May 8, 2000
Phew. Where do I start? So, today at 7:25am I arrived at the VG to see my sweet JD waiting paitently for me. We went to admitting where i filled out forms and waited for a porter to come and take me to the Termination of Pregnancy Unit(TPU). This part is what i found the most fascinating. For safety reasons the TPU has high security and is somewhat hidden in the hospital. There are no signs to navigate you through the hospital to the TPU, as there are with all other units. After walking to what seemed like the other side of the hospital we came to a short hallway with these large doors that said something like "Limited Access" on them. The porter had to punch a in a code, to open the doors. Once inside the TPU i noticed little monitors showing what video cameras were taping of the hallway i was just in. I never knew there was such a need to be so secretive.
A doctor took my blood, to determine what type it was, and then sent me off with a nurse. She asked me alot about my medical history, and discussed what was going to happen before and after the procedure. I was truly amazed at how nice everyone was. They really made you feel comfortable.
Then i was told to sit in the waiting/TV room and that a doctor would be with me soon. There were about five or six other women there with me. Some looked a lot younger but most of them were older than myself. It was kinda strange sitting in the waiting room. I was perfectly calm and content, but some of the other women didnt look so good. Some looked scared, or distressed. I really wanted to talk to them, maybe make them feel more comfortable...but I was too shy.
After a good half-hour or so, the doctor came and talked to me. She was also very friendly and open. She described what would happen during the procedure and any possible yet rare complications. She asked me if i would like to take any of the available drugs, to help ease any pain that i might feel during the procedure. They give an anesthetic which is mandatory, as well as offering an intravenous painkiller and a muscle(?) relaxer. Since i was told that the procedure would only take about 10 minutes and that the most common pain suffered is close to menstrual cramps, i decided to tough it out and skip the drugs. I was then told to change into the hospital gown they gave me, and wait in TV room.
Maybe another half-hour passed before i was called in for the procedure. Once in the operating room, the nurse i had talked to before got me all settled in on the table, and just started a nice friendly conversation while we waited for the doctor. When the doctor arrived she started right away. She would let me know, what she was doing at each point, which was nice. The nurse stood by my side, talking to me, to distract me from paying attention to what was going on between my legs. Every once and a while, she'd ask me how i felt. There really wasn't any pain, just some discomfort and some really weird feelings, but nothing i couldn't handle. When it was all over, the nurse congratulated me on how well i did, and took me into the recovery room. I was really shaky, light headed and the discomfort i felt earlier got worse. They put me in a big comfy chair with a blanket, gave me tylonel and water, and let me rest for about 30 minutes. I was surprised to see that every other girl that was in the recovery room, had taken the painkiller IV. I felt tough being the only one there who didnt need it. hehe. The nurses would continually chech on me, monitor my cramps and bleeding to make sure they were at a normal level. Once everything calmed down, i was given some antibiotics to take home, and then they let me go get dressed.
At about 11:30 the porter took me back downstairs to admitting where i finally got to see JD and my mommy. After describing most of the event to JD, he said "Whoa. They had more abortions here today, than PEI had last year". I thought that was a very interesting observation, and i cant believe it's true.
So all in all, my abortion was a good experience..well as good as having your uterus emptied out can get, i guess.
