Post-Abortion Bleeding & Cramping: What's Normal?

Question
Hi.
I had a surgical abortion 2 weeks ago. I was 5 months along.  I was bleeding normally the first week after and i had moderate to heavy cramping and small clots. Now this past week my bleeding is on and off. somedays i will not bleed for the whole day, but then at night i would start cramping really bad and my flow would be heavy. then in the morning it would stop. And there was no clotting this week until today when a huge one came out in the shower. Is the bleeding supposed to be this irregular? When can i expect it to stop? and i been taking my antibiotics but the doctor also prescribed Methergine to help the uterus contract back to its normal size. Will that medication make me stop bleeding faster?

Answer
Hi, Tiffany,

You had a very late abortion, and these are known to be dangerous. No telling how things will settle down for you. Your body has been seriously disrupted. There isn't really any issue of what your body is SUPPOSED to do. Your body was supposed to stay pregnant, but all that has changed. The main thing I would worry about is how you will handle the situation if you bleed heavily when you are out and about or in another inconvenient place. Hopefully the medication will prevent that.

The only way you will get any real answers is to see a doctor. I don't know if Methergine will help or not. Only time will tell. You might want to find out more about Methergine. Here is a link that will tell you more: http://www.drugs.com/pro/methergine.html .

I can tell you that it is common for a woman to have more contractions when she's tired, so the fact that you have cramping when you are in bed like that doesn't surprise me. Also, you may have taken Methergine before going to bed, and that could make a difference. And this will produce blood, which will then come out when you are standing up. That part doesn't seem to be overly serious. But I don't know what other repercussions there might be. So again, your best bet is to see a doctor. Don't go to the person who did this abortion. Go to someone else.

I hope things settle down for you. Please let me know what you find out, and take care of yourself.