Expert: Pat G - 8/25/2010

Question
I got a D&C done for a missed abortion on Monday august 23rd. I seems to be
healing ok. I stopped bleeding on the second day.

I noticed my follow up isn't for another 6 weeks, dated for Oct 6. I was told
not to have sex, douch or use tampons until my follow up exam. That seems
like a long time. I am reading that alot of people had follow ups after teo
weeks, or told to wait two weeks. In some cases some said 4 weeks.

Any advice.

Answer
Hello, Simone,

First of all, I don't recommend that a woman douche. This interferes with her natural fluids and can cause health problems. If there is an odor, there is a reason, and a woman should find out the reason and deal with it. If the people that associate with the woman think she should douche, or find her odor objectionable, I really wouldn't care, because it's not important to risk your health to keep other people happy.

Other than that, I recommend strongly that you follow your doctor's advice about waiting for sex or tampons. The reason for it is to prevent you from getting an infection. Infections can be serious, so it's not worth it. It sounds like your doctor is a little more concerned about your health than most of them. Some don't even warn a woman at all. But after any procedure that involves scraping the surface of the uterus, this leaves the surface raw, and any infection that gets into the uterus will have direct access to a woman's bloodstream.

If you are not married, I recommend you stop having sex until you are. There are too many risks from premarital sex, and it interferes with bonding and trust when people do get married. If you are married, your husband needs to become aware that sometimes a woman cannot have sex for one reason or another, for a time, and he needs to respect that. Hopefully, he will.

I hope things go well for you, and that I have answered your questions. Take care.