Consequences of
Abortion Stigma

There are many physical and mental consequences to abortion stigma.

Abortion stigma is a “compound stigma”

(Kumar et al., 2009)

Abortion stigma builds on and interacts with other modes of structural and institutional injustices and discrimination

(Kumar et al., 2009)

At its core, abortion stigma and resulting poor care, loss of status, and discrimination violates women’s* most basic human rights, including the right to be free from gender-based discrimination, the right to privacy and the right to the highest attainable standard of health

(LeTourneau, 2016, p. 1).

*Most abortion research and reproductive healthcare has focused on heterosexual cisgender women. The transgender, nonbinary, and gender-expansive population who are intersex, or were assigned female at birth, have abortions, experience pregnancies, and need as comprehensive sexual and reproductive healthcare (Moseson et al., 2020). Additionally, cisgender sexual minority women (non-heterosexual women) are often overlooked in abortion research (Moseson et al., 2020).

“Abortion stigma serves to erase and disguise a legitimate medical procedure, discredit those who would provide or procure it and undermine those who advocate for its legality and accessibility”

(Kumar et al., 2009, p. 634).

Physical / Medical Ramifications of Abortion Stigma:

  • Health and medical complications

  • Public shaming

  • Verbal, physical, and emotional abuse

  • Community exclusion

  • Mistreatment in the workplace or school setting

  • Denial of medical services or accurate medical information

  • Steep fees for services

  • Poor quality of services

  • Delay of care

  • Isolation

  • Forced to resort to self-induced abortion or unsafe avenues to get an abortion

  • Death

  • Suicide

  • Mistrust between physicians and patients

  • Economic and financial consequences

  • Due to abortion being underreported, misleading data may be used to create laws and policies and impact funding

(Berglas et al., 2017)(Kumar et al., 2009)(Moore et al., 2021)(O’Donnell et al., 2018)(Tierney, 2019)

Mental / Emotional Ramifications of Abortion Stigma:

  • Can instill fear

  • Create psychological distress

  • Isolation

  • Low self-esteem

  • Pervasive secrecy

  • Unnecessary stress

  • Fear of disclosing about one’s abortion

  • Denial

  • Guilt

  • Forced into silence about one’s abortion experience due to discourse around abortion being deeply polarizing

  • Mental and emotional exhaustion due to the social process of navigating which spaces are safe

  • Loss of relationships with friends, family members, and romantic partners

  • Loss or absence of social support

  • Internalized beliefs of negative stereotypes and attitudes, leading to self-stigma

  • Shame

(Cockrill & Nack, 2013)(Harris, 2012)(Kimport, 2012)(Kimport et al., 2011)(Sperlich et al., 2020)(Turan & Budhwani, 2021)