Various methods, including medical abortion and surgical abortion are used to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Any of the options of pregnancy termination is often a difficult choice for a woman and may cause fear before the abortion and a sense of guilt after it. There are effective abortion pills and many methods of surgical abortion, but doctors recommend women to prevent unwanted pregnancy than to take difficult decisions afterwards.
Termination of pregnancy by means of abortion pills is a safe method that does not lead to severe consequences for the woman’s health. In recent years, a decline in the number of abortions has been reported and women are increasingly using various methods of contraception, including:
- barrier methods – condoms, diaphragms, caps;
- intrauterine contraceptive devices and spermicides;
- surgical – female sterilization and vasectomy in men;
- non-surgical – hormonal drugs.
There is no universal method of contraception so that a woman can prevent pregnancy, because of which she has to have abortion or use abortion pills. Sometimes for birth control, sexual partners use several contraceptive methods at once, for example:
- the woman uses oral contraceptives;
- the man uses a condom.
When choosing a contraception, the woman needs to take into account her age and individual characteristics, as well as carefully examine possible side effects. Emergency contraception is a method to avoid pregnancy during the first days after sexual intercourse, when contraceptive measures were unsuccessful or not applied at all. Remember that if not to take urgent measures after the unprotected sex, you may have to use abortion pills.
- Emergency contraceptive pills usually contain higher doses of hormones than conventional oral contraceptives do.
Modern contraceptives contain low doses of hormones and are mostly considered safe for women. Many women prefer to avoid using abortion pills or other methods of pregnancy termination, so they buy a combined contraceptive containing such hormones as estrogens and progestogens.
For some women, a good solution to avoid medical or surgical abortion is a temporary sexual abstinence, which implies a complete rejection of intimacy. However, do not forget that some studies indicate that regular sex increases the blood flow to the genitals leading to better physical and sexual health.
- Long-term sexual abstinence may have some physical consequences, including vaginal dryness.
If the woman has had unprotected sex, then there is no need to wait days or weeks to find out whether an unwanted pregnancy will occur or not, for elimination of which abortion pills are used. Every woman decides by herself how to choose a suitable method to prevent pregnancy. To understand the benefits and risks of all birth control options better, contact your doctor or a pharmacist.