America’s Health Rankings reports that almost 50% of pregnant women in the U.S. did not originally intend to conceive. Furthermore, it states that over half of the nation’s female population will experience an unexpected pregnancy by the time they are 45 years old. The unintended conception rate (and birthrate in the U.S. in general) has actually declined in the past few years and may continue to drop, but it remains high at the moment. This is largely due to failure to utilize proper contraception or incorrect usage of it. Many younger individuals are not fully educated on the matter but continue to participate in sexual activities regardless, often acting on incorrect information gleaned from less than credible sources such as peers. Others lack access to preventative measures. There are three main options for women in this situation, keeping the baby, giving it up for adoption and getting it aborted. The latter is one many choose for a variety of reasons, including health concerns, personal trauma and life circumstances. However, some regret making this decision. There is an option for those who had a medical abortion and fall into this category called abortion pill reversal.
How Does It Work?
A medical abortion consists of two phases in which two kinds of pills are taken, one type in each phase. The first is called mifepristone; it keeps the hormone progesterone, which helps the womb get ready for and nurture the baby, from being absorbed by taking up bonding spots on receptors so the chemical cannot attach to them. The reversal process works by essentially overriding this effect. The body is flooded with progesterone in the hope that there will be so much of it that mifepristone can’t prevent all of it from being taken into the womb.
Is There a Time Limit?
The process only works if the woman has only taken the first medicine; after the second dose of pills, it is ineffective. It is also best done as soon as possible after beginning the abortion, preferably within 24 hours. There have been a few cases where it worked when done within 72 hours, but in general the faster the reversal starts, the higher the likelihood is of it taking effect.
How Trustworthy Is It?
The reversal of the abortion pill is a relatively new concept, thought up within the past two decades. There has been a great deal of controversy over it as many people claim that it does not work. These individuals argue that there is not enough scientific evidence to support it as a viable method and cite incidents where it didn’t produce the desired effects as proof that progesterone does not reverse the effects of mifepristone. Since there have been situations where women successfully remained pregnant after the progesterone process, the answer to the conflict has yet to be fully settled. There have also been ones where those who only took the first pill and not the second but did not choose reversal carried their babies to term, adding another factor to the complex issue. The American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists does support the validity of the procedure, though.
The process of reversing the abortion pill with progesterone is a controversial one. It has, however, appeared to be successful in many real-life cases.
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