Post-Abortion Support Group

[schmutzie]

Has anyone come across or know of any post-abortion support groups for Thai people in the Bangkok area?

What I'm looking for is a group of Thai women that have had abortions and meet to talk and support each other.

PM if necessary.

[schmutzie]

Apologies, just realised that the topic title might seem a little mis leading. Should have been something like "Post-Abortion Support Group". I'm unable to correct that now.

[Sheryl]

I've edited the title for you.

I have not heard of anything like this and would be amazed if it exists. "Support Groups" in general are not common in Thailand and most Thais find the concept strange to say the least. Many western members of AA, for example, report that their wives are mystified at why they would go and discuss their personal affairs with a group of strangers, and the Thai-speaking AA meetings took quite a while to take hold here.

Also, if you mean induced abortion (as opposed to spontaneous or "miscarriage"), there is usually a sense of shame and secrecy around it which would further inhibit discussion with other than the closest friends.

I assume the question arises because the woman is suffering emotional distress after either an induced abortion or a miscarriage (spontaneous abortion). If so best bet would be a Thai counsellor (see pinned list of mental health resources). If it is grief after a spontaneous miscarriage, discussion with a monk (assuming she is Buddhist) may also be helpful. But not if it was induced, in that case, depending on the monk's personal interpretation of Buddhist canon, it could well make matters worse.

A course of Vipassana meditation might be helpful in either instance, see www.dhamma.org for a listing of 10 day retreats throughout Thailand.

Vipassana is quite effective if it is just a matter of coming to peace with a loss or with feelings of guilt over past actions. If there are complicated unresolved issues surrounding the how and why of what occurred (and there often are with abortion), Vipassana is still useful but professional counseling may also be needed to help her sort it all out.

[schmutzie]

Thanks Sheryl.

We're talking about induced abortion as opposed to miscarriage. Well aware of the cultural stigma surrounding terminated pregnancies in Thailand, which is why I was looking for somewhere to talk with strangers about this. Even close friends can turn out to be not so close when it comes to this issue.

Edited September 21, 2010 by schmutzie