Expert: Pat G - 10/28/2009

Question
Hi, i had a medical abortion exactly 4 weeks ago today, and i.ve just done a pregnancy test and it.s come back positive. I started taking the contraceptive pill the day after my abortion, and should have had a period a week ago but haven.t had one. Do you think i could still be pregnant? I did pass clots when i had the medical abortion and bled for a week, and since then my sore boobs have gome and don.t feel sick anymore. I am going to the doctors in a couple of days for a blood test, i.m just really worried because of the test still being positive. Hope you can help.

Answer
Hello, Lindsay,

Sometimes it takes awhile for the pregnancy hormones to dissipate.

You didn't say how far along you were. There is only a narrow window when a medical abortion even works.

Medical abortions are dangerous. The first medication, Methotrexate, is a steroid. They have banned steroids for men, but they're not that concerned about us women. The second drug, Misoprostol, can kill a woman, sometimes within hours. It can cause rupture of the uterus, heavy bleeding (bleeding to death in some cases, and weakening the woman and her immune system considerably in others), and it can also cause an infection so severe it can kill a woman before even emergency room personnel can diagnose the problem, let alone treat it. The manufacturer says it should never be given to a pregnant woman, so any doctor who does is either ignorant or committing malpractice. Take your pick. Given how powerful these medications are, it's no wonder it disrupts a woman's hormones, so that she has no idea when she is going to return to a normal cycle. When you have an abortion, there's no such thing as when you should have a period. And given that you are now taking birth control, that is going to complicate things further. Sometimes they give too strong a dose, and it suppresses the period. The doses are not carefully calculated. And after having an abortion, it may be the wrong dose anyway.

I wish I could ease your fears, but given what you have done to your body, I cannot. However, you have a doctor's appointment in a couple of days. Try to hang in there until then. Most likely, you will find your pregnancy hormones gradually diminishing over time, but don't have any expectations on when your normal cycle will return. Nobody really knows.

Should you experience pregnancy in the future, probably the best remedy for morning sickness is to sip ginger tea or ginger ale. And the doctor should offer a medication to help calm the problem, because there are medications that are used routinely and appear to be safe.

You might want to think some about the strategy you are using to deal with pregnancy. If you're not married, that is a terrible thing to do to your body for the sake of pleasure. If you are, then I recommend you learn how to tell when you are fertile. You can't be using hormones, and you must chart faithfully. For more information go here:

http://www.fertilityuk.org/

Good luck, and let me know how you do. But please take care of your body. You deserve better. Don't take these kinds of risks.