are more prone to stay there instead of reaching out fo rhelp, because once again their feelings and experiences are denied and not being legitimized.

So, this one says, "they do not have an increased risk of having a first-time episode of a severe mental disorder after an abortion". I wonder, what do they consider "severe", and are other mental disorders which they may not consider severe ok to get after abortion? Also, a study one year after an abortion does not take into consideration the immediate relief felt by many or the denial most women experience right after the procedure.

I wonder if part of this coming out now is to take attention away from the Gosnell case..who knows…what I do know is that all the supposed "studies" in the world cannot change the experience of millions of women who regret their abortions and suffer with anxiety, depression, shame, guilt, panic attacks and a host of other things…

Study Finds No Rise in Post-Abortion Mental Health Issues

WEDNESDAY, January 26 (Health.com) — As if deciding how to handle an unplanned pregnancy wasn’t stressful enough, several studies in recent years have suggested that young women who have an abortion may be at increased risk of mental health problems afterward.

Those concerns are unfounded, according to a new study conducted in Denmark and published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine. In fact, the study found, while the rate of psychiatric problems was unchanged in women who had an abortion, it appears to spike post-birth in women who carry their babies to term.

“Women who are in a difficult situation—pregnant and unsure whether or not to continue with the pregnancy—should know that they do not have an increased risk of having a first-time episode of a severe mental disorder after an abortion,” says the lead author of the study, Trine Munk-Olsen, PhD, an epidemiologist at Aarhus University, in Denmark.

You can read the rest here : http://news.health.com/2011/01/26/abortion-mental-health/