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Making the decision to go through with an abortion it is often a stressful one.
There are many reasons why that decision is made whether it’s due to the health of the mother, learning about the health of the baby, and also that it’s just not the right time to bring a child into the world.
Whatever the situation is, it’s not one for others to judge, that is your decision and whatever you choose to do, it’s right for you.
Because it’s a stressful situation, there could be an effect on your upcoming menstrual cycle.
As explored in previous articles, stress can delay your period because your body is trying to regulate everything else (and it’s been said that delaying ovulation helps to prevent a pregnancy during a stressful time based on history).
Some women see their periods return quickly, within 4-8 weeks, while others may not see it as soon.
Let’s take a look at the basics of an abortion, different types, and then we can discuss how it can affect your next cycle (or two).
Abortion – General Information
An abortion is when pregnancy is ended at an early stage through an outside intervention. While there is a term, spontaneous abortion, it’s sort of a misnomer. It’s essential to note that this is a miscarriage.
This was not a pregnancy where the parents decided to terminate it, it’s when the body did it naturally [1].
The body, once a woman is pregnant, starts creating pregnancy hormones and preparing all the organs for sustaining a new life.
This means that during the time before and even after the abortion for a period of time, the woman can still experience some pregnancy symptoms such as morning sickness and sensitivity to smells.
The body must go back to normal and let those hormones regulate in order for you to start feeling yourself again and so that you start having a cycle again.
When you make the decision to get an abortion you’ll want to go to a trained medical practitioner. Going to a place that isn’t can risk your health and your future fertility.
There are two types of abortion, a medical abortion, and a surgical abortion.
No matter which you choose an early abortion will not impair your fertility or result in complications later in pregnancies.
Both medical and surgical method can be used to induce abortion throughout the pregnancy. The choice of method used depends on factors such as pre-existing medical conditions, preference of women and availability of surgeon.
Medical Abortion
The medical abortion is as it states, it’s done with medicine and one of the most common medications used for this is mifepristone, a progesterone receptor modulator. Since progesterone is required to maintain pregnant uterus in quiescent state, mifepristone will bring about uterine contractions and result in expulsion of fetus.
This is followed by prostaglandin analogue misoprostol, which can now be administered in lower doses, and brings about strong contractions to expel products of conception.
This is something you must get from a doctor and is not an over-the-counter medication. The name may change depending on where you are located however they all do the same thing.
Surgical Abortion
As the name states, this is an abortion done surgically where the doctor will do either a manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) or a dilation and evacuation (D&E).
The former is generally done within the first 12 weeks and the second can be done after the first month [3].
What About your Menstrual Cycle after an Abortion
When you terminate a pregnancy during the first trimester, your period should return in four to eight weeks [4].
Generally, the earlier in the pregnancy you have the abortion, the sooner your cycle will return.
However, that does also depend on what type of birth control you are using (as some can delay or lighten your period, even stop it completely.
No matter what type of method you are using, if you don’t see your period return within the eight weeks, it’s advised to contact your doctor to check for pregnancy or any underlying conditions.
Right after the abortion, your body is going to prioritize expelling all the remnants from the lost pregnancy.
This includes fetal tissue in addition to other debris from your uterus, and it’s characterized by heavy bleeding.
Essentially, this is your first period because it is the beginning of your cycle, getting your body ready to ovulate once again.
The first period after an abortion might not be what you usually anticipate. It could be lighter than your normal one and might not last for the length of time that is normal for you.
That next period could even be heavier than you normally would expect as well. However, if your period is exceptionally heavy and long (filling more than one pad every two hours), you’ll want to contact your doctor.
What Could Change?
When it does come to that next period, as stated above, it might not be what you would normally expect. It could be different in multiple aspects than what your periods were like before your abortion.
One change could be the flow. If you had a surgical abortion, it could result in a lighter period than normal, and with a medical abortion, it could be heavier than normal [5].
You might also find that you have more PMS and other symptoms such as back pain and cramping for the first few cycles. This is normal and should eventually even out to what you experienced before [6].
One reason that the period after a medical abortion is heavier is that the body is still expelling all pregnancy-related tissues [7].
A surgical abortion removes the products of conception and endometrial lining, which results in lighter periods.
Pregnancy Test After Abortion
After an abortion, many want to see if it was successful and taking a pregnancy test is a sure way to determine that. Right?
Well, not necessarily depending on when you take it. A pregnancy test measures the levels of human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) in the urine which is the pregnancy hormone as we’ll call it.
While the hormone does decrease very quickly after an abortion, there is still some in the body for up to four weeks after having an abortion [8].
After this point, it’s safe to take a test and determine that you are in fact no longer pregnant. Before that, you may get a false positive because your body hasn’t fully cleared the hormones from your system.
A blood test is a bit different because they can see the actual levels of the hormone. A test can be taken just before the abortion and then about five days post-abortion. If the levels have decreased, then the abortion is successful [9].
Getting Pregnant After Abortion
In that timeframe between the abortion and your next period, you may ovulate. However, this time can vary for different women and depends on how far the pregnancy was when the abortion happened.
Generally, this happens before the second cycle, the first cycle is when the body is still clearing out the pregnancy hormones and such and getting back to being regular again [10].
Because you will not know if you are ovulating yet, it’s recommended that you take precautions to prevent another pregnancy. Either you or your partner could investigate different methods of birth control.
In addition to not wanting to go through another abortion, your body will need time to heal from the loss of a pregnancy so another one is not recommended until at least a few months when it is Fully recovered.
This is very true for those who have had a surgical abortion where the cervix needs to heal from an actual surgery.
Final Thoughts
Again, having an abortion is an extremely personal decision and one that will affect you not only physically but also mentally as well.
Take care after your procedure to care for yourself, whatever that entails. It could be seeing a therapist, taking some yoga classes and meditation (once cleared by your doctor), getting a massage or a spa day, etc. It’s up to you.
Each person will handle it differently but treat your body with respect afterward and when you are ready to start your family, you will still be able to.
Do you have a question about your menstrual cycle, pregnancy, abortion or any other related topic? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions page.
References
- Visit https://www.webmd.com/women/abortion-procedures#1
- See https://www.nps.org.au/australian-prescriber/articles/mifepristone
- See above #1
- Planned Parenthood. What can I expect After Having an In-Clinic Abortion? [link]
- Aliya Khan via First Cry Parenting. Period After Abortion – Symptoms, Changes and Self Care Tips. [link]
- See above #5
- New Kids-Center. What’s Period After Abortion Like When to Worry? [link]
- Women Help Women. Was My Abortion Successful? [link]
- see above #8
- see above #7
Hi i had my abortion on the 4th of February, i have been receiving my periods non stop it’s been a month now. What went wrong or is there something wrong with my body? Seriously i need help
Hi. It is possible to bleed for 1-3 weeks after an abortion. How heavy is the bleeding? If you are concerned you should contact your doctor to make sure everything is alright.
I had abortion on 1st february 2016, i bled for one week and three days. on february 28 i started feeling small pains on my lower abdomen but didn’t have sex since, i tested negative
Hello, iam 28 year old. When i found that i was pregnant i felt so good but my luck was not with me. Anyway … I had medical abortion on 30 jan and my bleeding stopped on 11 feb… When am I expecting my next period? . I am worried now. Please help me..
Hi. I am sorry. Your should give your period 4-8 weeks to begin. If you are still concerned you should talk to your doctor. Best wishes to you!
Hi…am 38 yrs old…I was confirmed that am pregnant for 38 days…and I had a pill abortion…I had bleeding for 5 to 6 days…its been 4 to 5 weeks now…I didn’t my chums yet…We had protected sex though in between…am worried…pls suggest
It is possible to not get your period for 4-8 weeks after an abortion. I would suggest that you wait before you worry. There is always a chance of pregnancy when having unprotected sex.
Thank you very much…as you said i got my chums couple of weeks back.
Cheers
Suk
I am 22yrs, I had an abortion on 19th Jan, I saw a little blood on 24th Jan for like 2 days and ever since then I have not experience my normal period. But I still observe changes like swollen abdomen, my nipples still hard and my breast is bigger, I vomit recently, though stopped for a while. I am scared could it likely be it that am having a pregnant. Pleas I need your help.
Hello. It is normal to still have pregnancy hormones and no period for 4-6 weeks after an abortion. If you are having sex you should use contraception to reduce the chances of pregnancy. Otherwise it sounds as if you are experiencing the after effects of the abortion. If you are still concerned you should contact your doctor.
I was three weeks pregnant when i had abortion and i got my period a week later the first day was 27 jan and i had sex again at 22 feb which supposed to be safe period but now i missed my period again… Is this normal??? Could i be pregnant again??
Hello Lolo, Pregnancy depends on a number of factors. In this case, I would suggest you to please consult to a gynecologist.
I have gone through my medical abortion on 27 Dec 2015 but there is a bleeding after the intervals of fifteen days n my pregnancy test is negative why this is happening with me my baby is just 7 months old worried about my heath pls help me…
I would talk to a professional.
Hello. I am 20 years old. On 29th jan my fiancee and I found out that I was 3 weeks pregnant and we opted for an medical abortion. I took my first pill on 30th jan and started bleeding a little, I took rest of the pills on 1st feb and started bleeding heavily within 40 mins and after 2 hours I have passed out a slimmy blood clot and another blood clot the day after. I continued to bleed till 8th and then a little spotting was there for 2 days. After 4-5 days my body was back to normal but today i.e. 24th feb I again started bleeding for 2 hours and then the flow suddenly stopped. I have all the PMS. I am really confused because the doctor said that I will get my menstruation about 4-6 week after the abortion but I started bleeding within 15 days. Is this normal? I am really scared. Am I fine?
I think this is fairly normal, but if you are concerned I would seek a doctors advice.
Hai my last period was at Jan 20, and the February month my period Is missing.. so I check my pregnancy test on Feb 23 morning and shocked I’m pregnant. At that day night I go to hospital and take abortion pills and misoprostol tablets.. After 2 hours I had severe bleeding.but I have only one day bleeding.. I’m confused my pregnancy is Over or not
Is it advisable to have sex from the beginning of your period and on the day your period ends after an abortion…is there a possibility that one can be pregnant.?
Hi. I have been having irregular periods after taking the abortion pills. My period lasts for 3-4 days before taking the pill. But now it lasts for only 2 days and not really heavy like it used to. Please am I safe?
Mish, I’m sorry for the pain you are feeling but I do agree with you, I won’t feel like my true self until I get my period back and get my cycles in order. Stay strong
hi i am ann
i am 18 years old
my last period before abortion was 24 dec 2015
i had my abortion on 12 jan 2016
on 25 jan i had bleeding for only 4 – 5 days
i had consulted my doctor she told me it’s not my period
now it’s 22 feb i had missed my periods again
why is this so?? & what should i do? ?
Hello Ann. Your regular period will not begin for 3-6 weeks after the abortion. If you have not had any unprotected sex since your abortion, I would suggest you continue to consult with and follow your doctor’s instructions. Good luck!
Hello I had a medical abortion on Jan 29. I went for my folow up scan on Feb 11 and everything was clear. When will my period return? I also took a Pregnancy test 2 days after the scan and it still show positive so when will the test have a negative reading. The doctor told me it could show positive for at least 4 weeks. Is this correct?
Yes this is correct, check our FAQ for more information about your case.
hello. i am 24 years old. i had abortion at 6 feb, 2016 when i found that i am 3 weeks pregnant after conceiving.. i took my pills at 7 feb and start bleeding within 2 hours… it was flow of blood and after 4 hours almost i have passed a clot like something full of blood.. i dont know but may be it was gestation sac. after that my bleeding gets lighter in few hours. next day i was just spotting. but tuesday and wednesday i have faced heavy bleeding then back to normal by Thursday and finally over at sunday.. at Tuesday right after 8 days i go for ultrasound and doctor told me that you are perfectly passed the pregnancy. but now the problem is, i am not believing it, my body is like i am still pregnant. my belly and abdomen still look large and breasts are hurting with sharp pains. also i went thru sudden headaches and also little cramps. i am really very confused about it and its somehow killing me ????
Your body still has the pregnancy hormones and it usually takes 4-6 weeks for you to fully return back to normal. I too had an abortion on the 11th and felt the same way you did even after my follow up appointment and everything was cleared out. I still feel pregnant in a way but I keep reminding myself that I’m not. Don’t despair its just going to take a while to fully feel normal again. I hope you start feeling better soon, take care.
Well I hope to get my normal periods after that I will believe that I am normal now. it was seriously awful experience for me. I can’t forget that little spot like baby in scan :'(
Hi Mish, I am sorry that you are experiencing this pain and I am sure it is not easy. You do have to give the symptoms of pregnancy some time to pass. Pregnancy hormones can remain in the body for 4-6 weeks after an abortion. Just hang in there…it will pass. Good Luck to you!
thank you tramble for your concern 🙂 do pray for me:)
Had an abortion with mifepristone and misoprostol on the 22nd started bleeding with cloths on the 23rd and bleeding stop 27th did pregnancy test on 14th Feb and it was negative and all pregnancy symptoms had stop but I have been having some movement in my tummy and pain like menstrual cramps. what could be the problem.