Publications by authors named "E Pleasants"

With drastic changes to abortion policy, the months following the leak and subsequent decision in 2022 were a uniquely uncertain and difficult time for abortion access in the United States. To understand experiences of challenges to abortion access during that time, we used a hybrid inductive and deductive thematic coding approach to analyse descriptions of barriers and their impacts shared in an abortion subreddit (r/abortion). A simple random sample of 10% of posts was obtained from those shared from 02 May 2022 through 23 December 2022; comments were purposively sampled during the coding process.

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Article Synopsis
  • The Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision in June 2022 increased uncertainty and delays in accessing abortion care in the U.S., prompting a need for research on individuals' experiences during these wait times.
  • An analysis of posts from the r/abortion subreddit revealed that wait times for starting abortions ranged from one day to over a month, primarily due to appointment availability and shipping delays for medication.
  • Participants expressed significant emotional stress during the waiting period, including feelings of anxiety, fear, and isolation, highlighting the need for additional support and timely access to care.
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Objectives: Time is a crucial factor in abortion-seeking because options for care change with pregnancy duration, and most people prefer to access abortion care early in pregnancy. We aimed to collect data on the timing of steps in accompanied self-managed abortion-seeking experiences in legally restrictive settings.

Methods: In this prospective, observational, cohort study we recruited callers from three abortion accompaniment groups in Argentina, Nigeria and a country in Southeast Asia.

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Background: Contraceptive choice is central to reproductive autonomy. The internet, including social networking sites like Reddit, is an important resource for people seeking contraceptive information and support. A subreddit dedicated to contraception, r/birthcontrol, provides a platform for people to post about contraception.

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