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How many relationships stay together after abortion?
Everything feels aligned. You and your partner have found a rhythm—whether that’s career growth, parenting, financial challenges, or simply enjoying life as it is. Or maybe your relationship is a little rocky and unpredictable, but you can’t imagine life without them. Either way, your future feels clear because you have each other…until the unexpected pregnancy changes everything.
You might be considering abortion to make sure nothing comes between you and your partner. But you’re wondering if you make this decision, is it promised that your relationship and the future you’ve built will last? Here’s what you need to know about how abortion can affect your relationship.
Having an abortion will not guarantee saving your relationship, future goals, or dreams.
Maybe your biggest concern about pregnancy is how it will affect your relationship if you choose to keep it. Whether your relationship is rocky, you’re focused on your careers, your finances aren’t where they need to be, or you already have children you’re caring for, it’s normal to be anxious.
The truth is, whether or not you stay together depends on the quality of your relationship, not the presence or absence of a child.
Ask yourself, “which decision am I more likely to regret down the road – choosing to end a pregnancy or trying to take control of the future of my relationship?”
Will having an abortion hurt my relationship?
Abortion may seem like the perfect fix to this unexpected situation, but the truth is an abortion won’t fix all of your problems. In many cases, it might only magnify them.
One study found that nearly 50% of relationships experienced significant changes after abortion. Relationships were reported to be a lot harder, with more conflict and less mutual trust. What are some of the things that make relationships after abortion hard?
1. Mental health
Every woman experiences abortion differently. Some feel relief, while some feel great grief, anxiety, and depression, whether immediately after or years down the road.
A study by Cambridge University shows that women who have an abortion are 81% more likely to experience mental health challenges.
Unmarried women have reported significantly higher levels of anxiety and depression after abortion.
It is not certain how either partner will feel after abortion.
You can learn more about what it might look like emotionally after abortion in our article: “How Does Abortion Affect Mental Health?”
2. Built up resentment
Choosing abortion for your partner can lead to built-up resentment. Built-up resentment can quickly create tension and negative feelings towards one another. Whether the choice of abortion is mutual or not, it always affects more than just you.
If you choose an abortion for your partner, you may feel anger or betrayal towards him afterwards. If you have an abortion without the knowledge of your partner, he may feel a loss of control and pride. Both of these situations are breeding grounds for resentment.
Harboring resentment can seep out in unexpected ways. This might look like frustration or anger, less empathy, or emotional withdrawal. Resentment never builds up your relationship; it only tears it apart.
3. Quality of the relationship
The quality of the relationship deeply affects the direction your relationship takes.
If you have a supportive and stable relationship, coping with abortion may be more bearable. Relationships that are already complicated or experiencing disconnect often have a greater likelihood of experiencing depression, conflict, sexual dysfunction, and separation.
Not all relationships end after abortion. Many couples work hard to make it through their differences and stay together. It just takes a lot of work and time.
Abortion may not only affect your relationship with your partner but your family, friends, and potential future relationships as well. Read more about in our article: “How Abortion Affects Relationships.”
What will ensure my relationship will last?
The only way you can be sure you and your partner will stay together is if you have a healthy relationship. And sometimes even healthy relationships come to a mutual ending.
Talk to your partner and discuss your fears about your relationship. Discuss where you see the relationship going. Try to come to a mutual agreement on what to do about the pregnancy.
Sometimes seeking outside help allows you to see things more clearly. Marisol offers professional counseling and family support services to help you be sure about your relationship and your pregnancy decision together.
Get Support and Answers Today
At Marisol Health, we provide a wide range of women’s health services, behavioral therapy, and family support services.
This decision doesn’t have to be made from a place of fear, and you don’t have to make this decision alone. Our compassion and professional staff at Marisol Health would love to be a listening ear and offer the education and resources to support you.
No matter where you are in life or what you are feeling, you do not have to navigate this decision alone.