It wasn't completely unbearable although I wouldn't want to do it again

My Experience of An Early Medical Abortion at 7 Weeks

I had found out about my pregnancy by chance. I was due to come on my period two weeks before going abroad and was concerned when I hadn't and that I would start my period whilst away. I thought that my period may have been delayed due to stress but something in the back of my mind was telling me I needed to rule out the idea that I was pregnant first.

I did the pregnancy test and within twenty seconds it was showing up positive. I was absolutely terrified. Both I and my partner spoke it through in length and decided that this just wasn't right for us at this time. I booked an appointment with my GP for a couple of days later.

During this time I was in a complete state. I couldn't stop worrying, crying or scouring the internet for experiences. I found both negative and positive and was ready.

I went to my GP where I explained that I'd had a positive pregnancy test and would like to go through with a termination. He asked me for my reasons but was incredibly kind, caring and in no way judgmental. He referred me to my local clinic who were run by the NHS.

Two days later I received a call to advise that I had my initial appointment two weeks later. Although I was relieved that the ball was now rolling I was still absolutely petrified.

My first appointment was incredibly positive. I was met at the clinic by lovely women who were friendly and caring - they were singing to the radio which put me at ease. I was given a booklet to read through whilst I waited to get called in.

I was initially called in to get a scan. I was advised at this point I was around 6 weeks + 4 days. I was then called in a second time to speak to a doctor who asked my reasoning behind wanting to get the termination, any previous health issues, blood tests and offered me a choice of three different procedures.

As I was under 9 weeks I was able to choose a medical abortion and to pass the pregnancy in the comfort of my own home. I was given two appointments for the next week where I would receive my first set of pills on one appointment and my second set of pills on the next day. This initial appointment was over in around an hour and I felt a huge sense of relief.

The appointment which had been booked for the first set of pills was over in around 5 minutes. They are given orally and I was able to go back to work to carry out my normal day-to-day activities. I had no side effects other than feeling slightly nauseous but that could have also been down to the pregnancy symptoms too. I would've now been 7 weeks.

On the day of the second set of pills, I was incredibly nervous. I had read so many horror stories and was absolutely petrified of how it was going to go. I was brought into a room where two ladies explained the procedure in detail and I was given 4 pills to dissolve under my tongue. I was then able to go home straight away.

The pills took around half an hour to dissolve and I was already cramping quite a lot by this time and I was very uncomfortable. I then began to vomit pretty violently which is a common side effect of the pills and the pain was quite extreme. I would say they were about a 7/8 out of 10 and not completely unbearable but very unpleasant.

I began passing relatively large clots and bleeding quite heavily. The worst of it was over in around an hour and I went back to normal period-type cramping and no longer felt sick. I spent the rest of the day in bed and opted to stay home from work for the second day to recover - however, I could have probably returned.

A week on I carried on bleeding but no longer have any pregnancy symptoms at all. So, I would say that although the main 'passing of the pregnancy' was pretty horrible and unpleasant - it wasn't completely unbearable although I wouldn't want to do it again.

I hope this puts a few minds at ease.