“The most loving decision a mother can make”: Using EMDR to reduce internalized abortion stigma within TFMR parents

People who have abortions often experience a unique type of stigma around their decision to terminate their pregnancy. Abortion stigma, which originates societally, can be internalized into a person’s overall concept of self, resulting in negative self-beliefs and distressing emotions of shame and guilt. For parents who terminate wanted pregnancies for medical reasons (TFMR), these negative thoughts and feelings can impede their ability to access much-needed social support while grieving. The following case study demonstrates how phase five of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), an eight-phase trauma intervention, can be utilized to restructure a TFMR parent’s negative self-beliefs rooted in internalized abortion stigma. This cognitive restructuring can result in decreased shame in telling the whole story of their loss, allowing TFMR parents to be better socially supported while mourning their baby. As reproductive rights continue to be rolled back across the United States, clinical modalities that directly target internalized abortion stigma, like EMDR, may be increasingly necessary.

Journal

English

Lauren Redding

Redding, L. (2026, February). “The most loving decision a mother can make”: Using EMDR to reduce internalized abortion stigma within TFMR parents. Studies in Clinical Social Work: Transforming Practice, Education and Research