I want to share my experience with surgical abortion. I hope this can help some people find clarity in their decision making.

First let me give you some background of my situation.

Last Monday I went to a clinic to discuss my options. Prior to this I had done some research online (scary!) and was leaning towards a surgical procedure due to it's quickness and recovery period. Medical abortion, while good for early pregnancy, seemed like a long drawn out process that could possibly be very painful and emotionally challenging.

At the clinic I discussed my fears with the counselor. She assured me that medical was safe, but that the degree of syymptoms varies between people. Well I got very scared and told her I needed to talk to my boyfriend who was with me at the time. He and I ended up spending an hour at my car while I cried and lamented about what to do. Eventually I ended up going back in to reschedule. The doctor asked to speak to me and I told him that I wasn't sure about what procedure to have. He somehow convinced me to do the medical procedure and that I could take all of the pills with me (including the initial tablet) to take later in the week when it was convenient with my work schedule. I was dazed and numb and agreed to it, especially since he said the bleeding wouldn't be bad.

~fast forward three days~

It's Thursday and I am still petrified of taking these pills. The whole 24 hours to wait and think about what i've done until I can complete the abortion process unnerved me.

I decided that I needed a surgical procedure. There was no way I could handle it any other way. So I called a Planned Parenthood and made an appointment for the next morning.

When I arrived I went through the standard procedures - ultrasound, bloodwork, counseling - before I would go in for surgery. Because I was just under 6 weeks, I carried more risk of fetal matter being left in my uterus. I discussed this with the doctor and she assured me that the chance of it happening was very low.

Overall I found the experience easy. Much easier than I thought. The doctor and aide were very supportive, patient, and answered any questions I had. I took an 800mg ibuprofen and a klonopin (my own prescription) before the procedure. I must say the pain was not that bad at all. I've had regular pap exams that were more painful! Sure, there was some cramping and pain, but very minimal to what I anticipated.

After 5 minutes the procedure was over and I was brought into a recovery room. I had some cramping and pain for about 10 minutes and then it subsided. I could walk fine. Then on the way home I had a couple of sharp pains and passed a couple of clots and that was it so far. That was six hours ago! I currently have no pain and only very slight bleeding now.

Now it's time for the physical and psychological healing. Abortion was a very difficult choice for me to make, and it essentially cost me close to $1000 dollars because I changed my mind from the medical. But it was worth it, imo.

While I don't plan on ever having an abortion again, If I had to, I wouldn't hesitate to use the surgical method or recommend it to a friend.

Hope this helps. Take care!