Convenient or Complicated? Telemedicine Abortion

Can I Get the Abortion Pill by Post?

🚪 At-home abortion — is it for me? Take the quiz

• At-home Early Medical Abortions (EMA) usually involve an online consultation followed by an abortion pill delivery.
• Although abortion pills have been available by post to women in England and Wales since the outbreak of the coronavirus, doctors universally agree that the abortion pill must not be taken beyond the 9th or 10th week of pregnancy as risks increase exponentially.
• This article informs you about the conditions, steps and cost of telemedicine abortions.

QUIZ: At-Home Abortion — Is It for Me?

What Is a Telemedicine Abortion?

At-home Early Medical Abortion (EMA), aka telemedicine abortion or Pills by Post, is a process of accessing abortion pills through online medical professionals rather than visiting a local provider. It usually involves a phone or online video consultation with a medical doctor followed by an abortion pill delivery. The abortion is carried out at home under the remote supervision of a doctor.

Conditions for Getting a Telemedicine Abortion

Because telemedicine abortions take place without the physical presence of a medical doctor, they are highly regulated to protect your health. Conditions include:

Timing

• Early at-home medical abortions can be performed up to ten weeks of pregnancy .
• Any requirements, such as ultrasounds, urine pregnancy tests and blood tests, must be completed before this deadline.
• Consultations must happen several days before the cut-off date, as delivery times are taken into consideration.

Location

You must live within a 2-hour drive of an A&E department in the event that you need treatment.

You must provide a delivery address in a region where at-home abortions are legal.

Age

There is no minimum age for an abortion in the UK.

Health

For your safety, you cannot have a telemedicine abortion if:

• you have an IUD. This would have to be removed before proceeding.
• you are on medications that exacerbate bleeding, such as steroids or blood thinners (anticoagulants).
• you have heart, liver or kidney problems.
• you have a history of haemorrhaging.
• you are anaemic.
• you have a known allergy to mifepristone or misoprostol.
• you have or suspect an ectopic pregnancy.

For more information about the process, risks and side effects of a medical abortion, go to The Abortion Pill.

Ability

You must have internet access and be able to follow directions accurately.

Consent

You can only have a telemedicine abortion if you are willing to undergo surgery, should the abortion pill fail. This happens in 3-5% of cases.

• Information on Coerced Abortion

Telemedicine Abortion Near Me?

Is Pills by Post available in my area? What are the conditions, and what else do I need to know?

The abortion pill by post is unavailable in Northern Ireland due to abortion regulations.

In the UK, telemedicine abortions usually consist of the following steps:

After the initial consultation, which ensures that the woman fulfils all conditions and understands the procedure, she will be sent the pills in the post with instructions.

The actual process of abortion takes several days. The first pill causes the supply to the embryo to be cut off, leading to its demise. The second set of pills (2 days later) causes the expulsion of the embryo, accompanied by cramping and bleeding. The effect of this medication is usually intense, preventing any other activity on that day. Three to four weeks later, the woman can take a home pregnancy test to determine whether the abortion is complete.

D&Cs become necessary in 3-5% of cases due to an incomplete abortion.

Total Cost: At-home Early Medical Abortions are free under the NHS. For those who are not eligible for, or unable to obtain NHS funding, the abortion pill costs around £500.

Your body is unique, which could mean your procedure won't go precisely as described above. For potential risks, go to

• 🛤 Risks and Side Effects of an Abortion — Including Self-Evaluation
• It is okay to change your mind after the consultation or once you receive your pack. You are not obligated to take it only because a doctor prescribed it. It is always up to you to decide. Are you having second thoughts after taking the first abortion pill? Go to Abortion Pill Reversal.

Disadvantages of Telemedicine Abortions

For various reasons, telemedicine abortions may initially seem like the simplest option.
Nevertheless, it is essential to consider the safety concerns regarding telemedicine abortions:

• Without ultrasound, it is easy to miscalculate how far along you are in your pregnancy. This could result in an abortion being conducted too late in the pregnancy. Gestational limits are in place for your protection. A later abortion will likely result in heavy bleeding or serious complications requiring surgery.  
• Without the physical presence of a doctor, ectopic pregnancies would be left undiagnosed. Since the effect of the abortion regimen would mask the symptoms of an ectopic pregnancy, medical attention may be sought too late.
• Delays in the delivery of the drugs could cause abortions to be conducted later than deemed medically safe. 
• According to data provided by NHS Trusts, 1 in 17 women needed hospital treatment after taking the abortion pill at home.
• Despite the online appointments, women procuring a telemedicine abortion generally endure their abortion alone. This can be emotionally stressful, especially when unsure whether further medical care might be necessary.
• In post-abortion counselling, we have seen a greater need for post-abortion care in women who underwent their abortion alone.

Can I Order Abortion Pills Online

Perhaps you are thinking about ordering abortion pills online without medical supervision.

Purchasing abortion pills from another country (the MTP-Kit) is illegal and not recommended. Ordering the abortion pill on the internet bypasses safeguards to protect your health because:

• You have not been professionally assessed whether the abortion pill is suitable for you.
• The quality is not guaranteed, which could render the pills ineffective or harmful.
• Little information is provided to the patient regarding procedures and warnings.
• No contact number for aftercare is provided.
• Shipping from overseas is expected to take three weeks, which could delay the abortion beyond a safe time frame.

Maybe you are unsure about how to proceed and have come across our website while searching for more information. Your situation is probably anything but easy, and you may not want anyone to know about the pregnancy. Maybe one of the following scenarios matches your experience:

• He Does Not Want the Baby — Test and Advice
• Pregnant from Another Man — Test and Advice

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Considering an Early At-Home Abortion?

The reasons women consider online abortion pill delivery are as unique as their lived experiences. Often, the desire not to travel, the comfort of one's own home, the cost, or the desire to keep the abortion a secret play a role.

Your situation is probably complex.

Can you think of anyone to confide in who would support you, no matter how you decide? Keeping it to yourself intensifies your situation as you have to bear the burden on your own.

We would also like to help you lighten your load. Our free digital counselling tools were created with you in mind. We want you to be able to make a decision, free from outside pressures, according to your values and desires. Why not give them a try?

You are invited to participate in our weeklong Decision-Coaching sessions. For seven days, you will receive a daily email with food for thought and stories from other pregnant women.

Additionally, we have compiled other judgment-free resources to walk you through your decision-making process. Use them to find your unique path:

⛑ First Aid Test
💡 Solutions Finder Test

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