Will a woman be psychologically traumatized by what is seen during the aspiration?
Hello everyone – After many sleepless nights, my gf and I decided to go ahead with a medication abortion. She is 6 weeks pregnant. We did a ton of research on this type of abortion. When the day finally arrived and she was initially consulted by a Planned Parenthood person, the woman told her that the medication abortion is not very affective and that over 50% of her patients need to come back to do an aspiration due to the failure of the medication abortion. The strange thing is that the Los Angeles Planned Parenthood website cited a statistic of 5–8 women out of 100. By the way, this is the kingston Street clinic in LA. This scared my gf tremendously because she all along was very fearful of the aspiration procedure and feels that she would be psychologically traumatized by what she will see, hear, and feel during the aspiration procedure (since you are technically awake, although partially sedated). The Planned Parenthood person said that she was only being honest with my gf and did not want anyone to go through such an ordeal without knowing the “facts”, however why would they post erroneous data to begin with? To lure women in, then tell them the “real” truth? The planned parenthood person also told my gf that she would most likely be bedridden for 2–3 days even though there is no warning of that on their website. They gave her 5 minutes to decide whether she still wanted to go with the pill or just do the aspiration then and there. My gf was so shocked that she did not want to go any further and so we decided to make another appt in 4 days so that we can think things through. Has anyone had any experience in which you are haunted by what is seen during the aspiration, and in particular, whether the partial sedation, aside from the pain factor, is effective in helping the woman not be aware of what is going on? My gf is terrified and I do not know what I can do to help. Please, I need some advice.
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Every woman is different as is every situation involving abortion. There is no telling whether or not she will be traumatized but I’m thinking her anxiety about it won’t make the situation better. As to the perceived discrepancy between the website’s information and that of the PP representative, that isn’t a big deal unless you think it a big deal – I don’t trust much information on random websites (even that of PP) and I’d trust what the PP person is telling you. If your partner didn’t feel comfortable deciding on the spot, there is nothing wrong with taking a day or two more to decided. Personally and don’t let my opinion on this be any kind of a factor, she will not hear or feel much – it might be uncomfortable or painful but that’s like any medical procedure where rest is needed for a couple of days after.
Yes this is a very difficult situation for you. The biggest question should be does your girlfriend want to abort this baby or really not, or is she just afraid of the proceedure. I would say that your girlfriend is already saying that she would be traumatized by aspiration. Abortion is a very big decision and you both did the right thing in taking more time to think about the proceedure.
I would suggest that you also try to see how your girlfriend feels about the baby she is carrying. Since you seem to care so much about her, discreet adoption is also an option to consider.
Check with Catholic Charities if you need help in this direction. http://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/netcommunity/adoptionwebsite
You are to be commended in the care and repect you have shown your girlfriend over this.
I can only speak to the “aspiration” part, provided that it’s the same thing that I had done a couple of times as a result of miscarriages. I’m basing this on the wikipedia entry on vacuum aspiration, because I had never heard or used the term “aspiration”, but had the D&C procedure done, which can be another name for it.
The sedation I was under was referred to as “twilight” and was explained to me as partial sedation that was like sleeping. The first time I had the procedure done, I had no idea when I went out, and when I came to, I felt like I was waking up from a pleasant nap. The second time, I wasn’t “out” until after they got me on the operating table, and when I came to I don’t remember it being as pleasant as the first time, but neither time did I feel any pain or was I aware of what was going on. The only pain I had afterward was urination (from the catheter), and slight abdominal discomfort that I would not describe as pain.
I would guess that any trauma experienced would be the result of the emotional aspect of this. Physical recovery simply takes time, but emotional recovery is not always so simple. Yes, I read that you both have deliberated and came to a decision. You don’t need to explain your reasons to anyone, but I’d still like to suggest that you try not to let the agendas of other people, details of the procedure, or confusing statistics distract you two from the decision. It’s very easy to get caught up in a choice when you feel like you are under pressure, and sometimes it’s hard to see past it. The only reason I mention this is because fear and anxiety are major contributors to the overall experience of something, and the more sure she is about the decision, the less emotional trauma she will have as a result of the procedure.
I wish the best for both of you.
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I never actually saw anything in the way of tissue or blood during my procedure. I was aware the entire time, and the sounds were unnerving, but there wasn’t anything I could actually see that upset me. Best of luck to both of you.
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