Martha Shuping, M.D., M.A.
Contact: martha.shuping@gmail.com
A recent study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry online claims that abortion does not increase the risk of suicide. If only that were true. The study by M. Antonia Biggs and colleagues (May 24, 2018) used data from the University of California San Francisco's Turnaway Study. But the results are very questionable because they are inconsistent with many other studies, and the final results of this study are based on only 18% of the original sample.
Date posted: 2019-04-22
As a university student in the early 1970's, I was taught that motherhood could be a barrier to women's success in life, and that abortion was necessary for women's happiness and fulfillment. At the time I entered university, abortion was not yet legal through most of the United States, and this teaching was not based on research, but on unproven theory. Today, research shows a different picture.
Date posted: 2019-04-20
A recent study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry online claims that abortion does not increase the risk of suicide. If only that were true. But we lack information on 82% of the women who either declined to participate or dropped out. The results may be meaningless if those women included those who were most distressed.
Date posted: 2018-06-14
People experiencing PTSD typically have intense distress when encountering anything that reminds them of the initial trauma. Those experiencing PTSD typically shun people, places or things that bring back painful memories and avoid thinking about the past trauma. This may be an explanation for the increased substance abuse during subsequent pregnancies. The baby and the pregnancy experience may be a reminder of the pregnancy that ended in abortion, and intensely painful emotions can be triggered.
Date posted: 2012-12-28
Many women experience unwanted abortions under conditions of varying degrees of pressure, coercion or force. Many women experience uninformed abortions, with very inadequate counseling if any. These women have no awareness about possible harmful effects of abortion, no information about the full range of options available to them regarding babies they want, and no information about their own risk factors for possible adverse reactions.
Date posted: 2012-01-30
For decades, abortion has been viewed primarily as a women's issue, so the focus of research has been primarily on the effects of abortion on women, with fewer studies considering the effects of abortion on men. But research shows that in 95% of abortions, men are involved in the abortion decision. So it is important to understand the ways in which men are being affected by abortion. Current research confirms that men are impacted by abortion, and that abortion also affects the relationships of couples.
Date posted: 2011-11-27
The growing weight of scientific studies and the voices of women themselves tell the story of abortion as a life-changing, adverse experience for many. Relying on Dr. Martha Shuping's experience as a psychiatrist, we can describe the psychological impact of abortion through the lens of her clinical counseling and the emerging scientific literature.
Date posted: 2011-04-10
The EUROPOP data (2004) shows that "previous induced abortions were significantly associated with preterm delivery and the risk of preterm birth increased with the number of abortions." More than 50 published studies to date, from more than twenty countries, show that induced abortion is significantly associated with preterm birth. Many large studies involving hundreds of thousands of cases show the risk of preterm birth increased with increasing numbers of abortions.
Date posted: 2010-04-25
The presentation is something a little different, taking the issue of forced and coerced abortion especially and tying it in with UN documents that say women should be "fully informed" and be free from coercion or violence in making their "choice." I included all the references at end, so I hope it will be useful. The assigned topic was actually women's mental health after abortion, but one of the reasons women's mental health is impacted by abortion is that many women are aborting wanted babies.
Date posted: 2010-04-10
Only in vacant policy debates and politically sanitized clinical studies do abortion's effects on women seem minor and unworthy of recognition. The real voices of many women tell far different stories - stories of life-altering experiences marked by a profound sense of loss and the need for spiritual and emotional repair. Maria put it this way, "The day that my baby died I realized that I had died, too." She is not alone. Maria and many others like her deserve our acknowledgement, our help and our love.
Date posted: 2010-04-08
The existence of a growing abortion recovery movement, with thousands of support groups and programs from which to choose, testifies to the need women have to grieve for their loss while offering true hope that healing can take place. Only in vacant policy debates and politically sanitized clinical studies do abortion's effects on women seem minor and unworthy of recognition. The real voices of many women tell far different stories - stories of life-altering experiences marked by a profound sense of loss and the need for spiritual and emotional repair. Maria put it this way, "The day that my baby died I realized that I had died, too." She is not alone. Maria and many others like her deserve our acknowledgment, our help and our love.
Date posted: 2009-02-21
According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) "approximately 324,000 pregnant women are abused each year in the United States" and "the severity of violence may sometimes escalate during pregnancy or the postpartum period" (ACOG, 2012). Male perpetrators of IPV were more likely to have been involved in three or more pregnancies ending in abortion. Thus, “violence can lead to pregnancy and to subsequent termination of pregnancy, and ... there may be a repetitive cycle of abuse and pregnancyâ€.
Date posted: 2008-11-24
Many studies have shown significant associations between induced abortion and drug and alcohol abuse.
Date posted: 2008-11-22
I've been asked to speak as a psychiatrist concerning the numerous grassroots abortion recovery programs that exist to help women, men, and families heal after abortion. If you've already been involved with the growing abortion recovery movement, you can readily understand why a psychiatrist might be involved in abortion recovery. For those who are only now learning about abortion recovery, I'll explain the connection by starting with a true story of one of my first patients.
Date posted: 2008-10-20
The EUROPOP data (2004) shows that "previous induced abortions were significantly associated with preterm delivery and the risk of preterm birth increased with the number of abortions." More than 50 published studies to date, from more than twenty countries, show that induced abortion is significantly associated with preterm birth. Many large studies involving hundreds of thousands of cases show the risk of preterm birth increased with increasing numbers of abortions.
Date posted: 2008-05-20
More pain was reported with medical abortion both during the abortion and during the follow up period.
Date posted: 2008-01-08
A large body of research from diverse locations including U.S., U.K., New Zealand, Finland and other places shows that abortion is associated with a worsening of physical and mental health, and the death rate is higher for post-abortive women. There is no evidence to demonstrate that abortion is a safe and effective treatment for clinical depression or suicidal thinking, and no actual studies to establish under what circumstance it saves lives if ever. Until further research is available to show the health benefits of abortion, it is inadvisable to rush toward legalization when the risks to health are so clear and so serious. Childbirth is much safer than abortion.
Date posted: 2008-01-02
Many young women, including the young teens who will be able to access medical abortion without their parents knowledge under the draft Guideline, will be led to believe that medical abortion is easy and safe, as easy and safe as taking a tablet. Yet if women were given accurate information about what they could expect to experience, they might well choose differently.
Date posted: 2007-12-09
Early preterm infants, those born before 32.0 weeks gestation, comprise only 15% of the premature population, but experience 80% of the neonatal deaths. Early preterm infants also constitute a majority of those with serious disabilities, including mental retardation, epilepsy, blindness, deafness, lung infections, and cerebral palsy.
Date posted: 2007-12-07
Research shows that a high percentage of women are likely to have some symptoms of posttraumatic stress after abortion. Even those having only some symptoms but not meeting all criteria may still experience significant distress. They will continue to remain at risk for developing full criteria posttraumatic stress disorder when exposed to other stresses later in life. Those who develop posttraumatic stress disorder often have symptoms that are very long-term, and this disorder is a predictor of poor general health. Comparisons with other groups give an indication of the magnitude of the stress that many women experience from abortion.
Date posted: 2007-11-24
Studies show that women who have had abortions have a higher rate of drug and alcohol abuse compared to women who have not had abortions. Even more troubling is an increased rate of drug and alcohol abuse during pregnancy. Research also shows the drug and alcohol abuse occurs abuse occurs after abortion rather than before the abortion.
Date posted: 2007-11-20