For decades, studies have indicated that abortion has been associated with an increased rate of mental health issues. Unfortunately, the coronavirus pandemic has caused a huge spike in mental health issues. Experts fear the increase will result in more suicides in this vulnerable group.
Since the pandemic began, our country has seen a widely reported surge in anxiety and depression. Drug overdoses were 42% higher in May 2020 than they were in May 2019. But our country isn’t prepared to provide the mental healthcare people need. Arthur C. Evans Jr., chief executive officer of the American Psychological Association, told Congress in June that the nation’s mental health system has been “fragmented and underfunded” for decades, creating a troubling mental health gap.
The Disaster Distress Helpline, operated by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, saw an 891% increase in calls in March 2020 compared to March 2019. The Indianapolis Star reported in April that Indiana’s 211 mental health and suicide hotline went from receiving 1,000 calls per day to 25,000 per day and that substance abuse calls went from 20 per week to 20 per day.
Additionally, domestic abuse has significantly increased, according to the New York Times, and we already know that not just a few abortions are the result of domestic abuse and sex trafficking. As with child abuse, domestic abuse recognition and referrals require that the victim venture out and be seen by professionals, such as physicians, social workers, job co-workers, etc. With the lockdown, these vulnerable women may be trapped in a dangerous situation. Unfortunately, there are an estimated 14,500 to 17,500 sex slaves in the United States who are subjected to both “domestic violence” and forced abortions, and they, too, are trapped and unable to seek help.
The abortion controversy has played out in big corporate news alongside the coronavirus and human rights protests over the past few months. Most recently, the Supreme Court struck down a Louisiana law that mandated that doctors performing abortions must have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals. The ruling not only puts women’s physical health in jeopardy but fuels the growing mental health crisis in the U.S.
Especially in this time of unprecedented stress, financial strain, and uncertainty, we need to focus on offering pregnant women safe, comprehensive alternatives to abortion instead of more abortion services, especially considering these reasons:
Abortion is associated with higher instances of anxiety and depression.
A 2018 comprehensive literature review of both pro-life and pro-choice affiliated studies objectively concluded that “abortion is consistently associated with elevated rates of mental illness.” Another study found that the depression scores of women who had an abortion were 91% higher one year post-abortion and 118% higher two years post-abortion.
Abortion is associated with an increased risk of suicide.
A 2019 study published in the journal Archives of Women’s Mental Health, which studied women in Italy who had had abortions, found that their suicide rate was more than twice the suicide rate of women who had instead given birth. In contrast, pregnancy is correlated with a decreased rate of suicide.
Abortion disproportionately affects women of color.
Women of color are 5 times more likely than white women to terminate a pregnancy. Women of color are also half as likely to receive support for mental health issues as white women. Many of the underlying factors behind these statistics are the same. Various social, financial, and systemic barriers prevent black women from having access to adequate mental healthcare, and these barriers also lead women to believe that abortion is their only option. In my experience as a physician, this is often because they do not realize that comprehensive support services exist that enable them to keep their pregnancies while also being able to work and afford medical care, as well as find childcare and housing.
Abortion increases the risk for postpartum mental health issues after future pregnancies.
Pregnancy loss of any kind, including abortion, miscarriage, and stillbirth, increases the possibility that a woman will suffer from a mental health disorder if she carries a future pregnancy to birth. A 2012 study in the Journal of Women’s Health found that “women with a history of pregnancy loss are at increased risk for depression and anxiety, including post-traumatic stress disorder, after the birth of a child.” Abortion is a trauma, and the emotions involved with trauma can be triggered by future pregnancies.
It is critical in this time of stress, grief, and increased physical health risks that our country’s leadership support laws that ease the burden of mental health issues among women. Many women are deceived into believing abortion is their only option, leaving them with dangerous and lasting emotional scars. Our laws and resources should be dedicated to making life-affirming options more available to more women.
Dr. Scott French is a board-certified emergency medicine physician with more than 20 years of experience in over 20 states. Dr. French is also the national medical director for Human Coalition’s national network of life-affirming brick-and-mortar and virtual clinics.
