Shared by: Cham from the US
Age: 39
Did you have a pregnancy test? Yes
How was the pregnancy ended? Humphrey's "11" 6 tabs every 2 hrs -(Black Cohosh, Wind Flower, Sepia)
Is there anything that clued you in that the herbs might be working before bleeding started? a little switch went off internally and I just knew the pregnancy had ended, then severe cramping began a few hours later.
Is this your first pregnancy? No.
For how many days were the herbs used (total)? 3 days
Side effects.
How did the herbs make you feel physically? Indistinguishable from the general malaise of early pregnancy.
If the herbs caused miscarriage -- how did you feel just before bleeding began? And when bleeding started - How was the bleeding, cramping, etc?
The Humphrey's "11" tablets worked, though it took a few days, had to be started very early in the pregnancy and the dosing regime must be followed (in my experience) through the night. This particular approach caused some of the sharpest, most painful cramping I've ever experienced (though well short of labor) on day three and extraordinarily heavy bleeding. Though both of these symptoms subsided dramatically after about four hours, I wouldn't recommend being away from home if you feel cramping beginning.
BTW- "Humphrey's 11" and similar remedies are usually found in drug stores (including larger chains like Eckert's and RiteAid) in areas that have large Hispanic populations- check the aisle that has the Spanish-packaged pomades and medical oils. It can also be ordered online, but since its effectiveness seems to hinge on being taken as soon as possible, it's not a bad thing to have in the medicine cabinet for the first day of a missed period.
The story bit:
The bleeding, once it began, three days into the herbal course I chose was on the margin of being downright scary, and the cramping was sharp and severe, unlike my normal periods, but both the cramping and the bleeding subsided and became well within the range of a normal period after about four hours. After about twelve hours I felt completely recovered (with only scanty bleeding), and my early pregnancy nausea, swelling and tenderness was gone. It has taken two cycles for my period to get back on schedule, and in three cycles I am still not ovulating like clockwork as I was before. The earlier you are in a pregnancy/delayed period that you begin this regime, the more sure you can be it will work- and the less severe your cramping and bleeding will be.
I personally would have begun the course earlier if I hadn't deluded myself into thinking it could be the beginning of menopause.
Submitted: July 28, 2004
Weight: 132
Height: 5'5"
When was it taken? 2 weeks after missed period
What was the result. Positive
Were you successful in using the herbs? Yes
Would you try herbs again, or recommend them to a friend in the same situation? Yes- but they must be used early!
How did the herbs affect you? exacerbated nausea.
Any positive effects? Aside from terminating? No.
Where there any negative effects? Erratic pulse, frequency of urination
How did being pregnant make you feel physically? Ill.
I am an almost forty-year-old woman with children and more than a few pregnancies under my belt, both planned and unplanned. I have had two pregnancies terminated, one surgically and one herbally, and can favorably compare the herbal termination to the clinical procedure based on privacy and convenience, as well as the intangible of control. Neither is a pain-free experience, and the discomfort level of the herbal termination was unmitigated by prescription drugs, though in compensation I was also not so completely wiped out by sedative after-effects the next day.
