What Happens to Your Body After an Abortion? | Embrace Wichita

If you’re facing an unplanned pregnancy, it’s essential to learn about how it could affect your body to protect your health.

Read on to learn more about the possible physical risks of abortion. Or, if you want to talk to someone about your pregnancy and options, contact Embrace to schedule a no-cost, confidential appointment.

Physical Risks of Abortion

Abortion comes in two primary forms: medical (also known as the “abortion pill”) and surgical.

Medical Abortion

Medical abortion happens at home. It involves taking two powerful drugs that work together to terminate the pregnancy and expel it from your uterus.

After taking the abortion drugs, you will experience abdominal cramping and vaginal bleeding. However, you might also experience one of the following risks to your physical health:

Incomplete abortion, which is when parts of the terminated pregnancy remain in your uterus
An ongoing pregnancy if the procedure doesn’t work
Heavy and prolonged bleeding
Infection
Fever
Digestive system discomfort

Surgical Abortion

Abortion providers perform surgical abortions in a clinic. The procedure involves dilating (opening) your cervix so that medical instruments—like suction and scraping tools—can enter your uterus to terminate and remove the pregnancy.

Surgical abortion is associated with the following risks:

Uterine perforation (which is when a medical instrument pokes a hole in your uterus)
Uterine scarring (this can make periods painful or cause future infertility)
Infection
Cervical damage

How to Protect Your Health

Before seeking an abortion, it’s critical to receive a ultrasound. This simple scan protects your health by giving you the following essential information:

Pregnancy age: Certain abortion options, like medical abortion, are only FDA-approved if your pregnancy is 10 weeks gestation or younger. If you attempt to take the abortion drugs and your pregnancy is further along, this puts you at a greater risk of experiencing physical complications.
Pregnancy location: Although rare, a pregnancy can grow outside the uterus. This is known as ectopic pregnancy, and it’s a life-threatening emergency that needs immediate medical intervention.
Pregnancy viability: Roughly 26% of pregnancies end in miscarriage. A ultrasound can help determine if you’ve had one. If so, you will need medical follow-up to ensure you don’t experience a complication.

You’re Not Alone

Facing an unplanned pregnancy can feel overwhelming, but you’re not alone. At Embrace, we’re here for you. We offer no-cost pregnancy resources, including limited ultrasound, to help you have the resources and information you need to make an informed decision.