Expert: Doctor Early Options - 1/25/2008

Question
Hello,
I'm 17 years old and i had an abortion about a week ago on the 16th. My story is a bit confusing so i'll start at the beginning.
On January 4th i took a home pregnancy test because i hadn't had my period in 2 months, and it came up positive. So on January 7th i went to Planned Parenthood to confirm my test, and it also came out positive, and the nurse told me they believed that i was about 9 and 1/2 weeks pregnant. I scheduled an appointment for abortion there for the 16th (the earliest they had). During my ultrasound before the procedure, they said that it was only 4 weeks along. I was very confused. Suddenly i went from almost 11 weeks to 4, which was a relief but also confusing. The doctor told me that it could just be that it had stopped developing and that i was probably going to have a miscarriage. She really didn’t explain much to me other than i had two choices, to wait and see if I had a miscarriage, or to go through with the procedure. I chose the procedure just to be safe. I went back two days later for a blood test, and it confirmed the ending of the pregnancy. However, i'm still very confused about what happened with the pregnancy and was wondering if you could maybe explain?
Also, for the next three days after my abortion i didn’t bleed at all, and i felt fine. Then suddenly i had extreme cramping. I have very light brownish bleeding, occasional diarrhea, and one brown grape size tissue come out (which really scared me) since. I've been extremely light-headed; though my job is very strenuous (i work at a dog day care running around all day). The pain in my lower belly won’t seem to stop even with pain meds or heat patches. I just was wondering if that could possibly be an infection, or if this is all normal? I read somewhere about postabortal syndrome that sounds kind of like that. Should i get this checked out?

Answer
Dear Stephanie,
You should definitely get checked out.  Pain after an abortion is not normal, and could be an infection, or retained tissue. You should definitely go back for a follow up - call today.  
Unfortunately, I can't help you with the other question, as I do not have access to your medical records, and what was done.  The best thing would be to talk with the clinician about it when you go in for your follow up.  They should be able to explain it to you.  
I'm sorry I can't be more helpful,
Doctor Joan