Reproductive Rights and Mental Health: Why Choice is Essential

The official American Psychological Association (APA) stance is that termination of pregnancy is a civil right. The APA maintains that everyone should have the right to self-determination, which includes autonomy and agency over their own bodies. The APA also understands reproductive rights to include access to sex education, affordable contraception, and freedom from sexual violence, which of course results in unwanted pregnancy. 

According to the APA, restricting access to abortion leads to mental health harm.

Specifically, women who are denied an abortion are more likely to experience higher levels of anxiety, lower life satisfaction, and lower self-esteem, whereas there is no research that suggests abortion is a cause for subsequent mental health diagnoses. 

The overturning of Roe v. Wade will not only force women to carry out unwanted pregnancies, thus denying women’s agency and autonomy, it will also result in the loss of life of women with both unwanted and wanted pregnancies that are nonetheless nonviable due to medical complications. Even in the case of exceptions for medical reasons, the lack of immediate access to abortion compromises women’s mental and physical wellbeing, sometimes costing women their lives. This has already occurred in a number of cases in the U.S. 

• Joseeli Barnica, a 28-year-old mother, died when doctors delayed treatment during a miscarriage days after Texas passed a six-week abortion ban. 

• In Texas, Nevaeh Crain, an 18-year-old, died after receiving delayed treatment after her third visit to an ER for a miscarriage. 

• Two women died in Georgia as a result of being unable to access legal abortions and medical care. Amber Thurman, another 28-year-old mother, was one of these women, whose last words, to her own mother, were, “promise me you’ll take care of my son.” The second, Candi Miller, was a mother of three. 

• Porsha Ngumezi, a 35 year old woman and mother of 2 in Texas died while miscarrying and not being able to receive a D&C due to abortion bans.

All of these women’s deaths were preventable. There are many more women, too many to list, who have lived, but suffered needlessly, with lasting impacts to their mental and physical health due to abortion restrictions. Many of these women are bravely going public to tell their harrowing stories. 

Abortion restrictions will not only continue to result in mental anguish and loss of life to women who are seeking or in need of an abortion, it will also increase maternal mortality. Prior to Roe v Wade being overturned, there was already a maternal health crisis in the U.S. Restricting abortions increases maternal mortality even further. 

In Louisiana, for example, Misoprostol, a drug used for medication abortion, as well as lifesaving purposes, most notably preventing women from dying as a result of postpartum hemorrhage, which is the number one cause of postpartum mortality, will now be labeled a controlled substance meaning that it will no longer be kept in emergency carts.

An "emergency cart," also known as a "crash cart" or "code cart," is the mobile medical cart that is stocked with essential medications, supplies, and equipment and used to rapidly respond to critical medical emergencies, like cardiac arrest, allowing healthcare professionals to immediately begin resuscitation efforts when needed. 

Additionally, obstetric units are losing healthcare providers, and in some cases closing, because providers do not want to be faced with the impossible choice of being forced to allow patients to die from treatable conditions or face jail time for providing care. 

I have seen many clients who have wanted or needed abortions. Clients who became pregnant unexpectedly. Clients who, like many women who are seeking abortions, elect to have one so they can better care for their existing children. Clients who very much wanted to be pregnant but terminated for medical reasons after learning of serious medical complications. 

I personally experienced difficulties expelling fetal tissue during a miscarriage and went to the ER. Because I, and my clients, reside in CA, we had options. I was not turned away from the ER. I was evaluated and had all of my options presented to me. My clients and I were allowed the agency and autonomy to make decisions for ourselves and our circumstances. The ability to do so should not depend on where you reside. 

Because of reproductive rights including access to sex education and contraception, I was able to pursue my education, establish a career, and have children because I wanted to, when I was ready.

I hope my own daughter’s, all our daughter’s, are able to access reproductive rights including freedom from sexual violence, access to sex education, contraception, and abortion. I hope they are seen as people, worthy and deserving of these rights, freedoms, and autonomy. Not only is their ability to pursue their dreams at stake, their very lives are at stake.

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State Abortion Policies and Maternal Death in the United States, 2015‒2018

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