Early pregnancy causes rapid and powerful changes in your body as hormones rise quickly after conception. Nausea, fatigue, and sore breasts are all common symptoms.
If a pregnancy ends through abortion, these hormone levels fall quickly too as your body needs to adjust again. Understanding the hormone changes that happen after abortion can help to explain how you may be feeling after an abortion.
What Happens to Your Body in Early Pregnancy?
Just after implantation occurs, your body begins producing a hormone called human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). This is the hormone that pregnancy tests detect. According to the NHS and Mayo Clinic, hCG levels rise rapidly in early pregnancy, sometimes doubling every 48-72 hours.
At the same time that hCG increases, other hormones are also increasing.
- Progesterone increases to support the uterine lining.
- Estrogen increases to promote blood flow that supports early fetal development.
These hormone shifts are often responsible for the symptoms of early pregnancy like nausea, sore breasts, and mood swings. These are normal responses to the rapidly changing hormone levels during the first trimester of pregnancy.
What Happens to Hormones After an Abortion?
After an abortion—whether through medication or a surgical procedure—the pregnancy tissue is removed or expelled from the body. Because the pregnancy has ended, the body no longer needs to maintain the high levels of hormones that support pregnancy.
As a result, pregnancy hormones begin to decline and gradually return to their pre-pregnancy levels. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) explains that hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin), the hormone detected in pregnancy tests, starts to decrease soon after a pregnancy ends. Other hormones that rise during pregnancy, including progesterone and estrogen, also begin to fall as the body transitions out of pregnancy.
These hormonal shifts are a normal biological response as the body adjusts after the end of a pregnancy.
For many people, pregnancy-related symptoms subside as hormone levels fall. However, some women may notice more temporary physical or emotional effects than others as the body changes over such a short period of time. These hormonal symptoms are normal and temporary but good to be aware of if you are experiencing them.
Common Physical Symptoms After an Abortion
According to the NHS and Mayo Clinic, common physical effects of abortion may be:
- vaginal bleeding or spotting
- cramping from uterine contractions
- sore breasts or breast fullness
- fatigue and headaches
Some people may experience mood swings, irritability, or find themselves crying more easily. These emotional shifts can be influenced by hormonal changes as the body adjusts after pregnancy, as well as by how someone processes their physical and emotional experience. Everyone’s response is different. Some people feel back to normal fairly quickly, while others may need more time for their emotions and energy levels to feel balanced again.
When Do Hormones and Cycles Return to Normal
Many women wonder how long it takes for hormones to balance after abortion. hCG levels gradually decline over a few days to a few weeks. Ovulation can return as soon as 2-3 weeks after an abortion with a menstrual period usually coming back within 4-8 weeks, as reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and ACOG.
Since ovulation can resume a few weeks after abortion, it is possible to become pregnant again before your first post-abortion period. If you think you may be pregnant post-abortion, Jewel Women’s Center provides confidential pregnancy testing.
When to Seek Medical Care
If you are experiencing post-abortion symptoms that you’re not sure are normal, it’s wise to contact a healthcare provider for guidance. Symptoms like the following could be a sign of something serious.
- heavy bleeding (soaking 2 or more pads or tampons per hour for 2 consecutive hours; some bleeding or spotting may last up to a few weeks, but bleeding this heavily is abnormal)
- severe abdominal pain that isn’t made better with medication
- a fever of over 100.4°F
- foul-smelling vaginal discharge
Contact Jewel Women’s Center if You are Considering Abortion
Jewel Women’s Center is here to help if you are pregnant and considering abortion. We provide pregnancy option consultations to help get answers to your questions and discuss your concerns with our kind staff members. Contact Jewel today!