Post-Abortion Period Delay: What to Expect & When to Worry

Question
i had a medical abortion in the second week of october and now it has been seven weeks and still no period!!!!!  is this normal?????i have taken a pregnancy test on yesterday and it showed that i was not pregnant but i am constantly feeling a few pregnancy symptoms like the bloating, very very light cramping, and food cravings.  but at teh same time i know that i am not b/c my first pregnancy i had implantation bleed and with my last pregnancy (that i ahd the abortion with) i had implantation bleeding. i didn't see it (i faithfully checked everytime) and for some reason i didn't get my period and i am waiting for it.   for one day i even had nausea, breast tenderness, and lower back pain.  so my question is......is this normal??? and what does the body go thorugh when it comes to the physical healing after a medical abortion.  plaease help me out asap!!!  thanks

Answer
Don't worry, everything you are experiencing is completely normal.

It's still very early after you abortion, so the level of pregnancy hormones in your system is high. This will cause all types of pregnancy symptoms like cravings, bloating, frequent urination, false positive pregnancy test (up to 8 weeks after an abortion), nausea, breast tenderness, unpredictable periods (heavy or light or spotty or late or early or even missed). Many of these symptoms will only go away about 3-4 months after your abortion. It takes 6 months for the pregnancy hormones in your body to be completely eliminated.

In the meantime, try not to worry too much, and keep using protection when you have sex because you never know when you will ovulate. Your menstrual cycle will be completely out of whack for up to six months after the abortion.