Shared by: Mavis
Age: 34 yrs
Where are you from? What country? United Kingdom
Did you have a pregnancy test? Yes, twice
If no pregnancy test was taken - do you think you were pregnant?
Using herbs Were you successful in using the herbs? Yes
Is there anything that clued you in that the herbs might be working before bleeding started? A mild, but perceptible, decrease in my pregnancy symptoms.
Is this your first pregnancy? No. My third.
Do you cycle regularly or irregularly? Like clockwork.
How many weeks pregnant were you when the herbs were started? Approx 1 week.
What was the date the pregnancy was terminated? 11/3/2006
What was the date bleeding started if herbs were successful? Some very, very light spotting on 10/3. Proper bleeding began on 11/3.
Were you using birth control? Yes
Did you experience any symptoms or signs of pregnancy? Very tender breasts, persistent metallic taste in mouth, constipation, extreme tiredness and light, weird crampy feelings in tummy - all as per 2 previous pregnancies.
Please include a summary of dosage information.
The first day, Friday 3rd March, I stupidly disregarded the advice on this site about giving the Vit C and parsley a chance to work before adding Dong Quai and Black Cohosh to the mix. I took 2 x black cohosh tablets (250mg) and 1 x dong quai (1000mg) every two hours over a six hour period before going to bed on the Friday night (around 11.30).
I woke up around 2 hrs later with an excruciating headache, extreme hot and cold sweats/shakes and a sky-high pulse (over 140 bpm for quite some time). I can't emphasise enough how awful I felt. I vomited at 3am and was finally started to feel a bit better at around 4am.
The next day, Saturday, I moved back to just Vit C and Parsley. I restarted with Black Cohosh and Dong Quai on Thursday 9th March (see dosage info above). Everything I needed I was able to obtain from Sainsburys (supermarket) and Boots (high st chemist) relatively cheaply. All the stuff I needed and used was less than GB£20 in total.
Dosage as above. Sainsbury's own brand effervescent Vit C tablets 1000mg x 20 (4 tubes of @ £1 ea) - £4 Boots' own brand Dong Quai - 1000mg x 60 tablets - £5 Sainsburys' own brand Black Cohosh 250mg x 30 - £5 Parsley - home-grown and picked just before use
Any positive effects? Skin looked great with all the additional Vit C and water I was drinking.
Do you have any health problems or issues? No
How did being pregnant make you feel physically? Nauseous and very tired.
I experienced some mild stomach cramps in the run up to bleeding starting. I had no idea whether this method would work or not and in fact, my partner and I were talking just a few hours before the bleeding started about the logistics of me getting to the doctor for a gynae consultation. The first time I noticed a tiny tinge of pink on the tissue, I tried not to get my hopes up and carried on with the dosages I'd been following. That evening there was a small show of blood and I knew that the process was starting. I took a final dose of the herbs and a mild painkiller for the cramping. The bleeding has been substantially heavier than a period, with some large clots.
I tried and failed to get some raspberry leaf tea to help expedite the process. {Note: raspberry leaf supports pregnancy.} I stayed active - walking around as much as I could to help speed things up and keep everything going. I was expecting the miscarriage process to be painful, in line with a medical termination I had around 8 years ago. This wasn't the case. It's been uncomfortable and the cramping has been worse than my period but it's been bearable and I've managed to go to work today as usual. A hot water bottle, some decent painkillers and lots of sleep have all played their part in helping me cope physically, leaving me more relaxed and better able to cope emotionally. My partner has been amazingly supportive.
I said some silent prayers for the spirit of this unborn child and asked for it to forgive me for not being strong enough to bring it into the world at this time. Could you reflect on the process of a herbal abortion and write a paragraph about it. I would like to add something of this nature to my website, but would like other experiences to draw upon besides my own. Thanks. The process was a bit of a rollercoaster. I was sceptical that 'a few herbs' could possibly have the effect they did.
Being an 'all or nothing' sort of woman, I decided that it was better to overdo it than underdo it - and ended up totally overdoing it. However, after feeling so very, very ill on the Friday night/early Saturday morning I stopped underestimating the power of herbs.
I tried to go a little easier on myself despite the worry of an unplanned pregnancy. My partner and I are both enormously grateful for this website and the knowledge you've made available to women and other couples in ths situation. Although we both hope ( and plan) not to get pregnant before we're ready, I would have no hesitation in following the guidance suggested here again if it was neccessary. Thank you for making available the information to allow us to take control of a highly emotive, potentially painful, deeply intimate and worrying situation.
Submitted: April 7, 2006
Weight: 200lbs
Height: 5'11"
When was it taken? the day after period was due
What was the result. Negative both times If more than one test was taken please include info for each one.
How strongly do you feel this way? Although two pregnancy tests (from the same batch) both gave negative results, I'm certain that I was pregnant.
How was the pregnancy ended?
Would you try herbs again, or recommend them to a friend in the same situation? Yes, I would use them again. I would also consider recommending this website to a friend in a similar situation.
What was the date when the herbs were started? 3/3/2006
For how many days were the herbs used (total)? 9 days
What kind/method of birth control/contraception were you using? Condoms
Do you know how/why it failed? One split
Every day from 3/3/2006 - 11/3/2006 1000mg effervescent Vit C in water every 2 hrs during waking hours. Additional 2000mg Vit C directly prior to going to bed and immediately on waking. Fresh parsley inserts twice daily, leaving in for 12 hours each.
Where there any negative effects? Massive migraine, hot and cold sweats, shaking and vomiting. I'm confident that this was due to overdoing it with the Dong Quai at the beginning. When I ceased Dong Quai, the symptoms disappeared. Later I suffered nasty headaches even on a relatively minor dose of Dong Quai. I kept drinking lots of water and took some mild painkillers to make it bearable.
How did the herbs make you feel physically? The black cohosh and dong quai combined to make me feel tired, crampy, nauseous and headachey. Everything was temporary and stopped as soon as I stopped taking the supplements.
If the herbs caused miscarriage -- how did you feel just before bleeding began?
And when bleeding started - How was the bleeding, cramping, etc?
Many women would like to know more about this part. If you can discribe what it was like for you it would be helpful.
