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Abortion/Too early for a surgical abortion?
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Question
Dear Dr. Joan,
First, thank you so much for providing this valuable Q and A service. I went today to a clinic for a surgical abortion and was told that as I am only 4 and a half weeks into the pregnancy that they would not perform the procedure. They said they "might" be able to perform it 1 week from now. Is this reasonable? The extended period of waiting seems unduly stressful from a psychological point of view. I took a look at your site, and unfortunately did not see any physicians for the L.A. area. Do have any colleagues that you can recommend in this area that will perform this procedure at 5 weeks? Thank you...
Dear Sky,
It's reasonable for a clinic to wait a week before performing the procedure. It is safer for you, and better to wait. I believe the only place that might do it sooner is listed on my site (Santa Rosa California) or possibly Planned Parenthood Golden Gate...nothing in LA that I'm aware of. However, it's possible that even these sites would have you wait if they cannot confirm that the pregnancy is in your uterus. This is typically confirmed by ultrasound at around 5 - 5 1/2 weeks.
I hope this is helpful,
Doctor Joan
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Answers by Expert:
Doctor Early Options
Expertise
We are a group of family doctors who provide abortion care for over a decade. We can answer any health or medical related questions about early abortion, including the aspiration procedure, the abortion pill (RU486), or surgical abortion. We run a practice called Early Options, located in New York City: http://www.EarlyAbortionOptions.com. The practice is dedicated to making early abortion part of mainstream medical care. There are other family doctors around the United States who practice a similar approach to early abortion care: see http://www.EarlyAbortion.com. Please do not ask "private" questions so that other women can learn from your experience. Please tell me what country you are from so that we can better help you.
Experience
Experience in the area: We are all board certified family doctors who have special training in early abortion and reproductive health. Dr. Joan Fleischman is the founder of Early Options (earlyabortionoptions.com) dedicated to making early abortion part of mainstream medical care.
Organizations:
National Abortion Federation
American Association of Family Physicians
Education/Credentials
Dr. Joan Fleischman, Founder
M.D., Harvard Medical School
M.P.A., John F. Kennedy School of Government
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