Shared by: Elizabeth from the US
Did you have a pregnancy test? Yes
How was the pregnancy ended? using vitamin c, ginger, parsley & evening primrose
Is there anything that clued you in that the herbs might be working before bleeding started? My morning temperature finally dropped from 98.6 to 97.3 after 20 + days of being elevated; my breasts weren't tender anymore; got my usual premenstrual headache 1 day before
Is this your first pregnancy? No, I have 4 children, never had a miscarriage or abortion
How many weeks pregnant were you when the herbs were *started*? 4+ weeks LMP
Were you using birth control? No
Did you experience any symptoms or signs of pregnancy? yes, swollen breasts, clothes very tight (i'm thin)
Please include a summary of dosage information. only Vit. C for 7 days total, skipping a couple of days-12 g/day, (about 1 g/ hour chewable); last day added parsley & ginger tea brewed from fresh parsley every 6 hours; 2 ginger tablets every 4 hours; evening primrose oil squeezed directly on the cervix & allowed to soak down (I remembered this from promoting a long labor); 3 doses of black cohosh spread through the day; fresh parsley sprigs in the vagina overnight
Useful information includes for each herb used: All over-the-counter stuff from the drug store; Started C on 3/16; other remedies on 3/24 at night ; 1100 mg ginger; 550 mg evening primrose; 540 mg black cohosh; lots of fresh parsley brewed in the tea for 20 minutes, covered (see above for frequency)
side effects: the parsley tea made me a bit nauseated, & the combination made me a little "fuzzy-headed"
other comments: I am so grateful to have found this site because my wise woman book said to do vitamin c for a maximum of 6 days, instead of a /minimum/. With my fourth pregnancy, I tried vitamin c for a few days, but was ambivalent & stopped the treatment. My son was born healthy (9-1/2 pounds), so I believe in the safety of vitamin c, even if you change your mind.
Side effects. How did the herbs affect you? They made me a little tired & out of focus
How did the herbs make you feel physically? Spacey & tired
If the herbs caused miscarriage -- how did you feel just before bleeding began? When bleeding started - How was the bleeding, cramping, etc?
Could you reflect on *the process of a herbal abortion* and write a paragraph about it.
Is there anything you would have done differently? I would have
started serious treatment earlier, right after the positive test.
There are many lessons that can be learned from an experience such as
this, Do you feel you have learned something from this experience? If
so what? I learned that abortion is an incredibly heavy decision. I
have no regrets.
Submitted: March 26, 2004
Age: 36
Weight: 110
Height: 5'3"
What was the result. Positive
If more than one test was taken please include info for each one. Planned Parenthood pregnancy test was also positive on March 24
Were you successful in using the herbs? YES
Would you try herbs again, or recommend them to a friend in the same situation? YES!
For how many days were the herbs used (total)? 7 days
What kind/method of birth control/contraception were you using? natural family planning
Do you know how/why it failed? we ignored the signs of fertility
If you were not using birth control, please share why not. I had not gotten pregnant in 6 years using NFP faithfully
When did they start? about 2 days before my period would have been due
Any positive effects? not really
Where there any negative effects? My face felt hot the last day--parsley does add to photosensitivity in fair-skinned people, so use sunscreen
How did being pregnant make you feel physically? Hungry!
I woke up at 1:30 am after having NO bleeding since my last period & felt a little "heavy" in my pelvis; when I went to the bathroom there was a good deal of blood. I didn't have any cramping, but I never do.
The process of herbal abortion was draining psychologically & would be difficult to maintain if I didn't work at home. I went to Planned Parenthood on 3/24 for counseling for a medicinal abortion. They told me to expect fist-sized clots & bleeding for up to 30 days with the treatment. The whole experience there made me feel ashamed & guilty about the potential process (not to mention $450 poorer). They told me the pregnancy was too early & to come back in 9 days--that was just intolerable! My last 2 babies were born at home, & I wanted to do this my own way in my own time. While exhausting, I found the herbal abortion to be very empowering & private. The hardest part was the waiting & having faith that it would work, even with no hopeful signs for many days. The bleeding so far is just like a regular period, maybe a little heavy.
