Definitely Don’t Do This After an Abortion With Pills

When the hardest cramping is over and the heaviest bleeding has stopped, someone who’s used abortion pills to self-manage an abortion can get on with most normal activities. But there’s one critical exception: a person should wait two days before putting anything into the vagina.

Why is this so important? Because the cervix – the little round muscle that leads from the vagina into the uterus – is normally shut tight to keep anything from getting into the uterus that shouldn’t be there. When a person uses abortion pills, though, the cervix opens up to release what the uterus is pushing out, which makes it much easier to push germs, bacteria, and other contaminants in. That can cause an infection, which can be anywhere from unpleasant to life-threatening.

So for safety’s sake, people shouldn’t insert anything into the vagina for two full days after the abortion, to give the cervix time to close again.

Yes, this includes tampons. Many people continue bleeding for a week or more after an abortion with pills. They should use pads for the first 48 hours, but then they can return to tampons, menstrual cups, or other forms of internal protection.

People should also avoid penetration with sex toys, fingers, tongues, penises, and anything else (though external contact is fine) for two days after the abortion. After that, they can enjoy sex again – although they should make sure to use contraception, because it’s possible to get pregnant again after an abortion almost immediately.

When used properly, abortion pills are up to 98% effective – and safer than penicillin or Viagra! Learn more about safety before, during, and after using them at AbortionPillInfo.org and on the Euki reproductive health app for iOS and Android.