Abortion regret is a myth. Irish women don't need laws to make them reflect' on their choices | Roe McDermott

Ireland’s Dáil rejected a Social Democrats amendment that would have removed a mandatory three-day waiting period before abortion care. Supporters said the delay has no medical purpose. During debate and media coverage, defenders of the waiting period offered limited medical justification and instead argued that women should not be trusted to decide for themselves. The waiting period was repeatedly described as a cooling off period for reflection and reconsideration. Opponents of reform framed the state’s role as slowing, supervising, and warning women against their own emotions. The argument centered on preventing regret, portraying women as vulnerable and incapable of making decisions, while regret itself was characterized as ordinary, nuanced, and not necessarily all-consuming.

"Supporters of the unsuccessful reform bill, tabled by the Social Democrats, argued that the delay serves no medical purpose. As the bill moved through political debate and media coverage, those defending the requirement to wait three days from the time of requesting an abortion before care can be accessed barely attempted to argue otherwise, instead structuring their opposition to reform around the idea that women cannot be trusted to know what they want."

"The waiting period, which is not required in most European countries, was repeatedly described as a cooling off period; time to reflect, reconsider, rethink. Supporters of the status quo spoke extensively of wanting to save women from feelings of regret. That framing is deliberate. In reaction to more accepting cultural attitudes around abortion, the modern anti-choice movement increasingly presents itself not as punitive, but protective."

"Women are no longer primarily portrayed as selfish or immoral; instead, they are framed as vulnerable, emotionally confused, incapable of making their own decisions. The role of the state, then, becomes one of slowing them down, supervising them, warning them against themselves. The concern, of course, isn't really regret itself. Regret is ordinary."

"Regret is ordinary. Adults regret relationships, careers, relocations, financial decisions, marriages, affairs, voting choices and, yes, even parenthood yet we do not build legal frameworks around the possibility that people may later feel ambivalence or conflict about their decisions. We also understand that regret isn't always total or all-consuming. Regret can be fleeting, it can dissipate, it can coexist alongside relief, self-compassion, happiness. People can regret certain aspects of a situation and not others. We understand and accept that regret is a nuance"

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