QuestionQUESTION: Hello dear Pat G !
I`m 21 years old. I had a abortion On 3rd November 2009.16 days ago. Pregnancy was 5 weeks. everything done,I am all right. now I want to ask What health care should I do. Should I take another ultra sound now to check everything is clear or not? what precautions should i do regarding health? What are the expected risk after abortion of 5 weeks baby to a lady.I have heard the chances of breast cancer and cervical cancer are high after abortions. What cares should I do in health, excercise etc.Which things should I avoid to do.
I need your post abortion counselling.
I want your suggestions and tips.
I'll be very thankful. May God give you success and a good life.
God Bless you
ANSWER: Hello, dania,
Thank you for the kind wishes.
You haven't said what kind of abortion you had. I need to know that to tell you some of the things you need to know.
You really should have a doctor check you out. He may want to do an ultrasound. Don't go to anyone who helped you get an abortion.
The chances of breast cancer are much higher after any abortion. If you have close relatives who have had breast cancer, you will probably get it. Don't get mammograms. See if you can find someone who will do thermograms for you. The best remedy against breast cancer, I'm told, is Vitamin D-3. You can get information about this on the internet. If you need help finding this information, let me know.
There are risks to your future children. If you had a surgical abortion, you are at risk for miscarriage or very premature birth. As a result, you will need to get prenatal care and tell your doctor that you have had a surgical abortion (if that is what you had). If you had a pill abortion, please let him know that as well. In the case of a surgical abortion, the doctor may need to fasten your cervix shut to protect your baby. There are also problems at the time of birth, and some of the complications that can happen may require you to have a Caesarian section. Very little is known about the consequences of a pill abortion to future children. You also need to be aware that your chance of having a tubal pregnancy is greatly increased. If you become pregnant and start to feel pain (especially on one side) at about 4-6 weeks, it can be an emergency, so get medical help right way, especially if the pain suddenly stops. At that point, you will need immediate surgery to save your life. The baby cannot survive.
The information I have is that abortion does make cervical cancer more likely. This is caused by the disruption of hormones that abortion causes plus the damage to the cervix. There is also an increased risk of liver cancer.
You will be a high risk patient when you give birth in the future. You will need to find a good doctor and hospital; do not attempt to have your baby without medical help.
There are also emotional risks. They can be significant, and can lead to violent death. You should get some post-abortion counseling for the emotional and spiritual problems. Unfortunately, I have no information about any organizations in Pakistan that offer this kind of counseling, but you can get it through email. To make contact with a person who can counsel you by email, please go here:
http://www.pregnancycenters.org/contact.html
Please do this right away and don't wait. There are just too many ways a woman can decide to try to hurt herself after abortion.
Be sure and eat a healthy diet, and get a reasonable amount of exercise, but take it easy for a couple of weeks until you are past the immediate consequences of abortion.
You can come and ask questions or talk to me here any time. Let me know what kind of abortion you had, and let me know how you do. May God bless you.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: First of all Thanks a lot for your kind advices and suggestion.
Im sorry to say that I dont know what type of abortion i had. because I didnt have any info about it before this incident happen. I had a induced abortion and that was not pill abortion. Dr told us that pregnancy is 5 week. so we cant abort it by pills. so it was surgical.I think it may be Menstrual Extraction (endometrial or vacuum aspiration or Dilation and Evacuation (D & E).After that I took medicines regularly and not in touch with that lady doctor.
need your kind help. it is illegal in our country.
thankls for your help and guidness.
Best Wishes ,
regards.
AnswerHello, Dania,
You're welcome.
Yes, what you had would be called menstrual extraction (D & E is used much later in pregnancy). Unfortunately, the apparatus they use for this type of procedure is very difficult to sterilize, so one of the particular risks you should watch for is infection. Unfortunately, pills will only work for certain kinds of infections. I imagine they gave you an antibiotic. This only works for bacteria. But infections are also caused by viruses and fungus and all sorts of other things. There aren't any medications commonly given that help these types of infections. But you need to find a decent doctor and have it checked out.
It is unfortunate that you felt you had to take this terrible risk, especially since it is illegal. This makes it much harder to get decent care afterward.
I still urge you to get some email counseling through http://www.pregnancycenters.org/contact.html . They will have medical personnel they can consult for specific problems, and they are very kind and will help you through whatever you are facing.
It is on my heart that there should be organizations in Pakistan that will help, but for the moment, I am not aware of any. You may be able to get a referral to a doctor by contacting a church (especially a Catholic church). I realize most of the people in Pakistan are Muslim, but don't be afraid of them. They are people of the book, and they will give you a good referral. Please take care of yourself.
May God bless you.
