Unfortunately, much of the research on women's psychological responses to abortion can be confusing. The time of greatest distress is likely to be before the abortion. While some women may experience sensations of regret, sadness or guilt after an abortion, the overwhelming responses are relief and happiness. In another study, researchers surveyed a national sample of 5,295 women, not all of whom had had abortions, and many of whom had abortions between 1979 and 1987, the time they were involved in the study. The researchers were able to learn about women's emotional well-being both before and after they had abortions.
Stress associated with abortion is acute stress, typically ending with the procedure.
Comprehensive reviews of this literature have recently been performed and confirm this conclusion. For the vast majority of women, an abortion will be followed by a mixture of emotions, with a predominance of positive feelings. The experience of having an abortion plays a negligible, if any, independent role in women's well-being over time, regardless of race or religion. Due to the political bias of these counselors and their misuse of psychological services, women can be left feeling angry and betrayed. Russo and Dabul8 concluded that practitioners should acknowledge the detrimental effects of the social ostracism felt by abortion patients.