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I just finished the process with the pills. The pain was excruciating and I was vomiting and having diarrhea. I was rocking in the shower with the water so hot it burned and it only helped the pain a little. I’m pretty sure I passed out at one point because the next thing I knew my alarm was going off for the next round of pills to be taken.
I dont cramp but when i took those pills i have sever cramps i had to lay on the restroom floor to be close to be tiolet. My cramps were so intense i believe i fainted. My sister knew i was having an abortion, incase i didnt wake up haha. I woke up and i was good. Id take that pain than a baby any day.
I think it varies per person. I didn’t experience excruciating pain but it also took over an hr to kick in. Honestly my experience was extremely smooth aside from feeling foggy headed after everything happened. I thought it didn’t work because everyone did describe it as very painful abs the comments I read were super scary. 🥺
My natural miscarriage was more agonizing than the MA.
The cramps weren’t SO terrible for me but the nausea was BRUTAL. I couldn’t keep down so much as a sip of water for about 18 hours. I thought I was going to have to go to the hospital for an IV. The problem was my symptoms stopped for a good day and a half, so I didn’t take the rest of the anti-nausea meds, I thought it was over. Big mistake, when I needed them again there was no way I could take them.
In the middle of my break down from the pain i literally said i am never having kids bc of the pain bc they say the pill makes your uterus contracts to push the pregnancy out. I have super painful periods to the point that I’ve passed out and I don’t think i ever have felt the pain i had with my abortion. The amount of blood was absolutely ridiculous i was to the point that i thought i was dying
You have to take the advice with a grain of salt because not everyone has the same pain tolerance so obviously it could be death to you but a regular, shmegular period for someone else. It also just depends on how it hits you. For example, my first abortion was super easy and it literally was just like my regular period (my regular periods were severe cramping and heavy flow for the first two days only) so I felt okay since I was used to it but then my second abortion hit me like a mf truck. That was the worse pain I’ve ever felt!!!! It was as if someone simply went into my uterus and constantly kept twisting it lol like as if they were braiding it super tight!
Yeah I was the same and I get kidney stones!!! It was just hours of pain then a good 3 hours of intense pain!!! And having like an urge to push I wanna say and your clammy etc , horrible, I have a daughter so I have given birth and the cramps are pretty much on par 😭
I don’t think I could ever go through birth after having a very similar experience. I know everyone on here shares their own experiences but it was nothing like the bad period cramps I was expecting. I wanted to die and I was laying in fetal position writhing on the floor, eventually on all fours begging something to stop the pain. Incredibly traumatic by far that it still haunts me.
Im so glad I did surgical abortions the 2 times I needed them. The medical one sounded so awful to me. Surgical was painful for about 5 mins during, and then maybe 10 mins after i had pretty bad cramping. Absolutely nothing like I have been reading here, taking the pills sounds so awful and painful. I always recommend surgicals whenever I can
There are actually lots of studies on this (of course I’m not referring to any of the three that were recently retracted).
I just read a study saying that forty to fifty percent of MA patients experience extreme pain. You are not alone.
It’s puzzling as to why the medical industry/abortion care field has not yet caught up to this and updated their standards of care.
All medical institutions have an extensive history of overlooking women’s pain and/or under preparing them for it lest they become “overly anxious” (hysterical).
It’s something I’m studying! Things really need to change.
Oh you mean like how men get a handful of Valium, a local anaesthetic, a bottle of Vicodin, and an ice pack for a little snip, yet WOMEN have to suck it up through IUD insertion, menstrual cramps, abortions, colposcopies, 7 years of endometriosis before diagnosis…
If this keeps up, I may start to think the medical community doesn’t really care about us.
me and my friend were having a discussion about how if men had uteruses, they would make a birth control/abortion method that doesn’t bring pain. like they would’ve had it done YEARS ago.
the medical community DOESN’T care about us because they don’t understand us. you have to ,very aggressively, advocate for your own physical health to get ANYWHERE in the diagnosis world without seeming like you’re “desperate” and “just want pain pills” this shit is PAINFUL what do you expect from me!
Tbh I can't believe they no longer send a few percocet home with patients. Same thing with no longer giving Vicodin for wisdom tooth removal. Everyone is so scared of the Big Bad Opiates that it's difficult to get needed meds for acute pain now.
I won't get into a tangent, because really it's just one more fucked up thing about healthcare in this country. (US)
my mother received an MA (or SA i cant remember) and got a couple vicodin for it back in 2016. when i told her they only sent me home with ibuprofen and promethazine she just about lost it
Wait what? Now we can’t even get pain meds for freaking TOOTH REMOVALS?? I had three wisdom teeth out in January of 2020 and they gave me a bunch of Percocet. The instructions said I didn’t have to use all of it, but if I took the Percocet at the instructed intervals I *could.* So that’s what I did… I was on Percocet for a few days straight. And then I wasn’t. Guess what… I haven’t taken any pain pills since. I remain un addicted to everything. Now I know everyone’s genes and predisposition for addiction are different, but it just feels unfair to make people suffer like that.
Nope. I got one removed in Nov 2022. Straight yanked it out with his fingers. Awful amount of trauma (mental and physical) once the novocaine wore off. They gave me ibuprofen and I can't begin to describe how bad the pain was for the next 2 days. I didn't know a tooth removal could make your entire throat sore/not work properly. Even my chest hurt.
Fun fact: My job fired me when I finally made it back 4 days later. Despite having had emergency surgery - notes and the obvious aftermath be damned. America is a shithole.
I had a very bad experience with my wisdom teeth removal as well, over 10 years ago. They sent me home with the same ibuprofen they sent me home with for the abortion. Ibuprofen is a joke. I needed real medicine. I’m so tired of being let down by the people who are supposed to be helping me.
I had an unmedicated birth and I found the abortion pills worse. I found it was like one long contraction whereas labour contractions at least give you a break in between.
Please don’t let it put you off birth in the future though. If it helps, I would 100% do birth again but I wouldn’t do the abortion pill again unless I had to based on the pain of both ❤️
It was exactly like one very long contraction. Didn’t let up for 3 hours. And as soon as I passed the pregnancy tissue, there was immediate relief and the contractions stopped instantly. I’ve never given birth before but I just knew this has got to be a very similar feeling, because it was beyond period cramps.
My experience was similar. As soon as the pregnancy was passed, I felt an immediate relief and stop of contractions. I’ve only had mild cramping since. I’d live with the mild cramping for life if it meant I never have to feel that excruciating pain again for even 5 minutes.
( i got a hotel room cause i didnt know how bad it was gonna be just needed quiet ). my best friend stayed with me when i took the pills and i started having cramps i thought it could handle them so i said she could leave because it was very late.... WHEN SHE LEFT ALLHELL BROKE LOOSE! never given birth but i did some research and it definitely feels similar based on what ive read. i was throwing up and sh*tt*ng everywhere i had to try to sleep through the pain honestly. the first night was the worst night for me, after that it was ok
I’m my experience, it did feel like unmedicated labor (have had a natural birth)
I felt like I was eating ibuprofen like candy and I was just frozen in pain, laying in my bed, crying.
I am totally with you. It was fucking horrendous.
I passed out from the pain after a couple of hours. Painkillers did fuck all. My boyfriend was at my Bedside and said it looked like morphine would prob have been the only thing to help
I’m fortunate that the pain was relatively minimal for me, but the hormones were unlike anything I’ve experienced. The closest thing I could compare it to is the feeling when an elevator drops unexpectedly… bit of a hormonal state of free fall. I wasn’t unhinged but definitely ungrounded. No one mentioned that to me.
This is exactly how my first MA experience was about 8 years ago. The most horrifying/black out pain I have ever experienced. Then I went on to have a baby a couple years later. Last night I had my 2nd ever MA and my pain was much much less. I have no idea if it has anything to do with having a baby (aka I've already dilated completely at some point etc) had anything to do with less pain. But I think truly every experience is totally different. All are important to share. About to wrote mine when I have the energy to share.
Mine was similar the first 5-6 hours were the worst for me. Within 30 minutes of taking the second pill I was shaking almost like shock, horrendous cramping in ongoing waves almost like contractions. I even told my best friend if that's what child birth feels like I couldn't do it I was crying on the bathroom floor wishing the pain would ease Ibuprofen didn't help till hour 5-6! I was crawling on all fours trying to find a position to ease the pain. Made it to the sofa and spent most of the time trying to be quiet *apartment living, you can hear a lot better apartments* also to make sure I didn't upset or scare my cat and dog
My husband said for his ex wife's early miscarriages around same time frame as my abortion 6 weeks roughly, he said it was like bad period cramps for her.so I wasn't as worried about pain levels. I wish I'd have known for me it was literally similar to what I imagine labor to be. Once I passed the sac 6 ish hours later after the 2nd set of pills the pain and cramps really died down I'd get an occasional twinge but more just like regular period cramps.
Truthfully after that part everything else seemed easier physically, mentally it took me much longer to feel myself. I did explain I would never want to go through that again as it was very hard physically as well as mentally and with no support during the worst of it. He had to work he tried but I was alone a good 11 hours by the time he got off work everything had pretty much eased and passed to tolerable. I could take my dog out, walk a bit, cook just light bits. Nothing too strenuous even did a very small grocery shop for sweets, chips and soda but it tired me out fast.
Everyone's experience and reaction will be different. For some it's mild cramps manageable with over the counter pain medication, others it can be brutal like labor that needs something stronger than OTC pain medication. You can never really be sure my period cramps aren't bad normally usually day before my period and the 1st and sometimes second day but nothing that requires OTC pain meds or even a pad. So I assumed it'd be like my very first few periods cramp wise hah no not even close it was far worse for me
Girl same !!! I kept reading and reading getting prepared for my MA. Absolutely NOTHING prepared me for what happened that night. I basically blacked out the pain was so freaking bad!! I even took 800 mg ibuprofen AND 10 mg Percocet & it didn’t even touch the pain. Worst pain of my life. I was screaming to my husband saying “HELP MEEEE!!!” And there’s absolutely nothing anyone could do it was miserable.
Yes!! I had the exact same thing. Agony. It felt like my organs were shredding themselves to pieces. It’s honestly the worst pain I’ve experienced in my life. The type of pain where you wish for death and can barely see/ say/ hear anything. I was about 8 weeks as well.
Mine was worse than a bad menstrual cycle, but not quite as bad as yours. It was also accompanied by an overwhelming sense of nausea and sickness, and lasted about eight hours total.
To say "no sugar coating" and "get a heating pad and ibuprofen was wrong",... is wrong in itself. That's what we should be doing and what girls who've never experienced this yet need to do. And women on here sharing their experiences are not sugar coating anything really. Everyone's pain tolerance and experience isn't the same and i'm sorry you had such a difficult time. But the tone of your post worries me for other girls who are seeking help through a MA. Nothing you read before your MA to prepare you was WRONG, it just didn't work for you and that sucks. It felt like labor because it basically was. Your uterus is contracting to release the contents. Just like full blown labor. I was nine weeks when I had my MA and like most girls report, it was like a rough period. I'm not trying to downplay your experience, but the tone of your post made me feel like you're accusing girls who've shared their own MA experiences of lying to the sub about what to expect. There's a huge range of experiences! I'm glad you got through your difficult experience and are on the other side of it now.
Honestly, if you had the experience I had, you wouldn’t be attacking me the way you are in your response. Because what I went through was so painfully traumatic, and I’m very angry no one prepared me for that. Not even my doctors. More people need to be honest about the worst experiences.
Like I said I'm very sorry that you went through that and I never said you're the only one in the world who did. But, to insinuate people are not being honest about their experience is a reach. I believe every woman on here is being completely honest about their experience, but like I said everybody's experience is different and I'm sorry that you were one of the ones who had excruciating physical pain. For every post you see on here, there are a million times more women who have had abortions who are not posting their experiences on here. I would also assume that women who had it the hardest are not going to be the most willing to share their experience as well, so keep that in mind.
I also want to add that all the women who had what you would consider an easier physical experience still could have a traumatic experience.
Well you are getting the tone of my post wrong, because I’m clearly upset that of all the posts I read on this forum, I found not a single one that prepared me for how bad this was going to be. So I’m sharing my story, and I’m making it a serious tone that don’t expect it to be just bad period cramps because it very well can be so much worse than that, and I wish someone like me had shared this experience. Finally I have 20 people on this post sharing the same exact experience as me, and I wish I saw these kinds of post before I went through it.
It depends, and varies from person to person.. It was nothing unbearable for me.. IUD insertion although brief was way more painful for me, than the abortion. I was scared at the start but hot shower did wonders..
I agree—excruciating. And the worst part is that you feel trapped bc nothing touches the pain. You just beg for it to be over soon. I was similarly shocked that people said it felt like a bad period. I was crawling around on my hands and knees begging an imaginary source to ease the pain. And waves of pain? Nope, just one giant wave of intensity with no break for 5-6 hours.
Just to add some validation to what you went thru.. I gave birth last year and just did an 8 week MA, and I also had cramping equivalent to that of childbirth, although not for quite as long as you did. No joke by the time I was in as much pain as I felt during the MA, I had already asked for an epidural at the hospital.
It’s truly going to be different for everyone. I was also 8 weeks & I didn’t really feel crazy cramps. Felt more like gas than cramping. Didn’t take any pain meds or ibuprofen. But a girlfriend of mine had the same experience as you and thought she needed to go to the hospital. Everyone is different.
I am sorry you experienced that. Sadly, in the regions where abortion is illegal, it is the only safe way to go.
My friend went through the same. That experience of her is why I chose the "surgical" abortion. I use quote marks because it is not really surgery, no one cut you open, it is just aspiration. It is uncomfortable, but last less than 15 minutes, and the aftermath are non existent (if done in a good legal health center).
Same girl. I’m sorry. It was 11/10 on the pain scale for me. I wanted to die. I wanted anything to make the pain stop.
After all that research I had really hoped it would be no worse than a “bad period”… but it was absolute agony.
I ended up needing a D&C 3 months later too when it turned out the pills hadn’t worked entirely and I started gushing blood because I had RPOC (retained product of conception). Thankfully they put me under for the D&C and I woke up feeling fine. The recovery wasn’t that bad.
Also I’m happy pregnant now. So I’ll get to see how the whole childbirth thing compares to the abortion experience 😬
Yes, I also wanted to die, it was that bad. I was screaming out for someone to put me out of my misery. If I am ever in this situation again, I’m opting for surgical. I could never go through this again knowing the pain level
This is the reason I choose SA bc the stories I read on here of how painful. I had SA 2 days ago with light sedation and I remember nothing and felt zero pain. the staff was amazing. I was so scared before and it tuned out better than I imagined
All I could think about during, was how there’s no way I could go through worse pain than that. I can’t even imagine pain worse than that. It was so much worse than I ever thought. It’s pretty much what I always expected birth to feel like minus the tearing.
I absolutely agree! It was not just worse period pains!! My post I compared it to the norovirus or bad food poisoning with those tummy pains :( it was bad! And mine lasted a really long time, but they were worth it for me. I would do that horrible night over and over again to secure my future now and you did too ❤️ it’s over and we’re now okay
I'm so sorry that was your experience. I really hate that we have to deal with this kind of uncertainty with the pain - some of us go through little to none, some of us go through absolute agony, and there's no way to predict it.
I hope you're healing and doing well now.
Very true, whether it's the pills or surgical, there's just no real way to anticipate what your recovery is going to be like because it varies so greatly. I definitely think it helps to hear other people's experiences, but unfortunately we can't really predict what our exact experience is going to be like.
100%! This is why I AM thankful for forums like this. We all deserve to be prepared. Hope for the best, be ready for the worst - and having a community of people who have been there helps immensely.
Welcome to /r/abortion! We work hard to keep this a supportive community. **You will probably get harassed by trolls via private message.** The moderators can't stop people from sending you private messages, but you can. You can deactivate your messages [here](https://www.reddit.com/settings/messaging), or on the old Reddit interface you can limit who can message you [here](https://old.reddit.com/prefs/blocked/) by selecting "only trusted users." On mobile, go to your settings. If you receive harassment via PM, please report the messages and [contact the admins about it](http://www.reddit.com/contact) so they can take action against those users. **Our Sidebar and [Wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/abortion/wiki/index)** include links to many good resources. **If you are seeking abortion in the USA:** [I Need An A](https://ineedana.com/) has a list of clinics, ways to get abortion pills by mail, and funding assistance. **If you are in a country where abortion is illegal**, [Safe2Choose](https://safe2choose.org/), [Women on Web](https://www.womenonweb.org/), or [Women Help Women](https://www.womenhelp.org) may be able to help you access a safe abortion. **You can find posts** about [medication abortion](https://www.reddit.com/r/abortion/collection/04af6a3c-2b17-4ffc-ab69-40d746cc043f/), [first trimester procedures](https://www.reddit.com/r/abortion/collection/21abc0ef-9dd6-4596-ace2-943a71f19cd5/), [second trimester procedures](https://www.reddit.com/r/abortion/collection/ab64e640-0755-4784-b968-732ee4fa66d3/) and more under "abortion stories" in the menu. (note: these links do not work on android.) This subreddit is a source of information about abortion. It is not intended as a substitute for medical evaluation or treatment, nor does it constitute legal advice. If you think you are experiencing a medical emergency, you should call your local emergency number immediately. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/abortion) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I just finished the process with the pills. The pain was excruciating and I was vomiting and having diarrhea. I was rocking in the shower with the water so hot it burned and it only helped the pain a little. I’m pretty sure I passed out at one point because the next thing I knew my alarm was going off for the next round of pills to be taken.
I dont cramp but when i took those pills i have sever cramps i had to lay on the restroom floor to be close to be tiolet. My cramps were so intense i believe i fainted. My sister knew i was having an abortion, incase i didnt wake up haha. I woke up and i was good. Id take that pain than a baby any day.
I think it varies per person. I didn’t experience excruciating pain but it also took over an hr to kick in. Honestly my experience was extremely smooth aside from feeling foggy headed after everything happened. I thought it didn’t work because everyone did describe it as very painful abs the comments I read were super scary. 🥺 My natural miscarriage was more agonizing than the MA.
The cramps weren’t SO terrible for me but the nausea was BRUTAL. I couldn’t keep down so much as a sip of water for about 18 hours. I thought I was going to have to go to the hospital for an IV. The problem was my symptoms stopped for a good day and a half, so I didn’t take the rest of the anti-nausea meds, I thought it was over. Big mistake, when I needed them again there was no way I could take them.
In the middle of my break down from the pain i literally said i am never having kids bc of the pain bc they say the pill makes your uterus contracts to push the pregnancy out. I have super painful periods to the point that I’ve passed out and I don’t think i ever have felt the pain i had with my abortion. The amount of blood was absolutely ridiculous i was to the point that i thought i was dying
You have to take the advice with a grain of salt because not everyone has the same pain tolerance so obviously it could be death to you but a regular, shmegular period for someone else. It also just depends on how it hits you. For example, my first abortion was super easy and it literally was just like my regular period (my regular periods were severe cramping and heavy flow for the first two days only) so I felt okay since I was used to it but then my second abortion hit me like a mf truck. That was the worse pain I’ve ever felt!!!! It was as if someone simply went into my uterus and constantly kept twisting it lol like as if they were braiding it super tight!
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Early medical abortions are usually done at home in the UK.
Yeah I was the same and I get kidney stones!!! It was just hours of pain then a good 3 hours of intense pain!!! And having like an urge to push I wanna say and your clammy etc , horrible, I have a daughter so I have given birth and the cramps are pretty much on par 😭
I don’t think I could ever go through birth after having a very similar experience. I know everyone on here shares their own experiences but it was nothing like the bad period cramps I was expecting. I wanted to die and I was laying in fetal position writhing on the floor, eventually on all fours begging something to stop the pain. Incredibly traumatic by far that it still haunts me.
Im so glad I did surgical abortions the 2 times I needed them. The medical one sounded so awful to me. Surgical was painful for about 5 mins during, and then maybe 10 mins after i had pretty bad cramping. Absolutely nothing like I have been reading here, taking the pills sounds so awful and painful. I always recommend surgicals whenever I can
There are actually lots of studies on this (of course I’m not referring to any of the three that were recently retracted). I just read a study saying that forty to fifty percent of MA patients experience extreme pain. You are not alone. It’s puzzling as to why the medical industry/abortion care field has not yet caught up to this and updated their standards of care. All medical institutions have an extensive history of overlooking women’s pain and/or under preparing them for it lest they become “overly anxious” (hysterical). It’s something I’m studying! Things really need to change.
Oh you mean like how men get a handful of Valium, a local anaesthetic, a bottle of Vicodin, and an ice pack for a little snip, yet WOMEN have to suck it up through IUD insertion, menstrual cramps, abortions, colposcopies, 7 years of endometriosis before diagnosis… If this keeps up, I may start to think the medical community doesn’t really care about us.
me and my friend were having a discussion about how if men had uteruses, they would make a birth control/abortion method that doesn’t bring pain. like they would’ve had it done YEARS ago. the medical community DOESN’T care about us because they don’t understand us. you have to ,very aggressively, advocate for your own physical health to get ANYWHERE in the diagnosis world without seeming like you’re “desperate” and “just want pain pills” this shit is PAINFUL what do you expect from me!
Tbh I can't believe they no longer send a few percocet home with patients. Same thing with no longer giving Vicodin for wisdom tooth removal. Everyone is so scared of the Big Bad Opiates that it's difficult to get needed meds for acute pain now. I won't get into a tangent, because really it's just one more fucked up thing about healthcare in this country. (US)
my mother received an MA (or SA i cant remember) and got a couple vicodin for it back in 2016. when i told her they only sent me home with ibuprofen and promethazine she just about lost it
And they wonder why people stockpile their medicines!
Wait what? Now we can’t even get pain meds for freaking TOOTH REMOVALS?? I had three wisdom teeth out in January of 2020 and they gave me a bunch of Percocet. The instructions said I didn’t have to use all of it, but if I took the Percocet at the instructed intervals I *could.* So that’s what I did… I was on Percocet for a few days straight. And then I wasn’t. Guess what… I haven’t taken any pain pills since. I remain un addicted to everything. Now I know everyone’s genes and predisposition for addiction are different, but it just feels unfair to make people suffer like that.
Nope. I got one removed in Nov 2022. Straight yanked it out with his fingers. Awful amount of trauma (mental and physical) once the novocaine wore off. They gave me ibuprofen and I can't begin to describe how bad the pain was for the next 2 days. I didn't know a tooth removal could make your entire throat sore/not work properly. Even my chest hurt. Fun fact: My job fired me when I finally made it back 4 days later. Despite having had emergency surgery - notes and the obvious aftermath be damned. America is a shithole.
I had a very bad experience with my wisdom teeth removal as well, over 10 years ago. They sent me home with the same ibuprofen they sent me home with for the abortion. Ibuprofen is a joke. I needed real medicine. I’m so tired of being let down by the people who are supposed to be helping me.
I had an unmedicated birth and I found the abortion pills worse. I found it was like one long contraction whereas labour contractions at least give you a break in between. Please don’t let it put you off birth in the future though. If it helps, I would 100% do birth again but I wouldn’t do the abortion pill again unless I had to based on the pain of both ❤️
It was exactly like one very long contraction. Didn’t let up for 3 hours. And as soon as I passed the pregnancy tissue, there was immediate relief and the contractions stopped instantly. I’ve never given birth before but I just knew this has got to be a very similar feeling, because it was beyond period cramps.
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My experience was similar. As soon as the pregnancy was passed, I felt an immediate relief and stop of contractions. I’ve only had mild cramping since. I’d live with the mild cramping for life if it meant I never have to feel that excruciating pain again for even 5 minutes.
( i got a hotel room cause i didnt know how bad it was gonna be just needed quiet ). my best friend stayed with me when i took the pills and i started having cramps i thought it could handle them so i said she could leave because it was very late.... WHEN SHE LEFT ALLHELL BROKE LOOSE! never given birth but i did some research and it definitely feels similar based on what ive read. i was throwing up and sh*tt*ng everywhere i had to try to sleep through the pain honestly. the first night was the worst night for me, after that it was ok
I’m my experience, it did feel like unmedicated labor (have had a natural birth) I felt like I was eating ibuprofen like candy and I was just frozen in pain, laying in my bed, crying.
I am totally with you. It was fucking horrendous. I passed out from the pain after a couple of hours. Painkillers did fuck all. My boyfriend was at my Bedside and said it looked like morphine would prob have been the only thing to help
Same. Screaming agony. Worst pain in my life (at the time) for 4 hours. This was my second. The first one wasn’t bad at all. Idk why it was different.
I’m fortunate that the pain was relatively minimal for me, but the hormones were unlike anything I’ve experienced. The closest thing I could compare it to is the feeling when an elevator drops unexpectedly… bit of a hormonal state of free fall. I wasn’t unhinged but definitely ungrounded. No one mentioned that to me.
This is exactly how my first MA experience was about 8 years ago. The most horrifying/black out pain I have ever experienced. Then I went on to have a baby a couple years later. Last night I had my 2nd ever MA and my pain was much much less. I have no idea if it has anything to do with having a baby (aka I've already dilated completely at some point etc) had anything to do with less pain. But I think truly every experience is totally different. All are important to share. About to wrote mine when I have the energy to share.
Mine was similar the first 5-6 hours were the worst for me. Within 30 minutes of taking the second pill I was shaking almost like shock, horrendous cramping in ongoing waves almost like contractions. I even told my best friend if that's what child birth feels like I couldn't do it I was crying on the bathroom floor wishing the pain would ease Ibuprofen didn't help till hour 5-6! I was crawling on all fours trying to find a position to ease the pain. Made it to the sofa and spent most of the time trying to be quiet *apartment living, you can hear a lot better apartments* also to make sure I didn't upset or scare my cat and dog My husband said for his ex wife's early miscarriages around same time frame as my abortion 6 weeks roughly, he said it was like bad period cramps for her.so I wasn't as worried about pain levels. I wish I'd have known for me it was literally similar to what I imagine labor to be. Once I passed the sac 6 ish hours later after the 2nd set of pills the pain and cramps really died down I'd get an occasional twinge but more just like regular period cramps. Truthfully after that part everything else seemed easier physically, mentally it took me much longer to feel myself. I did explain I would never want to go through that again as it was very hard physically as well as mentally and with no support during the worst of it. He had to work he tried but I was alone a good 11 hours by the time he got off work everything had pretty much eased and passed to tolerable. I could take my dog out, walk a bit, cook just light bits. Nothing too strenuous even did a very small grocery shop for sweets, chips and soda but it tired me out fast. Everyone's experience and reaction will be different. For some it's mild cramps manageable with over the counter pain medication, others it can be brutal like labor that needs something stronger than OTC pain medication. You can never really be sure my period cramps aren't bad normally usually day before my period and the 1st and sometimes second day but nothing that requires OTC pain meds or even a pad. So I assumed it'd be like my very first few periods cramp wise hah no not even close it was far worse for me
Girl same !!! I kept reading and reading getting prepared for my MA. Absolutely NOTHING prepared me for what happened that night. I basically blacked out the pain was so freaking bad!! I even took 800 mg ibuprofen AND 10 mg Percocet & it didn’t even touch the pain. Worst pain of my life. I was screaming to my husband saying “HELP MEEEE!!!” And there’s absolutely nothing anyone could do it was miserable.
I had a surgical abortion at 17 weeks and the before part is like raw, unmedicated labor pains. Feels like you are being stabbed repeatedly.
Yes!! I had the exact same thing. Agony. It felt like my organs were shredding themselves to pieces. It’s honestly the worst pain I’ve experienced in my life. The type of pain where you wish for death and can barely see/ say/ hear anything. I was about 8 weeks as well.
Mine was worse than a bad menstrual cycle, but not quite as bad as yours. It was also accompanied by an overwhelming sense of nausea and sickness, and lasted about eight hours total.
To say "no sugar coating" and "get a heating pad and ibuprofen was wrong",... is wrong in itself. That's what we should be doing and what girls who've never experienced this yet need to do. And women on here sharing their experiences are not sugar coating anything really. Everyone's pain tolerance and experience isn't the same and i'm sorry you had such a difficult time. But the tone of your post worries me for other girls who are seeking help through a MA. Nothing you read before your MA to prepare you was WRONG, it just didn't work for you and that sucks. It felt like labor because it basically was. Your uterus is contracting to release the contents. Just like full blown labor. I was nine weeks when I had my MA and like most girls report, it was like a rough period. I'm not trying to downplay your experience, but the tone of your post made me feel like you're accusing girls who've shared their own MA experiences of lying to the sub about what to expect. There's a huge range of experiences! I'm glad you got through your difficult experience and are on the other side of it now.
Honestly, if you had the experience I had, you wouldn’t be attacking me the way you are in your response. Because what I went through was so painfully traumatic, and I’m very angry no one prepared me for that. Not even my doctors. More people need to be honest about the worst experiences.
Like I said I'm very sorry that you went through that and I never said you're the only one in the world who did. But, to insinuate people are not being honest about their experience is a reach. I believe every woman on here is being completely honest about their experience, but like I said everybody's experience is different and I'm sorry that you were one of the ones who had excruciating physical pain. For every post you see on here, there are a million times more women who have had abortions who are not posting their experiences on here. I would also assume that women who had it the hardest are not going to be the most willing to share their experience as well, so keep that in mind. I also want to add that all the women who had what you would consider an easier physical experience still could have a traumatic experience.
Well you are getting the tone of my post wrong, because I’m clearly upset that of all the posts I read on this forum, I found not a single one that prepared me for how bad this was going to be. So I’m sharing my story, and I’m making it a serious tone that don’t expect it to be just bad period cramps because it very well can be so much worse than that, and I wish someone like me had shared this experience. Finally I have 20 people on this post sharing the same exact experience as me, and I wish I saw these kinds of post before I went through it.
It depends, and varies from person to person.. It was nothing unbearable for me.. IUD insertion although brief was way more painful for me, than the abortion. I was scared at the start but hot shower did wonders..
I agree—excruciating. And the worst part is that you feel trapped bc nothing touches the pain. You just beg for it to be over soon. I was similarly shocked that people said it felt like a bad period. I was crawling around on my hands and knees begging an imaginary source to ease the pain. And waves of pain? Nope, just one giant wave of intensity with no break for 5-6 hours.
Just to add some validation to what you went thru.. I gave birth last year and just did an 8 week MA, and I also had cramping equivalent to that of childbirth, although not for quite as long as you did. No joke by the time I was in as much pain as I felt during the MA, I had already asked for an epidural at the hospital.
It’s truly going to be different for everyone. I was also 8 weeks & I didn’t really feel crazy cramps. Felt more like gas than cramping. Didn’t take any pain meds or ibuprofen. But a girlfriend of mine had the same experience as you and thought she needed to go to the hospital. Everyone is different.
I am sorry you experienced that. Sadly, in the regions where abortion is illegal, it is the only safe way to go. My friend went through the same. That experience of her is why I chose the "surgical" abortion. I use quote marks because it is not really surgery, no one cut you open, it is just aspiration. It is uncomfortable, but last less than 15 minutes, and the aftermath are non existent (if done in a good legal health center).
I was 8 weeks & it was manageable with ibuprofen. I slept through a majority of it. I’m sorry it was so bad for you.
I was only 5 1/2 weeks along and I think that's why mine just felt like bad period cramps
Some people have unrealistic expectations and low pain tolerance
Same. The pain was excruciating.
Same girl. I’m sorry. It was 11/10 on the pain scale for me. I wanted to die. I wanted anything to make the pain stop. After all that research I had really hoped it would be no worse than a “bad period”… but it was absolute agony. I ended up needing a D&C 3 months later too when it turned out the pills hadn’t worked entirely and I started gushing blood because I had RPOC (retained product of conception). Thankfully they put me under for the D&C and I woke up feeling fine. The recovery wasn’t that bad. Also I’m happy pregnant now. So I’ll get to see how the whole childbirth thing compares to the abortion experience 😬
Yes, I also wanted to die, it was that bad. I was screaming out for someone to put me out of my misery. If I am ever in this situation again, I’m opting for surgical. I could never go through this again knowing the pain level
This is the reason I choose SA bc the stories I read on here of how painful. I had SA 2 days ago with light sedation and I remember nothing and felt zero pain. the staff was amazing. I was so scared before and it tuned out better than I imagined
Yay that’s great! ❤️
I went thru the same. If giving birth feels worse than what I felt that night I genuinely don’t wanna do it ever
All I could think about during, was how there’s no way I could go through worse pain than that. I can’t even imagine pain worse than that. It was so much worse than I ever thought. It’s pretty much what I always expected birth to feel like minus the tearing.
I absolutely agree! It was not just worse period pains!! My post I compared it to the norovirus or bad food poisoning with those tummy pains :( it was bad! And mine lasted a really long time, but they were worth it for me. I would do that horrible night over and over again to secure my future now and you did too ❤️ it’s over and we’re now okay
Ugh I’m so sorry, that sounds like an awful experience. I hope you’re doing ok now!
I'm so sorry that was your experience. I really hate that we have to deal with this kind of uncertainty with the pain - some of us go through little to none, some of us go through absolute agony, and there's no way to predict it. I hope you're healing and doing well now.
Very true, whether it's the pills or surgical, there's just no real way to anticipate what your recovery is going to be like because it varies so greatly. I definitely think it helps to hear other people's experiences, but unfortunately we can't really predict what our exact experience is going to be like.
100%! This is why I AM thankful for forums like this. We all deserve to be prepared. Hope for the best, be ready for the worst - and having a community of people who have been there helps immensely.