QuestionI recently made an appointment to have a medical abortion, my appointment is on March 3rd. I think I'm about 5 weeks at the moment. Well, I was told there is a small chance my uterus might not expel all of the tissue right away, and if they see this when I go for my follow-up ultrasound 2 weeks after I take the pill then they will have to do a surgical abortion to remove the rest of the tissue. They also told me I should not get a medical abortion if I would not want to get a surgical one incase this happens. Well, from what I've read on this site other people have been given even more of the abortion pill if this was the case, and I've seen the doctor say you can also just wait for the tissue to pass on its own time. So, is my clinic just telling me this so they can get another $400 for a surgical abortion, or would I really need to get one? Couldn't I just take more of the pill at least? I really don't want to commit to a surgical abortion because they scare me a lot, and please don't tell me it's not that scary because I know what I can handle and I know I would have a panic attack before I even entered the room. I don't want to take this pill, have it not work, and end up having to do something I'm absolutely TERRIFIED of.
AnswerDear Shannon,
There is a very small likelihood of needing a surgical abortion. The abortion pill is made up of mifepristone on the day of your visit, and then misoprostol taken at home on the next day. If the pill doesn't work, you can repeat the misoprostol several times until it works. It is only about 1% or less who would need a procedure. Since you feel strongly about medical abortion, I would recommend that you take your chances. You are very early, so it should work.
I don't know where you live, but the best places to get the best early abortion methods is earlyabortion.com. If you are lucky enough to live near one of these doctors offices, they would not charge your for completing a failed medical abortion, and they offer a much better option of the nonsurgical aspiration procedure instead of a surgical abortion. The aspiration procedure is better than a surgical abortion because there is no scraping, no machine, and no need to be put to sleep.
I hope this is helpful,
Doctor Joan
EarlyAbortionOptions.com
New York City
