*WINNER* The Lost Male Partner in the Post Abortion Experience

Abstract

Approximately one in four women in the US have an abortion (Jones, 2017). Recent studies addressing the post-abortion period have documented the involved parties re-experiencing the abortion, avoiding pain caused by the event or developing feelings of guilt or anxiety. These symptoms are termed post-abortion syndrome (Speckhard, 1992). There is an abundance of literature surrounding post-abortion syndrome experienced by the woman; however, the literature is slowly recognizing the effects of abortion on the male partner. Nearly fifty percent of men in a longitudinal study experienced relief and happiness with their partners’ decisions to abort, when surveyed at four and twelve months post-abortion (Kero, 2004). In a case study addressing one male’s experience after discovering his partner had an elective abortion, the participant voiced feelings of “voicelessness and worthlessness.” It was recommended that male partners be offered counseling resources post-abortion in addition to the female (Holmes, 2004). A literature review of men’s experiences surrounding abortion largely evaluated the subjects during or twelve months after the abortion experience and discovered a spectrum of feelings from relief to grief and sadness (Coyle, 2007).  In addition to the robust data from the literature, I interviewed a local clinical expert in the field, the expert stated that post-abortion syndrome signs and symptoms were not commonly observed until five to ten years post-abortion. The existing research needs to be further expanded to allow for a post-abortion syndrome timeline equivalent to what experts witness in the field.