This is an interpretive research, whit a qualitative approach whose objective was to analyze the experience of women in the decision of induced abortion. We interviewed 19 hospitalized women undergoing abortion in March-August 2013, in a maternity hospital, in the city of Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. The discourse analysis was based on methodological references of Grounded Theory and Symbolic Interaction. Results revealed that when women suspect pregnancy, they underwent several diagnostic tests to confirm it. This confirmation made them to experience negative feelings, which were associated to the recognition of abortion as the only possible alternative. The main reasons cited by respondents to finalize the pregnancy were financial difficulties and the kind of loving relationship. It is expected that the results obtained in this research can broaden the discussion on the phenomenon of induced abortion, reducing the social stigma imposed on women who do it
abortion; induced; women´s health; Public Health