Making an Informed Decision and Your Options for Abortion and Pregnancy

Dealing with a possible pregnancy means fully understanding your options to choose a path that fits your unique life and health journey.

 A missed period might be your first indicator of pregnancy, but other signs of pregnancy can including peeing frequently, breast tenderness or swelling, food cravings, and nausea. If you have any of these symptoms, the best next step is to verify pregnancy with an in-clinic test.

 If your first best step is a pregnancy test, your second best step is an ultrasound if your test is positive. Ultrasound technology can confirm pregnancy, help accurately identify gestational age, particularly during the first trimester¹ more accurately than estimating date of last missed period alone. Choices for a pregnancy include abortion, adoption, or parenting. Our team of licensed medical professionals offer free testing to help you get the information you need to identify the best decision for you with accuracy, compassion, and without judgment. 

Self-managed Abortion

Abortion involves use of either prescription medication or an in-clinic medical procedure to end pregnancy. Pill-based abortion can occur until up to 70 days of gestation². Understanding how far along a pregnancy is will enable you to determine if self-managed, at-home abortion is an option.

The pill version of abortion with mifepristone and misoprostol works by blocking progesterone hormone levels so the uterus does not support pregnancy. Self-managed abortion allows you to take medication at home to end an early pregnancy within hours. Common treatment side effects can include heavy bleeding, cramping, dizziness, nausea, and low-grade fever. It is important to be aware that prescription abortion medications can interact with a number of other prescription drugs that may lead to adverse reactions³. 

Self-managed medical abortions are considered riskier than surgical abortions, with some studies indicating that they carry a higher complication rate with things such as hemorrhage, incomplete abortion, or infections. These complications often require medical intervention.

If you have any underlying medical conditions like anemia or bleeding problems, or if you are taking prescription medications, it is helpful to review your health history with an experienced healthcare professional can help you understand any potential risks of use to your health of self-managed abortion medication. 

Patients with an ectopic pregnancy should not use home-based treatment for abortion because an ectopic pregnancy is considered a medical emergency that can result in serious internal bleeding if left untreated4. Meeting with a licensed medical professional to review your unique pregnancy details and health history can help determine which options are safe to pursue.

Clinic-based abortion procedure

If pregnancy is more than three months along or if you have specific underlying medical concerns, prescription abortion pills may not be an option. An in-clinic abortion procedure such as vacuum aspiration takes place during the first trimester to terminate pregnancy. Second trimester abortion procedures commonly involve dilation and evacuation (D&E)5. Late-term abortion refers to abortions carried out later in pregnancy. Detailed explanations of the variety of abortion procedures and what to expect exist, but the underlying theme is that surgical abortion is generally more invasive than an at-home abortion. Care providers will help make you comfortable using sedation and pain control before completing the procedure to prepare the cervix to release uterine contents, and monitor before you go home. Talking to an experienced medical professional can help you understand if this is an option you want to pursue.

Adoption

Adoption involves carrying a pregnancy to term and working with a licensed social worker from an adoption agency or case worker to learn what modern adoption entails, including what level of openness may be right for you. If you choose this option, you have the option to meet potential adoptive parents before determining if their home would be a good fit or no contact if that is your preference. The medical team at Anchor of Hope can provide you with a list of adoption agencies in the area if you are considering this option.

Parenting

Parenting is a choice if you are facing a positive pregnancy test. There are numerous community services and resources available to help promote healthy parenting, even if you don’t have anyone else at home to help support you through the process. Anchor of Hope offers parenting education and mentoring to help you get up-to-date information and support from a team who cares about your success in this role if you choose to pursue it. Community resources to meet physical needs like clothing and diapers are available. Our care team can help refer you to these resources if you are interested.

If you are pregnant and unsure if next steps, meeting with a licensed medical professional can help you make an informed decision about abortion, adoption, or parenting in your specific situation. Anchor of Hope offers no-cost, judgment-free medical evaluation to help verify pregnancy and understand your pregnancy options.  Learn more here.