Abortion
Abort - engelskaAn abortion is when a person chooses to end their pregnancy. It is the pregnant person's decision whether they want to have an abortion. This is called the right to choose abortion.
This right is described in a special law called the Abortion Act.
Make an appointment
Contact an abortion clinic if you are considering having an abortion.
The healthcare staff are sworn to secrecy. This means that they are not allowed to tell anyone about your visit.
At the abortion clinic, a midwife or doctor will examine you to determine how far along you are in the pregnancy.
Together, you will discuss which method of abortion is best for you. There are medical abortions and surgical abortions. Medical abortion is the most common method.
They will also help with contraception, if needed.
In Skåne, you have to wait about a week for the first examination.
At the out-patient clinic, you will also get tested for the diseases gonorrhoea and chlamydia. These diseases are sexually transmitted.
You will not pay anything for the visit.
The medical abortion process
The film has subtitles in Swedish, English and Arabic. Choose your language in the video player.
The film has subtitles in Swedish, English and Arabic. Choose your language in the video player.
You go to the abortion clinic, where you are given a tablet that will induce abortion. You will then be sent home with some additional medicine.
One or two days after taking the first tablet, it is time to take the medicines you brought home with you. After a few hours, you will begin to bleed. It is common to see clots of blood as well. The pregnancy is expelled from the body along with the blood.
Some people may have to come back to the abortion clinic and finish the abortion there. This may happen, for example, if you have been pregnant for more than 10 weeks.
If you have the abortion at home, follow these steps:
- Lie down and insert four tablets into your vagina with your fingers. Insert the tablets as far as you can.
- Lie down for at least 15 minutes. You will start bleeding after around two to four hours. But sometimes it takes longer.
- Take the last two tablets after three hours. Take the tablets even if you are not bleeding.
Sometimes you have to put the tablets under your tongue instead. In such cases you will be told to do so from the staff at the out-patient clinic.
How you will feel during the abortion
You will feel pain and will bleed from your vagina after taking the tablets. Please call the out-patient clinic if you have not started bleeding after two days.
You may get a fever and headache. You may also feel nauseous and vomit.
The symptoms are harmless and will pass after some hours.
You will get tablets to take at home if it hurts.
The surgical abortion process
The film has subtitles in Swedish, English and Arabic. Choose your language in the video player.
The film has subtitles in Swedish, English and Arabic. Choose your language in the video player.
A surgical abortion is a minor operation that is performed in a hospital.
First, you will be put to sleep with anaesthesia. The doctor will then insert a tube through the vagina up to the uterus to suction out the foetus.
Once you have woken up from the surgery, you will stay in the hospital for a while before going home.
You will get two tablets during a previous visit to the out-patient clinic. Take the tablets the same morning as you are going to have the abortion.
You can take the tablets in different ways:
- Put the tablets under your tongue an hour before the abortion.
- Insert the tablets into your vagina three hours before the abortion.
The tablets may make you bleed a little.
Afterwards the surgery takes around 20 minutes.
During the operation, you can choose to have contraception inserted into your body. The contraceptive will protect against pregnancy.
When can I have an abortion?
You can have an abortion up to the 18th week of pregnancy.
The weeks of pregnancy are counted from the first day of your last period, i.e. they are not counted from the day of conception.
Abortion after week 18
It is possible to have an abortion after the 18th week of pregnancy. However, the National Board of Health and Welfare must give permission for the abortion. A counsellor at the abortion clinic will help you to apply for the abortion.
How you will feel after the abortion
After the abortion, it is a good idea to rest for a day or so.
It is common to bleed afterwards and feel some pain. At first, the bleeding will be similar to a period, or a little more. The bleeding will stop after a few weeks. How long the bleeding lasts varies from one person to another.
An abortion does not make it harder to get pregnant in the future. Nor does it put you at increased risk of a future miscarriage.
You can get a pregnancy test to take home. For example, if you perform a medical abortion at home.
You should test yourself three to four weeks after the abortion.
Counselling before and after an abortion
It may feel good to talk to someone. Both before and after having an abortion.
You can make an appointment for counselling at the abortion clinic.
Do you want abortion advice?
Then please contact one of these out-patient clinics:
When and where should I seek medical care?
There is a risk of getting an infection in your uterus after an abortion.
Seek medical care if any of the following applies to you:
- You develop a fever of over 38°C.
- You have pain in your abdomen.
- You have bad-smelling discharge.
Contact the abortion clinic that performed the abortion. If they cannot attend to you, seek care from an emergency department or a gynaecological emergency department.
Please also contact the out-patient clinic in these cases:
- You are worried about the pain.
- You are bleeding a lot.
- You are in a lot of pain.
- Your bleeding is foul smelling.
Call 1177 for advice
Call the 1177 helpline if you need advice on what to do.
Your call will be answered by a nurse.
The nurse can speak both Swedish and English. Help is sometimes available in other languages.
Call +46 771-11 77 00 if you are calling from a phone with a foreign number.