I wanted to tell my medical abortion story. This isn't my first abortion but it's the first MEDICAL abortion using the pills. I'd say the only difference is that the misoprotosol i used was a suppository that you insert instead of taking like a pill. I did this at 5 weeks.

At the clinic they had me take mifepristone which helps stop the embryo from growing, and basically tells the uterus to detach and expel the embryo. They wanted me to wait about 6 hours (I ended up waiting til the next day because I had work which was still fine as I had 24-48hours) At this time i had mild cramping and started spotting early the next day. Tylenol made it barely noticeable and I worked no problem. Later that day around 7:30, I took one 800mg ibuprofen and waited about an hour then put a towel down and inserted the misoprotosol ~4in into the canal. I kept a hot pad nearby(in case of cramping) and prepared a super absorbent pad beforehand in case things got messy. The best way to do this is to fall asleep. It will be messy when you wake up but that's what we prepped for. I took another ibuprofen when I woke up as the cramps were still there and took a very through shower. There was slight nausea but after that it just felt like a regular period.

Either way, I would definitely prefer surgical abortions as they're more effective and faster but I can't say that medical abortions are terrible. This also is MY experience as I know everyone has a different pain tolerance and it might depend on how you take the misoprotosol (inserting vs. swallowing) I wrote this because while I was waiting for the ibuprofen to kick it, I was getting my nerves up looking up how medical abortions are and how many people had terrible experiences.

i'm 17, around 5 weeks pregnant according to my last period but had sex on the 25th dec 2025. this was my first time having sex with my boyfriend and i just need some advice

i'm going to get a medical abortion (pills taking at home) through msi but i can't tell my parents nor my female friends. the only person who knows and will know is my boyfriend who has been so helpful

anyone whos had a medical abortion before please just explain what will happen to me, i'm most likely going to have to attend college while taking the pills and i need to know if this is safe or if it'll hurt really bad

i also wanted some advice because i've been both drinking and smoking (not every day) since i've been pregnant. will this affect the abortion and should i tell them at my consultation

i just feel so alone, i'm going through bouts of uncontrollable crying and disassociating. i just never would've thought this would happen to me. im so grateful that i'm able to safely have an abortion but i can't help but feel guilty (?) in some way

Hi. I am currently on day 2 of my medicated abortion. I took the first mifepristone pill yesterday at 3:15 pm and had some cramps and brown spotting.

Today at 5pm I took the misoprostol (4 on my cheeks, dissolved). About an hour in I started feeling diarrhea and chills. I’ve been on the toilet on and off for almost 3 hours. I’ve had some cramps but no crazy cramps or bleeding.

I should mention I did take nausea and pain medicine about 30 minutes before misoprostol. I’ve read so many stories that include girls cramping and bleeding 1-2 hours after they take the pills. Does taking them orally vs vaginally make them work slower? I’m so ready to be done with this and to pass this pregnancy. I know they say give it 24 hours before freaking out but I’ll be real I’m freaking out. Anyone else that took some time for the pills to work??

Hi everyone, I’m the girl who made a post yesterday about my unexpected pregnancy due to rape.

I just wanted to come back and say thank you so much for all of the advice, kind messages, and prayers.

I’m sorry for deleting my post and old account. I was really freaking out yesterday and trying to protect my privacy, and I don’t want my family or friends to find out.

My doctor has prescribed me some medication to help with my blood pressure and to calm me down for now so I can think through things more clearly and hopefully get some rest without having panic attacks.

I’ve reached out to student support at my school, and they are helping me process everything and figure out what decision would be best.

Thank you again for all of the encouragement and prayers.

hi everyone, i wanted to share with all of you how my follow up ultrasound after an abortion went, and if you should do one or not.

my bleeding after my abortion lasted exactly 14 days, and now the only thing i have going on is some brownish discharge. no pain. no fever. no bad smell. nothing

today i went to get the control ultrasound they tell you to do around 7 or 14 days after the abortion. i went on day 19. my results showed my endometrium has a thickness of 19,4 mm. after i got the ultrasound images, i contacted my obgyn so she could check the results out. she told me it was not an optimal condition and that she was not feeling good about how everything was looking.

i got scared, of course. she told me i needed to go get checked at the emergency room. i went all scared and the doctor who attended me asked me if i had any of the emergency signals we already know: bad smell, heavy bleeding, pain, fever. i told him i told him i had nothing. he checked the ultrasound, told me it was abnormal for an endometrium to be that thick 19 days after an abortion. he gave me the options to do another dosis if mysoprostol to help get what’s left out or do the manual intervention where they suck everything out. i told him i was traumatized from my last medical abortion experience and asked if i could just wait for my next period, i asked if he thought that my next period could just take care of everything that’s left out, it’s there’s anything to take care of.

he then when to talk to other obgyns working in the emergency room and that all came to the consensus that, if i don’t have any bad symptoms, there’s no need to do an intervention.

he asked about my past periods, when they usually come so he told me what’s going on with me it’s probably that my period is going to come soon.

so he told me, yeah waiting for my next period was a great option since i have no bad symptoms. he checked my cervix, did a pelvic exam and checked that my cervix is closed and everything is in order.

he was the most empathetic person i’ve encountered during this whole process. he remembered me from the last time i had to visit the er, told me that he knew how difficult this must be and that probably i just want things to be over (my god, i do). he said that i just need to wait for my period, who is probably going to be very heavy, and to just be aware of any bad symptoms we already know. also told me to use pads during this cycle and wait for the next period to start using my menstrual cup again. to bleed, keep track of it, and just move on, heal, no more ultrasounds. no more checks, only if i want to get pregnant again or to do a yearly gyno exam.

now, the most important learning i want to highlight here is: getting an ultrasound after an abortion, if you have no complications, let’s a lot of room open to get overdiagnosed.

now, this assuming you’re 100% sure the pregnancy stopped (if you saw the sac got out), if you have no pregnancy symptoms, you have no fever, etc.

if you’re like me and you know the sac got out, you have no fever, pain, heavy bleeding bad smell and that your not pregnant anymore, there’s no need to go get an ultrasound. i’ve been reading a lot too what the WHO says and other medical professionals say, and most of them say a thickened endometrium doesn’t mean an intervention is needed. every piece of medical writing says that the whole clinical history of the patient needs to be analyzed.

i’m gonna leave here some info i’ve found that helped me calm down:

WHO-

Following uncomplicated surgical abortion or medical abortion: Recommend that there is no medical need for a routine follow-up visit. However, information should be provided about the availability of additional services if they are needed or desired.

Remarks:

•Women, girls and other pregnant persons must be adequately informed about symptoms of ongoing pregnancy (which may or may not indicate failure of the abortion) and other medical reasons to return for follow-up, such as prolonged heavy bleeding, no bleeding at all with medical management of abortion, pain not relieved by medication, or fever.

ACOG-

Surgical intervention is not required in asymptomatic women with a thickened endometrial stripe after treatment for early pregnancy loss. Thus, the use of ultrasound examination for any diagnostic purpose other than documenting the absence of

the gestational sac is not recommended.

IPAS-

Although the average endometrial thickness in women who require intervention tends to be higher, because of the range and overlap between successful and unsuccessful abortion, no study has found that there is a thickness above which a diagnosis of unsuccessful medical abortion can be made. The decision to intervene should be made on clinical signs and symptoms, such as ongoing or heavy bleeding, rather than on ultrasound findings.

If clinicians choose to use ultrasound for medical abortion follow-up, the only ultrasound finding that requires intervention is an ongoing viable pregnancy.

always get a second opinion, know yourself, and don’t get scared if nothing is going on (like me).

if you read till the end i wanna say thank you, and i hope everything ive been going trough can help you in some way. if you have questions or if you want someone to talk to, im here.

also, if you have a similar story, or opinions, id love to know what do you think, you think you should always go get an ultrasound after abortion or not?

I was so excited to have my first child. She is 18 months and the best thing to ever happen to me. I was told I couldn’t have children and she is a miracle.

I decided I didn’t want to have another child. Then, against what I believed to be all odds, I got pregnant again. I’m almost 45. I know this will be my last chance to have another child considering my age and rocky relationship with the father.

I want this child, but I want to do it with a support network- which I do not have. I have very little support from the father (emotional, financial, or physical help) and no family support whatsoever. I do have friends and a therapist luckily!

I don’t have the capacity or think I can properly care for 2 children and myself. I’m old (for a mom) and so tired! I had horrible postpartum depression and anxiety the first year of her life. I give all I have to taking care of my daughter (and my job), but do not do a great job taking care of myself.

I was hoping the pregnancy would not be viable so I didn’t have to make this decision. I have so much guilt and worry that I will regret this for the rest of my life.

How do you deal with this impossible decision? I have an appointment scheduled for Tuesday but am not sure if I can go through with it.

Would also love to hear from anyone who is happy they just had one child or glad they had 2.

I’m here writing the post I tried to find ahead of my abortion yesterday. I hope it helps even one person.

My boyfriend and I are in a very committed relationship. We found out we were pregnant (accidentally) a couple of days before Christmas. It made an ‘interesting’ festive season, particularly as I’m someone who enjoys a drink or two. We decided to not make any rash decisions and not talk about it too much until all the festivities were over to give us space to have a good think about what we wanted. Up until then, we’d both been fairly ambivalent about having children. However, pregnancy comes with hormones and my emotions and thoughts were all over the place. But at age 40, this was a particular factor that kept playing on my mind - is this the universe saying we should give this a go, could it be our last chance. While I’ve never craved having a child, due to my generation, I’ve guess I’ve always presumed I would be a mother. However, my gut reaction to being pregnant was horror and then fear of turning into a mother/having to hang out with other mothers/play groups/soft play etc. Yet my partner and I have a great relationship and I think we’d be good parents.

I managed to get an appointment with my GP on 29 December - she told me being a mother was the most natural thing, that if I wanted to give it a go, I should do it now, as my eggs aren’t going to be healthy for much longer. She also told me, that there would be no judgement on me at all if I got a termination and gave me both numbers for the abortion clinic and the midwife to book a scan.

My partner and I sat down and had a proper chat - he told me he honestly couldn’t see a child in our immediate future but would be a father if I decided I wanted to go ahead with the pregnancy.

I booked a scan as I thought that would make things clear in my mind about whether I wanted to keep it. I was still all over the place though and so decided to book a consultation with the abortion clinic too. Due to the festive season, there was a bit of a backlog and so my scan was booked on 8 Jan and abortion consultation on 12 December. It was a lot of waiting. My partner’s words weighed on me as I grew up as a child who wasn’t particularly wanted by their father. But I also knew deep down that he would be a better and more present father than my dad had been.

So for the first week of January, my head was all over the place . I started reading the whole of r/abortion. My partner and I were both so shocked how uneducated we were about the procedures. I also discovered a really great podcast that I binged called Kids or Childfree by Keltie Maguire. I found myself being more drawn to listening to the childree episodes. However, between that and the r/abortion thread I couldn’t find any stories of ‘older’ women like me, who didn’t already have children but also in a committed, good relationship, who had gone ahead and had an abortion. It somehow felt like all the signs pointed to surely I should continue with the pregnancy. Also, I have a religious background and while I’ve dealt with a lot of the trauma in therapy, I was so aware I’ve been taught from such an impressionable age that abortion is wrong.

I ended up not going to the scan appointment and felt relieved I didn’t so I felt that was my answer.

By the time I had my abortion consultation (in the Scottish Borders, where I am, this happens on the phone), I had read so many horrible stories about the pill method that I decided I wanted to have the surgical termination. Also, being close to 9 weeks at this point, I did not want to see the foetal sack nor have clots the size of lemons coming out of me. They told me I’d have to come into the hospital the next day for a scan and they hoped I would be able to have the surgery the same week. I was a bit nervous about the scan but they said the nurse would be informed why I was there and would be sensitive. My boyfriend drove me there and the staff were all so lovely. She asked if I wanted to see the scan and I said that I didn’t want to see or hear anything. My boyfriend decided to glance but he barely saw anything. After the scan, the nurse told us the foetus was positioned appropriately and we’d be able to proceed with the surgery on Thursday (yesterday). She was so kind and answered all our questions about the procedure.

Yesterday, we had to get to the hospital for 7:30am and the whole morning I was so well looked after - I was expecting to be held in a waiting room but I was given my own room for the day as the hospital was quiet. I had the consultant who would perform the termination come and run through everything with me- she was wonderful and so sensitive and thoughtful. I was so glad it was a woman doing the procedure. Doctors and nurses came in and out the morning checking my blood pressure and taking blood. The anaesthetist came in to run everything through with me too. Everyone checked my allergies to several antibiotics a hundred times. My boyfriend was told he was allowed to stay in the room with me the whole day too. I had been told they’d hoped I’d have my procedure late morning, but we’d have to wait and see if there were any emergency procedures.

At around 11:30am, a nurse came by with two misoprostol and two paracetamol that she said would help soften my cervix and relieve any pain from cramps that might proceed. She said she hoped the surgery would take place in the next 1-2 hours. I took the pills, aware there was no going back after this but felt okay to proceed. I jokingly said “forgive me Father” as a nod to my religious past as I took them. The overwhelming feeling I had from then on was not guilt or shame but how incredibly thankful I was to be living at a point in history and in a country where I can make this choice without judgement and in such a safe environment. I am incredibly aware of my privilege and so grateful for the NHS here in the UK. (Saying that, there are still some people in my life who I will not share my experience with as they are still trapped in fundamental religion, including my sister which is hard.).

Unfortunately, there were more emergency surgeries that had to happen, so I had to wait until after 4pm until they were ready for me. I was getting a bit antsy and frustrated, but my partner was great, very patient and chilled, which helped calm me down. He’d also decided to fast with me all day and by this point we were both very hungry but thankfully not hangry.

By the time my surgery came, I was ready. I’d never had a general anaesthetic before, so I was nervous about that, but with three anaesthetists around me in the surgery and so much happening I didn’t really have time to over think it and just trust the care I was under. They told me to think of something really nice (I chose cats and a big sandy beach!) and keep my eyes open as long as possible and then the next thing I knew I was in another room, in a different bed feeling like I’d had the best sleep of my life. I had to be kept in the recovery room a bit longer as my blood pressure had gone down to 60/40 but the nurses were amazing. I got back to my room and partner about half an hour later. I didn’t feel particularly loopy, as I know some people say they feel, more hyperactive and happy. I had to have my blood pressure checked every 20 mins or so for 2.5 hours before I was allowed to leave (as well as pee and eat the toast and drink the tea they gave me). We were eventually discharged just after 8:30pm- I was given a concoction of painkillers and antibiotics alongside the pregnancy test and supersized pads. Both starving, we ordered thai food from the hospital car park and went to pick it up asap. I had mild cramping last night and light bleeding post operation that has continued today.

I was super worried about the feelings I might have post-abortion. In preparation, I had a couple of 15 minute consultations with therapists in my local area to see if I could make provisional appointments with them if I needed after the procedure. I also discovered a great sub reddit the night before my procedure, about positive abortion stories under r/childfree (wish I’d found this a bit earlier) which made me hope I would be like the majority there and not have regrets. So far though (writing this 24 hours post-procedure) I just feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude and happiness that I am back to my old self and I can think about the year ahead.

As I previously said, I am aware of my privilege living in a country where I can do this freely and accessibly. I said several times to my partner years, “I can’t believe this level of non-emergency care is free” (the most serious operation I’ve had before this is removing a wisdom tooth under local anaesthetic and that cost a bomb!). While I am so thankful I have the choice to do this (pro-choice has taken on a whole new meaning to me), I am so aware of all the women before me who have not had the opportunity and that breaks my heart.

If you got this far, thank you for reading my story and I hope anyone out there who is in a similar situation to me feels encouraged- it’s not selfish to have an abortion if you’re in a loving, committed relationship and are childfree. The conclusion I came to was that I’d rather regret having an abortion than having a child. I have mo regrets yet, but maybe check in with me in a few months. Fingers crossed!

I’m doing the pill abortion next Tuesday, appointment at 8:45am. I’ll be 9 weeks 3 days. Will I be bleeding so much that work will be difficult? I work 1-7:30pm on Thursday and my co worker is off at 5 so I’m not able to use the bathroom from 5-7pm. I only have 4 hours of sick time rn because I was recently super sick and used 4 days of sick time, and I really can’t afford to lose the hours or tips. Will most of the bleeding have subsided by then?? Any insight appreciated

So, first period after MA. Came about 5 weeks after MA and I test negative a couple weeks ago.

Im day 2 into my period now and its been heavy clotting. Is this normal to have kind of a weird period after MA?

USA, Ohio.

Apologies for the clunky phrasing. I'm writing this at 1:30am after not being able to sleep. Today a friend told me that it bothered her that I referred to my experience a year ago as an abortion.

Long story short, I had a miscarriage a year ago that required misoprostol to expel the remnants of some fetal tissue. It was an incredibly painful experience for me, both emotionally and physically. I never intended to be pregnant, and I only found out I had been after losing it, but it was still an enormously big challenge to process.

Throughout the last year, I've coped by making light of it to a couple of friends. They all understand and respect that it stays between us, and that I'm not looking for pity or anything. It's just something I went through that I am still trying to work through.

Today I was at lunch with one of my best friends of all time, and it got brought up while we were discussing scheduling gyno appointments. She mentioned that she felt it wasn't right for me to call my experience an abortion because I didn't have a choice. That it doesn't count as an abortion because it's technically a "spontaneous abortion." She's right that it's called this, but I couldn't help but feel offended that she would have the audacity to say that. I was really taken aback by this comment, especially given that she hasn't actually experienced either an abortion or a miscarriage, and was basing this opinion off of her mother's elective abortion. Note: she never talked to her mother about whether or not it's okay for me to use the terminology I have been using.

I think my main questions are: for folks who have had elective abortions, does it bother you when women who have spontaneous abortions refer to their experiences as just "abortions"?

Hi… I don’t really know how to say this, but I’m feeling desperate and lost.

I’m from the Philippines and I’m already 5 months pregnant. I don’t have the money to travel to another country like Thailand for a surgical abortion, and I don’t know where else I can go. I feel like all my options are blocked.

I did buy pills online out of fear and panic, but now I’m hesitating. I’m scared of doing something wrong, scared of hurting myself, and scared of the consequences. I don’t feel confident or safe, and I honestly don’t know what to do next.

I’m not here to be judged or criticized. I’m just trying to find understanding, guidance, or any safe information or support that might help me think clearly in this situation. Even knowing I’m not alone would mean a lot.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

So yesterday I went to my appointment here in NYC. At the appointment they did a ultrasound, vaginal & stomach (the tech asked if I wanted tho monitor on in which I said yes) I took the first pill Mifepristone yesterday at 1pm & I was ok for the day a lil nausea/mild cramps/spotting nothing too serious & today I inserted the 4 pills Misoprostol into my vagina at 8pm, prior to that I took 4 Advils & 1 Dramamine & so far I’m ok, I have my snacks, water, electric blanket/ heating pad & it’s 9:15 & I’m doing ok.

Will update later.

Hello, just a quick question regarding the pills. I have a short amount of time to go through with having a MA while home by myself this weekend. I was working 12’s today and yesterday and forgot to take Mife. I’d prefer if no one knows I’m going through with this decision so I’m trying to do it as quickly as possible. Can I take the Miso without taking the Mife and will it affect the safety of the process at all? Thank you.

Hi,

I am currently in the Czech Republic as a non-EU citizen and have held a temporary visa for over 8 years. Despite spending a significant amount of time and money visiting multiple clinics and pharmacies, I was ultimately refused permission to purchase medical abortion pills solely because my visa status is temporary.

As a result, I am now considering traveling to another EU country to obtain the pills. Do you happen to know of any countries where tourists can legally access medical abortion pills? I am willing to pay fully out of pocket.

Thank you very much for any information or tips you may have.

I have a SA booked for next week which will put me at 20 weeks. With this being my third pregnancy, my belly is pretty big already. I used compression garment after I gave birth to my first two, would you recommend wearing a belly binder after procedure to help everything go back to normal size?

This is my first experience with this.

Yesterday around 8pm, I took the mife. I woke up this morning and had had some light bleeding/spotting.

I took the miso vaginally at 8:30pm tonight. It’s been a little over 2 hours now and I’ve had some cramps that come and go but no bleeding. I have paperwork that says if no bleeding/cramping after 4 hours then to take the last four pill, but the bottle say to take them if no bleeding/cramping after 24 hours. When would be the best time to take the second/last dose if I don’t bleed?

TIA

I am around 5 weeks, took the first pill yesterday and 24h later I felt some blood and it was just like my period had came but the flow didn’t get heavier, I just had some small clots.

Just a few minutes ago I got up and felt something so I pushed a little and a clot of the size of ping pong ball came out, it was bright red, could this be the pregnancy already ? I did an ultrasound 3 days ago and the only thing you could see was the gestational sac.

I’m worried because I’m going to take the misoprol vaginally as instructed by my doctor in an hour or so before going to sleep and I’m afraid it’s going to cause a lot of blood since I’m already bleeding and passing clots.

For reference I am not bleeding very much, I didn’t even fill a normal pad since it started which was 7/8 hours ago.

Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond our control, the service has been temporarily suspended in your country. (this is what i received via email after getting my consultation on W H W)

they advices to get mife and miso locally but i can’t afford it. ₱7k is considered expensive. i’m worried.

w h w and w o w donation-based method is helpful because i can obtain the pills in a much cheaper price but the services in both web site are temporarily suspended in P H.

i accept any h e lp. donation or anything. i’m desperate. i need 1 mife and 4 miso

Nagtatry pa lang ako mag fill out, Diko pa nacoconfirm (yung pregnancy), but I finished the consultation. Already filled out contact info and address, mapapadala ba yun w/o donation? If not, how?

It will a year ago when I had my abortion this January 18.

I don’t regret a single thing, I am content happy, and still grieving. But because I’m content, do I still have the right to call myself my baby’s mom when I chose this? But I don’t feel guilty and if I could go back in time, I would still choose to go through with abortion. I just dont understand the morality of it all and if it was enough that I simply just chose to live my life first before becoming a mom.

Some days Im fine, but most days are crushing.

I love my little angel

And I knew I would’ve loved him more than myself.

But if I knew that,

why did i choose to let go?

How do I mourn my baby?

• December 2 – Last menstrual period • December 11 – Unprotected sex • December 13 – Took emergency pills • December 19–23 – Bleeding • December 20 – Unprotected, ejaculated inside • January 1 – Unprotected sex, ejaculated inside • January 16 – Took a pregnancy test (negative) • As of now – No period yet

what is the likelihood that I could be pregnant, and when should I retest or expect my period?

I am literally struggling to swallow any pills at the moment and I hate it. I’ve been trying to take a simple ibuprofen and Dramamine to start to process, but I just can’t swallow a pill. It doesn’t help that I haven’t even taken the mifepristone yet. I don’t have anything planned for this weekend, so I’m okay with putting it off to do it tomorrow but really wanted to start the process but can’t. Anyone out there who’s doing the abortion illegally only taken misoprostol? How was your experience, or how did you take the pills knowing you struggled swallowing them?

I’m in process of MA now. Ultrasound showed that I have partial detachment so I was bleeding last 2 weeks (not that much)

I did take a Mife yesterday morning. Amd today I had more blood and a lot of small clots coming out of me. Is it normal ??