Experiencing grief after abortion – but afraid to share

Women who experience post-abortion grief say it’s a pain often not recognised and a hard thing to talk about
ABC News 10 July 2021
Jessie O’Brien had a 10-month-old baby at home and was weeks into a new job when she became pregnant for the second time.

“Going from one to two so soon was very daunting. I didn’t have a great birth experience with my first either so that was still lingering in my mind,” Ms O’Brien said.

She spoke about it with her partner at the time and, at seven weeks into the pregnancy, decided to have a medical termination in June 2013.

“It’s quite a physical process, you’re still very aware that your body is aborting a fetus. It’s a period on steroids essentially.”

While Ms O’Brien still views the decision as a positive one eight years later, a “tinge of sadness” stays with her.

“When the physical symptoms subside you’re still left with wondering [about] the what ifs,” Ms O’Brien said.

She said the conversation and language around abortion had made her termination — and the grief that followed — a hard thing to talk about.

61-year-old Marie* had her first and last pregnancy in 1979.

Four decades after her abortion, she is coming to terms with the fact she will never be a mother.
READ MORE: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-07-10/women-who-experience-post-abortion-grief-say-pain-unrecognised/13186692

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