What Is the Procedure for Getting a Mifepristone-Misoprostol Abortion Pill?

Recently updated

Medication abortion is commonly referred to as the abortion pill, but there is more than one pill. There are several ways to utilize abortion pills to achieve an abortion. For a medication abortion, you may use two distinct drugs (mifepristone and misoprostol) or only one type of medication (misoprostol).

How Does the Abortion Pill Work?

If you're undergoing a medication abortion with two distinct drugs (mifepristone and misoprostol), here's how it typically works when you obtain them from an in-person provider.

Step 1 - Counseling, possibly an ultrasound, and perhaps a waiting period

You'll start by filling out some papers. You will consult with a health care practitioner and may undergo an ultrasound to determine or confirm your pregnancy's stage. If you are farther along in your pregnancy, medication abortion may not be a choice for you.

If the state where you are having your abortion requires a waiting period, you will have to wait a certain number of hours between the counseling appointment and the appointment where you will take the first abortion pill. If there is a waiting time and you will have to travel a long distance for your abortion, ask if virtual counseling is available when you phone to schedule your appointment.

Step 2 - Get the medication from a health clinic

Your doctor will give you both pills and explain when and how you will take them.

The first medicine is called mifepristone. Mifepristone suppresses the hormone progesterone. Because progesterone is required for pregnancy to continue, inhibiting it initiates the process of terminating the pregnancy. Mifepristone seldom causes symptoms, so you'll probably feel nothing after taking it. Your doctor may instruct you to take the mifepristone in the health center, or you may take it at home or anywhere safe.

Your provider will administer the second medication. Usually, it comes with the mifepristone, but you may need to return to the provider to acquire it. Make sure to follow the instructions provided by the provider, as they may differ from one another.

Step 3 - You can take the second drug up to 48 hours later

Up to 48 hours after taking mifepristone, you will take a dose (typically four tablets) of the second drug, misoprostol.

For this phase, you should be somewhere where you can unwind and have easy access to a bathroom. Misoprostol causes your uterus to empty, ending the pregnancy. It produces cramps and bleeding. Misoprostol can be taken orally by swallowing the pills; vaginally by inserting the pills into your vagina; sublingually by placing the pills under your tongue and allowing them to dissolve; or buccally by inserting the pills between the inside of your cheek and your gum and allowing them to dissolve there.

Depending on how far along you are and how your body reacts to the initial dose, you may need to take one or more doses of misoprostol; your provider will advise you. Misoprostol begins working within 30 minutes to a few hours of taking it. It is typical to bleed as it kicks in. The bleeding could range from moderate to severe. You are likely to pass some blood clots. You'll also probably experience cramps, which can be severe. You may experience diarrhea or vomiting and a moderate temperature on the day you take misoprostol.

Your doctor may also prescribe anti-nausea medication for you to take before taking misoprostol. Some healthcare professionals will suggest a follow-up appointment a few weeks following your medication abortion to ensure that the pregnancy has ended. This appointment could take place by telemedicine, phone, or in person, depending on the provider.