Her Choice Women’s Clinic is a medical center that provides confidential family planning services to any woman with an unplanned pregnancy that needs to terminate. We offer the abortion pill as well as surgical abortion. Our staff is specifically trained and sensitive to the challenges a woman faces with an unplanned pregnancy. If you are facing the hardship of an undesired pregnancy and have decided to terminate or have questions, please contact us at 714-966-9094.
We have provided information on our web site for education and general knowledge. If you have decided to be seen as a patient or have other questions, call us at 714-966-9094 to schedule an appointment with our doctor for consultation.
Although most women are responsible and take care to avoid an unwanted pregnancy, birth control failures do happen. In some cases, when unintended pregnancy occurs, the best outcome for that woman is to continue with it. However, for other women, such an outcome is not the best for her or for her family. For such instances, seeking the help of an abortion clinic may be the best long term result.
Deciding to end a pregnancy is never easy. No woman enters into such a path lightly. It is usually the last resort for a woman. Every person that has sought such help has struggled with the thought for some time. Only after carefully weighing everything does she move forward.
An undesired pregnancy can be one of the most frightening and stressful events. The first thought that goes through most people’s minds is that of shock and denial. “How could this have happened? I was careful. It was only the one time.” Unfortunately, even taking care and precautions is not always enough. Also, having relations for even one time is enough to result in an unplanned pregnancy. Then, there are also many women that thought they were infertile and could not possibly conceive. They are also sometimes painfully surprised when this happens. A crisis pregnancy can catch the best people with the best intentions off guard.
There are different situations in one’s life that prompt her to forego birth. Some of the causes include the following:
Maternal health risks, rape or incest, environmental hazard exposure, abnormal or malformed fetus, economic difficulties, lack of emotional support, age, existing family size, career and educational obstacles, and timing, among others.
Here is more information on such reasons for a woman to terminate.
The important message is that each person may have various cases. Everyone is entitled to self-determination, sympathy, and dignity in her decision. We aim to understand and sympathize with each individual’s conflict that has led her to us. The last thing that a patient needs is criticism. Through this difficult time, there is no need for added shame or guilt.
There are two different ways to end a pregnancy. One way is to perform a brief procedure, and the other involves taking medications. Both are safe and usually effective, and opting for one over the other is a matter of personal preference:
This involves dilating or opening the cervix (the opening channel to the uterus) just enough to pass a small curette (plastic tube) into the uterus. Suction is then used to remove the contents of the uterus. This is why the procedure is called a dilation and curettage, or D and C.
We feel the safest way to use anesthesia is to provide a local block with lidocaine. By not going to sleep, the risks of the procedure are minimized, and recovery is much quicker. This is similar to what dentists use in their offices to numb a small part of the body without the unnecessary risks of general anesthesia.
The D & C itself is very quick, usually lasting less than 15 minutes. The time spent from start to finish (initial consultation, ultrasound, blood work, giving preparation medications of antibiotics, giving anesthetic, D and C procedure) is usually about 6 hours.
This means that everything can be done the same day, and the process finished and over quickly. For many, this is preferable so that they can get it over with and move on. Also, the other advantage the procedure offers is that it is extremely effective. Although sometimes it can fail in removing the entire pregnancy, it is a rare event when it is not effective.
The disadvantage of the surgery is that it has risks, although these risks are extremely rare.
The abortion pill can be taken safely at 4 weeks, 5 weeks, 6 weeks, 7 weeks, 8 weeks, 9 weeks, or 10 weeks.
Beyond 10 weeks, only a surgical termination is an option. At 11 weeks, 12 weeks, 13 weeks, and 14 weeks it can be performed with Dilation and Curettage. At 15 weeks, 16 weeks, and 17 weeks the process is a bit more complex, involving what is called Dilation and Evacuation, which is technically more challenging than a Dilation and Curettage, though similar in many respects. Of course, the earlier it is, the easier and less risky the abortion process.
More information is provided here regarding our Clinic’s surgical abortion services.
The abortion pill Mifeprex or Ru-486 is a medication that causes spontaneous miscarriage. It works to block a hormone that is needed in the first trimester to support and maintain gestation. Without that hormone, miscarriage will happen.
The RU486 is FDA approved for use until 10 weeks from the last menstrual period. Therefore, it is limited in use to the early part of the first trimester, whereas the procedure can be done well into the second trimester.
The advantage of the pill is that it avoids some of the risks of surgery. The pill has risks of its own, but they are fewer than the procedure. Also, it allows for the process to be completed in the privacy of one’s home instead of at the clinic. There may also be the added benefit of being more in control. After all, the action that leads to the miscarriage is subsequent to the patient taking a pill herself, instead of the doctor doing a procedure. For some, this distinction is irrelevant, but for others, it is quite relevant.
On rare occasions, it is possible that the abortion pill might fail. When it fails, the only recourse is to perform the surgical option.
Clearly, each method has pros and cons. One method or the other is not always best for everyone. These pros and cons carry different weights with each person, and so the final decision will vary with each woman. It is best to meet with our physician and go over these details in-depth to help decide the best abortion choice.
The physician performing an abortion procedure to terminate pregnancy matters a lot. The process is not extremely complicated, but like anything else, requires adequate training and experience. Unfortunately, most physicians do not have the required experience to safely perform a D and C.
Many doctors that carry out terminations do not have the training required to do them safely. We have seen physicians from specialties other than ob-gyn performing abortions. Although such persons are competent health care providers, they are not necessarily the best at performing a D and C. Usually family practitioners are attempting these procedures. Unfortunately, now even some nurse practitioners are granted permission to perform them.
Even many ob-gyn doctors are inadequately trained for such a task. First, one has to consider whether or not that ob-gyn is board certified or not. Board certification by the American Board of Obstetricians and Gynecologists indicates that a provider is well trained in his or her field. Second, personal experience in a procedure is a good judge of ability. Third, the rate of complications that a doctor or clinic had seen is another factor to be considered.
Even though family practice doctors are competent providers, they do not possess enough gyn practice or surgical background to safely perform a dilation and curettage. The best person for that job is one with extensive surgical knowledge, especially of the female anatomy. An ob-gyn is best fitted for this termination.
Our women’s clinic is staffed by a board-certified obstetrician and gynecologist, Dr. A.G. Nasseri. He has vast clinical and surgical expertise, especially in the area of pregnancy termination. He has been in practice for over 20 years and has safely performed many terminations in the first and second trimesters of pregnancy. We are very proud of our staff, our doctor, and our clinic’s extremely low complication rate. We aim to provide a safe and confidential family planning service to the women of Orange County, and that means having the best personnel possible.
Additional Resources:
Information on risks of surgical procedure
Information on the history of termination
Preparations prior to visiting our clinic
Looking For an Abortion Clinic Near Me?
Biography of our contributing author, staff physician, and Medical Director, A.G. Nasseri, MD, FACOG
We are a community women’s clinic and abortion center that provides low cost, affordable reproductive health care for the women of Southern California, located in Santa Ana, and Orange County.