Written by Marion Scott, Chief Reporter at Scotland’s national newspaper The Sunday Post, June 13, 2021.
The trauma endured by young women forced to give up their babies for adoption left a lifelong legacy of anguish, a leading psychologist warns.
Dr Cynthia McVey spent decades supporting the victims of the forced adoption era which saw 60,000 mums bullied into giving up their babies because they were not married.
She is now seeking a meeting with government ministers to find a way forward for the women and the children they were forced to give away after MSPs last week urged Nicola Sturgeon to offer the victims a formal, official apology. The first minister promised to look into the situation. …
… continue reading the full paper on The Sunday Post.
And, did you know that:
- since many of those women were given DES to “cope with their condition” – see Marion’s note below.
- since DES has many mental health issues reported – see related studies.
- then, it is probably reasonable not to exclude a “cocktail effect” – or “domino effect” – and increased mental health issues for those women…
Related Tweets
The Scottish Parliament will debate historical forced adoption this week.
Campaigners seek a formal apology from government. This already happened in Australia in 2013, helping women to heal and access dedicated support for their disenfranchised grief. https://t.co/lD3KjKs22B https://t.co/wGS4UPNHGf
— Monica Lennon MSP (@MonicaLennon7) June 13, 2021
Forced adoption: Psychologist warns of legacy of pain and a lifetime of heartache… https://t.co/evpDoWqVuq via @Sunday_Post
— marion scott (@ladymcbeth2) June 13, 2021
My member’s debate on historic forced adoption will begin after the conclusion of 5.30pm decision time in @ScotParl tonight. https://t.co/XbSR7EAOqi
— Monica Lennon MSP (@MonicaLennon7) June 16, 2021
For many women this period in our history destroyed their right to a family life.
We cannot right the wrongs of the past, but the Scottish Government can say sorry and support everyone whose lives have been affected. https://t.co/Tl480udOos
— Miles Briggs MSP (@Miles4Lothian) June 16, 2021
A DES word, from Marion Scott, Investigative Journalist
Marion Scott image courteasy of democratonline, 2020.I know many of those mums were given DES to suppress their breast milk and very little awareness has been raised on the effect this may have had on them and their future children.
I’m hoping to reach out to see if anyone is aware of this, and is willing to share info or an experience so we can shine a light on what was done to so many women and children, and the lasting effect.
My email is here and I’d very much like to hear from anyone if they can help give voice to this.
DES DiEthylStilbestrol Resources
- DES studies (listed by topics and dates).
- DES videos playlist on our YT channel.