Missed Period Pills

missed period pills
missed period pills

Missed Period Pills

“This concept was developed as a way to provide early abortions to women who are uncomfortable with the idea of terminating a pregnancy.”

Ever heard of “Missed Period Pills”?

It’s a new option abortion providers are researching to use the same prescription medications from a medical abortion on a woman who has not even tested to know if she is pregnant or not. That’s right, if you’ve missed your monthly period and the stress of even taking a pregnancy test is more than you can bear, you can participate in another research study that uses medical abortion drugs to manipulate your body.  

This concept was developed as a way to provide early abortions to women who are uncomfortable with the idea of terminating a pregnancy.  

As early as 28 days from your last period and without taking a pregnancy test, these prescription abortifacients are being touted as safe and effective. Instead of questioning why your period might be late—stress, dietary changes, sexually transmitted infection, or pregnancy- they are even offering people discounts to participate in this study. Some women experience missed periods for reasons unrelated to pregnancy and should be further evaluated for their reproductive health. 

Doesn’t it make more sense to get a free pregnancy test instead of just taking a missed period pill?

At Alcove Health, we believe knowledge is power. Why expose yourself to hormone disruptive drugs without obtaining a full picture of what’s going on with your body? Your personal reproductive health history is important enough to pursue without any fear of monetary gain from an industry not looking out for your best interest. 

The ethical problems this raises by exposing women to drugs that have numerous side effects and adverse health reactions are overwhelming. The medications used, Mifepristone and Misoprostol, will empty the contents of the uterus and the bleeding experienced can “bring on the missed period”. Because a pregnancy test is never performed, it is unknown which function is completed. The patient’s right to understand the implications of these medications on her body is never fully revealed to her.   

At Alcove Health Women’s Clinic in Newport News, we provide a safe space for you to process your options, along with the medically accurate information you need to make an informed decision.  Call us today at 757-591-8141 to schedule your free appointment.

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Planned Parenthood’s Roo

Planned Parenthood’s Roo
Planned Parenthood’s Roo

Planned Parenthood’s Roo

What Can’t Roo Do?

You’ve got questions. Maybe you missed your period,and you are wondering if you should get a free pregnancy test? Maybe you are also worried you need a free STI test. Where can you go for both? Do you need both?

A friend suggested you ask Roo. Roo who? Roo is the sexual health chatbot from Planned Parenthood. According to their website Roo “answers all your awkward questions about sexual health, relationships, growing up, and more”. Sounds great, right?

If you’re facing an unplanned pregnancy, that might sound like a great place to start. After all, many unplanned pregnancies end in abortion and Planned Parenthood is the number one abortion provider in the nation. So getting information from the number one abortion provider might make sense.

Or does it? Perhaps what you need most is accurate medical information so you can process all of your options.

Here are just a few questions Roo can’t answer…

Is my pregnancy in the right place? Because if it’s not, that’s known as an ectopic pregnancy and it requires immediate medical attention.

Is there a heartbeat? If your pregnancy isn’t viable, you might end up paying for an abortion while you are actually in the process of a miscarriage. For women who know they are pregnant, statistics show 10 to 15% end in miscarriage. For those who don’t yet know, the number is estimated to be as high as 50%. 

How far along am I really? While the last menstrual period is a good indication of how far along you might be, it is not always accurate. An ultrasound is the only way to be completely sure. Accurate dating is of vital importance no matter what option you might be considering.

At Alcove Health Women’s Clinic, we provide a safe space for you to process your options. In addition, our Registered Nurses can provide you with the valuable medical information you need to make an informed decision. And we can provide all of these services at no-cost to you. Give us a call today at 757-591-8141 and schedule an appointment.

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What Is Plan C?

What Is Plan C?

“Plan C is the idea that there is one final option in a three-step plan.”

Most women have heard of Plan B (sometimes called the “Morning After Pill”). It’s the emergency contraception pill taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex. You don’t want to be pregnant, so you take a pill to make sure you aren’t. 

But Plan C? What’s that? 

Plan C is the idea that there is one final option in a three-step plan. When birth control (Plan A) and emergency contraception (Plan B) fail to prevent a pregnancy, you need a Plan C.

Plan C reduces all your options into one final option – abortion pills to be taken at home, with the entire process completed there in your home.

But hold on, before we rush into an ABC plan that is supposed to be a “one-size-fits-all” plan, let’s consider the actual options that are available to us. 

You deserve access to the full range of options because there isn’t just one final choice if your Plan A and your Plan B don’t go as planned. An unplanned pregnancy that exists, despite using birth control and taking a Plan B pill, has more than one final option. 

What’s more, Plan C – without in-person access to a provider – makes some pretty risky assumptions. It assumes you are actually pregnant and in the early stages of pregnancy. It assumes you are not in the process of a miscarriage. It assumes your pregnancy isn’t ectopic. 

You don’t need assumptions as part of your “Plan C”, you need accurate medical information so you can make the best decision for your reproductive health.

There’s a place you can receive medical services (like a pregnancy test and ultrasound), support, and a safe place right here in Newport News, Virginia. It’s called Alcove Health Women’s Clinic. What’s more, you can explore all of your options and get the medical services you need at no cost to you.

Don’t let anyone plan your life for you. Don’t settle for assumptions and a “good for all” single option. You deserve better.

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Get to Know Emalee

She’s been one of the driving forces behind a successful event season for our ministry, and we thought it was time we finally introduce you to our Development Coordinator, Emalee.

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Telabortion

Telabortion

Telabortion is a research study that sells abortions without having any in-person care

TELABORTION IS A STUDY
Medical abortions account for 42% of abortions in our country, and they come with issues that are often not discussed. Very recent legal actions have changed the landscape of abortion today – allowing ‘telabortion study’ options. This study attracts the attention of a woman facing a crisis and is packaged as an easy solution. However, it is putting the health and safety of vulnerable young women at risk. Advertisements tout ease and simplicity, BUT ignore the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) warnings regarding the medications used in medical abortions (mifepristone and misoprostol).

UNDERSTANDING THE RISKS
There are very specific guidelines in place for the use of mifepristone and misoprostol. The FDA has classified mifepristone under the Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) program. REMS is meant for drugs known to have serious safety concerns. Also, there are necessary medical tests that should be completed before and after they are prescribed. The FDA website currently states: “Mifeprex may only be dispensed in clinics, medical offices, and hospitals by or under the supervision of a certified healthcare provider”.

Yet these drugs, risky as they may be, are being mailed out – to be taken at home, alone – without a physician to care for the patient.

Here’s the real deal: Telabortion is a research study that sells abortions without having any in-person care. There is a glaring absence of the “one on one” relationship with a medical provider covering all the protocols. Specific recommendations for medical abortion protocol should be based on established published scientific literature. The steps should include screening for eligibility, counseling, education, informed consent, medical history, physical examination, laboratory evaluation, medication, follow-up care, and conclusion of treatment. Don’t take any shortcuts with your reproductive health.

WE CAN DO MORE FOR THE WOMEN IN OUR COMMUNITY

At our clinic Alcove Health, you will get the Real Deal. We are the only free clinic on the Virginia Peninsula that will meet with you one on one and cover all of the options available to you when making a pregnancy decision. We offer confidentiality, accurate medical information, resources, and trustworthy counsel. You’re not part of a “study” here. You get a human relationship with listening ears and options tailored to your needs. Your decision today can have a long-lasting impact. 

Get to Know Emalee

She’s been one of the driving forces behind a successful event season for our ministry, and we thought it was time we finally introduce you to our Development Coordinator, Emalee.

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Delivered Discreetly To Your Home

Delivered Discreetly to Your Home

Abortions Are An Unnecessary Risk

We can all agree there are times when our only option is a risky one. For instance, if I was being chased by someone with a knife, then I’d probably risk knocking on a stranger’s door for help. Or if I was stranded on a deserted island and a stranger offered to help me home, I’d probably risk accepting help from a stranger.

Because these risks would be worth it.

Because the alternatives would be riskier.

But then again, there are times when the risk isn’t worth it when it’s not even necessary.

Mail-to-home abortions fit into this last category.

The FDA requirements for medical abortions (by pill) require that a woman see a provider in-person to receive the medications. This requirement has been removed temporarily during the COVID pandemic.

While the restriction has been removed, the need it met has not been removed. There are good reasons – for our health as women – that a visit to the provider is required by the FDA. You see, good medical care often requires care that can only be provided in person. 

Like an ultrasound. It can’t be delivered to your mailbox. For years, an ultrasound was required standard of care prior to receiving an abortion in Virginia. Why? Because it gave a woman the information she needed. Because it protected her health. An ultrasound shows if a pregnancy is ectopic. An ultrasound reveals if there is even a viable pregnancy. We’re smart women – these details are important. 

Maybe not to the abortion provider. To the abortion provider these details – an ectopic or nonviable pregnancy – mean their services will not be purchased. 

But to a woman’s health, well, this information is vital.

And ultrasounds – here in Hampton Roads – are available. And free. Right at our clinic Alcove Health. No gimmicks. Just safe care because we care about the women in our community. 

Risky procedures don’t make sense when we have better options that are free.

There are times I’ll take some risks. 

But not with my health. Not when I don’t have to. Not when the safe answer is also the free answer.

Say no to risky procedures; say yes to safe medical care. 

Get to Know Emalee

She’s been one of the driving forces behind a successful event season for our ministry, and we thought it was time we finally introduce you to our Development Coordinator, Emalee.

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What Should I Know Before An Abortion?

What Should I Know Before an Abortion?

Where can you find the accurate information you need before you get an abortion? The answer – a place that will not benefit financially from any of your choices. Our clinic, Alcove Health Women’s Clinic, is that place. It’s a wise choice for a safe place.

Your best bet when you’re seeking a well-advised decision is a place that doesn’t see you as a dollar sign; but instead, sees you as a real person with real dreams for your future. After all, you’re pursuing a decision that is best for your long-term health, not a decision that is monetarily best for a clinic.

It’s easy to go with the “I need to make a quick decision and just get it over with approach” when anxiety is high and you are seeking to just make the anxiety go away. And it’s not hard to find a local abortion clinic that will offer to help you accomplish that. The problem is, they offer you only one choice for how to fix the problem of your pregnancy. Abortion Clinics may profit from your choice, so it’s impossible to know if what they are selling is best for you. On the other hand, it’s easy to see why abortion is the best choice for the abortion clinic.

What if you know you want an abortion? No hesitation, no questions; you are certain this is the choice for you. Even then, an abortion clinic still shouldn’t be your first call. You want your first call to be to a place that will give you accurate information to see if abortion is even a medically appropriate option for you. You need definitive answers to all the questions you may not even realize you need to ask:

  • Am I pregnant? 20% of all pregnancies end naturally in miscarriage.  Meanwhile a pregnancy test may show a +positive during a miscarriage.

  • Is the pregnancy in the process of a miscarriage?  

  • Do I need other medical care that an abortion won’t address?

You don’t know what you need until you know exactly what’s going on inside your body.   You may not get those answers from a place that isn’t required to give you an ultrasound – or does not share the ultrasound with you.  

You can, however, get those answers where support, wisdom, and accurate medical information aren’t for sale. They’re a gift.  Every consult, every pregnancy test, every ultrasound – all free. Every time. For every woman. No cost. No fees. Just what you need to make the right choice that’s all about you.

If you think you are pregnant and are considering an abortion, contact our clinic at 757-591-8141.

Get to Know Emalee

She’s been one of the driving forces behind a successful event season for our ministry, and we thought it was time we finally introduce you to our Development Coordinator, Emalee.

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The Abortion Pill

The Abortion Pill

Have you ever wondered what the abortion pill does and how it works?

Well, the term is called, Medical Abortion and it’s used for under 10 weeks gestation, it’s actually a combination of two different medications, taken two days apart. The first medication is called RU 486, or Mifiprex. It blocks the hormone progesterone from getting to the embryo- causing disconnection from the uterine wall and the heartbeat stops. The second set of pills, called Cytotec or Misoprostol, is taken at home 48 hours later. It causes uterine cramping to expel the pregnancy. Often heavy cramping and bleeding occur and could last for up to 1-2 weeks.

IF for any reason, someone changes their mind after taking the first medication, but BEFORE taking the second medication, a reversal protocol could be possible. It’s best to begin the reversal protocol within 72 hours of taking the RU486 pill. High doses of progesterone are used to counteract the RU 486. There is a nationwide hotline number to call that will connect the woman with a medical provider to begin this treatment. The success rate is between 64-68%, meaning their pregnancies continued and they delivered their babies.

If you have taken the Abortion Pill and regret this decision – call the 24-hour hotline 877-558-0333 and they will connect you with a medical professional who can guide you towards reversing the effects of the abortion pill.

If you are facing an unplanned pregnancy and looking for help and answers, please contact our clinic at 757-591-8141

Get to Know Emalee

She’s been one of the driving forces behind a successful event season for our ministry, and we thought it was time we finally introduce you to our Development Coordinator, Emalee.

Read More »