Timing Standard medical practice is to measure the length of a pregnancy as weeks from the first day of the last period, not from the date of conception. We perform abortions from the moment that a woman has a positive pregnancy test to approximately 23 weeks from the first day of the last normal period. We request that a patient not eat heavily for several hours prior to her appointment, as nausea during the procedure and immediately afterwards is not uncommon. We recommend that a patient find a friend to assist with transportation rather than having to drive herself home.
Most women are able to return to normal activity the following day.
Anesthesia A local anesthetic is applied to the cervix. Many patients choose to have an intravenous injection of a combination of drugs to further alleviate pain and anxiety during the procedure. In our experience this approach allows almost all women to tolerate any discomfort involved in having an abortion. We allow a support person to remain with the patient at all times, should the patient so desire. Except in rare and unusual circumstances, we do not recommend the use of general anesthesia for abortions.