Brian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The submission stated:

Her mother spoke about her daughter's grief. Cases such as these would suggest that abortion may have a negative rather than a positive effect on some women's mental health.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists investigated whether abortion harms women's mental health in its systematic review in 2011. This is a review of all high-quality studies, the results of which are then collated statistically to provide a total overview. It based its results on four studies. It found that the mental health outcome was the same whether the pregnancy ended in birth or abortion. In other words abortion made no difference to the outcome. Some researchers challenge this. [I am giving a balanced viewpoint as Senators will appreciate.]