Search

Positive Experience: My Medical Abortion

by MK

August 11, 2020

I promised myself that if I had a good experience I would share it. So here I am.

I found out I was pregnant on a Monday. I was working from home, and was feeling really tired and a little crampy. My period was late but this wasn’t a weird thing for me, it wasn’t a very consistent cycle. I had been on and off BC pills since I was fourteen to treat acne. I knew I had a pregnancy test under my sink and thought, “Why not?” I took the test and walked away to do something else. I came back and boom PREGNANT. My heart sank to my stomach, and I called my fiancé right away and told him.

We want kids, and had always talked about kids. When he got home we talked about it a little more and what our options were. I am going to be honest, I have also supported the thought of an abortion, there is nothing wrong with planning when you want to start your family. But I never thought I would get one myself.

The following day, I just could not stop crying, I knew I wasn’t ready to be a mother. I knew that we were not financially ready to have a baby. And with the pandemic still in its prime, I wasn’t sure how much longer I would have a job. When my fiancé got home, we sat on the couch and talked it over. We ultimately decided on abortion. I booked an appointment at my local Planned Parenthood and started the process.

The day of the appointment, I was so very nervous. Like we all do, I googled a little too much. I came across stories of women who endured tremendous pain during their medical abortion (pills). My head was filled with all the horror stories and nothing really uplifting, I decided to do it anyway. I walked in, gave a urine sample and then sat in the lobby to wait. I had no idea what to expect.

Once I was called back, I was greeted by the kindest MA. They took my vitals and began to ask me all the questions, so many questions. Next was the ultrasound to see if I was able to go through with the medical abortion (pills). I opted not to see the ultrasound, and not to know how many weeks along I was. After a really long wait for the NP, I was given the first pills you take at the clinic, and the sealed pill bottle that you take 24-48 hours after the first pills.

During the first 24 hours, I felt completely fine, maybe a little crampy. Next came the scary pills, the ones that I read terrible stories about. I was so nervous to take these pills, I told my fiancé I was going to wait to take them until he got home, just in case I needed to go to the hospital. I didn’t wait for him, I was way too anxious, I grabbed the pill bottle and popped them into my mouth. I decided to just lay down in my room where I could be close to a bathroom.

I kept waiting for the horror to happen. It never did. Within the first 2-4 hours of taking the pill I started to spot a bit, then about 5 hours later (10pm) I felt a little nauseous. I puked once. Had diarrhea once. And I didn’t bleed heavily at all.

I had a check up appointment 2 weeks after the initial appointment, and they told me that the pills were successful. I was no longer pregnant. I felt like I got my life and body back.

If you are nervous about going through with medical abortion, don’t be. You can do it.  You are stronger than you think!

Remember that our stories are ours to tell. We’d love to hear your story too!