Every woman is excited about her pregnancy and to give birth to a new life. But sometimes all pregnancy doesn’t result in the birth of a baby, they might get aborted due to many reasons. Abortion is a scary thing for everyone. A woman may feel like, abortion might affect her future pregnancies. But in most cases, an abortion does not affect the fertility of the woman nor cause an impact on future pregnancies.
In This Article:
- What is Abortion?
- Do Future Pregnancies get Affected by Abortion?
- What Happens After an Abortion?
- How Does it feel After an Abortion?
- Effects on the Period After Abortion
- Sex After Abortion
- How Soon After an Abortion Can a Woman Get Pregnant?
- How to Get Pregnant Soon After the Abortion?
- Safety and Risks
- Pregnancy Test Accuracy After an Abortion
All You Need to Know About Getting Pregnant After Abortion
What is Abortion?
An abortion is defined as a procedure to end a pregnancy. The removal of the embryo along with the placenta from the uterus is done. An Abortion can be done by two methods :
- Surgical Abortion
- Medical Abortion
It depends on the woman’s choice considering the factors associated. Many research proves that abortion does not harm a woman’s fertility. It has been observed many women who have had an abortion have delivered healthy babies in their next pregnancy. A woman can get pregnant soon after the abortion, to avoid pregnancy within weeks of abortion contraception use should be done.
Do Future Pregnancies get Affected by Abortion?
The answer is clear cut No. Though there are certain risks from medical abortion but the risk quite lower than that of surgical abortion. Medical abortion is employed in the early pregnancy phase. In general, having an abortion in early pregnancy leads to a lesser number of complications.
In medical abortion, medicines such as e pills are taken by the woman in her first trimester. A combination of drugs such as mifepristone and prostaglandin are commonly used as their success rate is about 99 percent. It is considered to be safer and has no increased risk of harming the future pregnancy and its complications like premature babies, low birth weight babies, ectopic pregnancy (pregnancy where implantation of the embryo is not at the right place in the uterus rather implantation occurs at unusual sites )
A surgical abortion also named as, Dilation and curettage (D and C) which involves removal of the embryo by suction and instrument called a curette. The scarring of the uterus wall can be seen in rare surgical abortions. This is known as Asherman’s Syndrome. In the case of scarring, future pregnancies are difficult to happen and if they happen pregnancy loss can be seen.
What Happens After an Abortion?
In the case of medical abortion, side effects reside for a short period. Due to medication common side effects such as nausea with vomiting and diarrhea are seen. After an abortion, it is certain to develop stomach cramps and vaginal bleeding which lasts for 2 weeks or more. Sometimes light vaginal bleeding can be seen even after a month of medical abortion.
It is recommended for a woman to:
- Take ibuprofen an analgesic for the pain
- Use sanitary pads in place of tampons until the vaginal bleeding stops naturally
- Have sex as soon as the woman is ready along with the use of contraception.
- In case of severe pain, it is advised to consult the doctor
How Does It Feel After an Abortion?
A wide range of changes is noticed. The feel after abortion varies from person to person. Bleeding and cramps after an abortion usually subside in some days or weeks. The woman may have breast tenderness with milky discharge from the nipples. It is advisable to wear a snug-fitting bra for comfort. Fever with chills or rigor may also be seen soon after the abortion, but within two days they also disappear. If a woman feels nauseated for more than 24 hours it may be considered as a sign of infection, therefore immediate doctor consultation is required.
People have a wide range of fluctuating emotions after an abortion. Many women feel relief but some are sad which is normal. Mood swings are casual.
Effects on the Period After Abortion
Usually, a woman’s menstrual cycle starts back again in 4 to 8 weeks after abortion. In abortion, the uterus is emptied and thus the menstrual cycle starts all over again. In the case of birth control pill abortion, the periods start within this range but if it delays more than 8 weeks then it is a matter of concern.
Having abortions under emotional stress can result in irregular periods. If this happens she should consult a doctor. Normally, the first period after abortion is light and of shorter duration.
Sex After Abortion
A woman can have sex as soon as she feels like having it after abortion. But the majority of doctors recommend waiting for the vaginal bleeding to stop to decrease the risk of infection. The use of contraception is also done to prevent unwanted pregnancy.
How Soon After an Abortion Can a Woman Get Pregnant?
Ovulation starts within 2 weeks after an abortion. This simply implies that a woman can get pregnant before her first periods arrive after abortion. Moreover, the duration of pregnancy before abortion influences the period of ovulation. To avoid pregnancy soon after the abortion, the use of contraception is a must.
How to Get Pregnant Soon After the Abortion?
As mentioned above a woman can become pregnant within 2 weeks of an abortion. Generally, there is no consultation of the doctor required for the new pregnancy unless advised. As such no extra efforts are required. But some doctors recommend waiting until the first menstrual period ends after an abortion. This makes it more easy to determine the delivery date.
Safety and Risks
Abortions are considered safe if they happen in early pregnancy. Complications are seen in the late phase of pregnancy. Complication if seen require proper treatment. In certain cases it is advised to delay sex for a longer period to assure full safety and care of the woman.
Pregnancy Test Accuracy After an Abortion
Soon after abortion pregnancy tests may result in a false positive. This is due to the body still have a significant amount of hCG (human chorionic gonadotrophin). But after abortion, it starts to fall and accurate results can be obtained after 3 weeks.
Conclusion
As such fertility of a woman is not affected after abortion but in rare cases, complications of abortion may increase the risk of developing problems in future pregnancies. Therefore, it is advised to visit the doctor and talk to him about any unusual symptoms seen after abortion.
References
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2225607
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3425891/
