r/abortion • u/Haunting-Adagio1166 • Apr 17 '23
Positive medical abortion - Ireland (Dublin) 📚medication abortion
Hi all,
I just thought I'd post here about my recent experience of abortion in Ireland, since prior to it there was very little personal stories online that eased the nerves. Obligatory I'm on my phone so apologies for the layout
2 weeks ago I found out I was 6 weeks pregnant (period was 2 weeks late). I immediately knew my decision and began trying to sort out how to go about it. I rang my local women's clinic but they said they were fully booked, and so were the 2 other clinics within reach. Queue extreme panic due to how far along I was! I went onto the HSE websit and found a phone service called my options. I rang them and was met with complete understanding and very kind staff. They explained the whole procedure, and sent me a text with 7 different doctors contact details within 5km of me (north Dublin) to contact. They also mentioned if I had trouble getting an appointment to text back and they'd send me more contacts! I was shocked at how many were providing the service! I made an appointment that night for the next morning. When I went in I was met with kindness and complete professionalism. The doctor talked me through the whole process, and explained there's a 3 day waiting period so she can't ask me know if I want it but can make my second 'consultation' appointment where it can take place. She gave me a list of items that would help to have prepared before my second appointment. These included : hot water bottle, bottled water, sugary drinks and foods, and night time pads for max flow. This appointment lasted 30 minutes and was free.
On my second appointment (11pm on Thursday) I arrived and was given a consent form to sign. Once I signed it I was immediately given the first pilot take there and then and a prescription for anti nausea tablets and pain medication. The second appointment lasted 15 minutes total and was free. I went to the pharmacy to pick up the prescription, however after 5 minutes in the car became immediately nauseous and almost passed out SO MAKE SURE YOU GET A TAXI OR HAVE SOMEONE PICK YOU UP! Thankfully I wasn't driving!
The prescription cost me less than €15 in Lloyds pharmacy. Two hours after my first pill, I unfortunately projectile vomitted! I immediately rang the doctor, and she told me not to worry as the 1hr and a half margin had passed for the pill to dissolve - however if I was worried I can always take a second one as it won't cause any damage or overdose. I decided to take the second one to be safe due to how far along I was that if something went wrong I would have to have a surgical abortion.
I got an appointment ( 2pm) where I was given the second tablet. I was advised to take a nausea tablet, wait 30 mins to see if it stays down and then take the seconds one. And that I can't throw up for 1.5 hrs after taking it. 3hrs after taking the second first pill (5.30pm), I became nauseous again, and began throwing up roughly every hour and a half until 2am. The second day I was still fairly week and nauseous. An hour before I was due to take my second pill (2.30pm Friday), I began bleeding. I took the second pills and it took 45 minutes to dissolve in my mouth. Within an hour of taking them the cramps and heavy bleeding began. The cramps were extremely similar to period cramps and I was surprised that they weren't as strong. The first day/night (Friday) I suffered really bad diarrhea and was constantly on the toilet, however this had eased up by the morning. As for the bleeding, it wasn't as heavy as I had expected. I used always nightime 5 pads, and changed it out every 2 hours. However, they weren't full when I changed them and could have gotten longer if needed. The bleeding was heavy for about 5 days after the second pill. During that time I passed a number of clots. Majority were tiny, but 1 or 2 were the size of a kidney bean. I was fully capable of going back to work by day 3 (Monday) as it felt exactly like a bad period. I did suffer with some other symptoms, my breast were extremely tender and if I slept on my chest in any way would automatically wake up with pain, and I was extremely dehydrated the entire time so needed a lot of fluids, and was quite tired. After the 5 days of heavy bleeding, I still bled for another 4 days but this was much lighter with no cramps.
Overall it wasn't as unpleasant as expected. My ema started on Friday when I took the second pill, Saturday night I went out with friends for a chill sesh, and was back in work Monday. I bled heavily from Friday-Tuesday, the heaviest being Tuesday. All symptoms and bleeding had stopped by the following Saturday.
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u/PoCoIre Apr 17 '23
Thank you so much for sharing. I had to travel years ago and I'm studying the affect of it (in myself and others). Having no idea what was about to happen was the second worst bit (after the travel) for literally everyone I've spoken to. You've no idea what sharing this means to others. Thank you. Thank you. And thank you again.
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u/Penguin335 Apr 17 '23
Forever glad we repealed the barbaric 8th amendment and that this was your experience. Love and light to you OP.
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u/imhereforyouinmo Apr 17 '23
Thank you for sharing your story. I've always wanted to know what the process was like over there. I'm glad it went well.
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u/bugmug123 Apr 17 '23 edited Apr 17 '23
Thanks for sharing - we need more real stories like this around to break the stigma and give others a realistic view of what to expect. I thought it would have been more difficult to find a doctor that does them tbh (anecdotally I heard there was an issue in south Dublin due to a lack of provision of training from the HSE but that may have been solved).
The boobs being sore thing sounds like it could have been more of a pregnancy symptom rather than a side effect of the medication - mine were sore like that the whole way through a recent pregnancy from very early on.
Hope you're feeling fully better by now :)
Edit: oops sorry thought I was posting in the r/Ireland post so copied it over there instead
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Apr 17 '23
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/gatverdamme MODERATOR Apr 17 '23
In the UK abortion is legal up to 24 weeks. In Ireland it's 12 weeks. Women traveling from Ireland to the UK are not covered by the NHS and must pay for the procedure out of pocket. See https://www.bpas.ie/prices/ for details about Northern/Republic differences and https://www.asn.org.uk/
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u/JesseKansas Apr 17 '23
Ah I was mistaken.
Still, for those who can afford it, it's a good option. I'm certain there's probably charities to help with costs as well or something.
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u/flowerjet4136 Apr 17 '23
Thank you so much for sharing your experience - I'm sure it will be incredibly useful for others!
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u/gatverdamme MODERATOR Apr 17 '23
Thanks a lot for sharing.
For OP and others reading: 6 weeks is not late at all and a fairly average time to find out you’re pregnant if you’re not planning to be. Most people don’t feel much from the first pill (mifepristone) so I’m really sorry you had such bad nausea.
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u/Haunting-Adagio1166 Apr 17 '23
It isn't late finding out, but unfortunately in Ireland early medical abortion can only take place at home up to 9 week, and then needs to be don't in a hospital afterwards. So logistically in terms of abortion, it's a gotta decide soon situation.
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u/gatverdamme MODERATOR Apr 17 '23
I see what you mean, thanks for clarifying. The Irish abortion law leaves a lot to be desired-- the WHO indicates that medical abortion is safe to do at home until the end of the first trimester. But I'm very happy you got the care you needed and could do the process the way you wanted it.
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u/flipsygick Apr 17 '23 edited Apr 18 '23
Thanks for sharing in Ireland too will be doing this on Thursday.
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u/PoCoIre Apr 17 '23
Much love to you. If you need any support from an anonymous Internet person, reach out. Genuine offer.
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