Anxiety is completely normal when women are ending a pregnancy.  Anxiety has to do with feeling out of control.  You don’t know what to expect.  It often gets heightened around going through actually getting the medical care to end the pregnancy.

Anxiety can also come from bad prior experiences: with pap tests, with prior abortions, or from other times when you’ve felt vulnerable at a doctor’s office.  Re-living these experiences can trigger anxious feelings.

Anxiety can be relieved by an experience of trust.  It can make a big difference to be in an environment that is positive and supportive. Having a doctor who listens, having an assistant who is attentive to your needs, having someone you love by your side, and having a procedure that’s not that difficult, can be transformative and can actually create a sense of empowerment.

It’s particularly rewarding when women who come to our office in such a severe state of anxiety, leave our office with a sense of relief and confidence in their decision.