Positive experience with SA (surgical abortion) - please read if you are scared like I was!

This past Friday, I had a surgical abortion at 6.4 weeks. I found out I was pregnant on January 10th, but was too early along to have the procedure done right away. I spent the next 2+ weeks reading everything I could about the procedure online, making myself sick with anxiety. I read countless posts by women who had terrible experiences, and I feared that I would experience the same. My anxiety was so bad that I wasn't sleeping, and on top of that, I was constantly nauseas/throwing up from the pregnancy hormones. I was also going through this without a partner, as my ex who got me pregnant and I were/are not on speaking terms and he has no idea that any of this happened.

Fortunately, my SA experience was about as positive as it could be and I want to share what helped me through this, as someone who suffers from severe anxiety and also has PMDD (hormonal issue):

1- When I found out I was pregnant, I spoke with an OBGYN who used to perform abortions, and she advised me to opt for an SA over an MA, despite how early along I was. She said in her experience, MA's have about a 50% success rate and she found that most patients would have to go back for an SA regardless. MA's also tend to be more painful/gruesome. An SA is much safer and much more likely to "work" fully (this was my biggest fear- that the procedure wouldn't work). With an SA you can likely return to work the next day, if you are unable to take extended time off.

2- I called multiple clinics until I found one that offered IV sedation. I was terrified of having to experience the pain of the procedure, and even more terrified by the possibility of remembering the procedure. The first two clinics (Planned Parenthoods) that I called did not offer ANY options for pain management or sedation. Fortunately, I found a women's clinic that offered IV sedation- for my surgery, I was sedated with propofol.

3- Ask about anxiety management options beforehand, if you are extremely nervous like I was. My clinic offered Ativan for anxiety management, and I took 1 mg about 30 minutes before my procedure.

Overall, I was shocked by how smoothly my procedure went. There were some initial issues with my ultrasound, but after that everything went well. As far as side effects go, all I have experienced is spotting and bloating/cramping. My nausea (which was severe) went away immediately after my procedure. I was emotional over the weekend, but today (4 days later) my mood has gone back to baseline and I feel like a person again. The anxiety before the procedure was ultimately the worst part. I'm sending love to everyone who has or will go through this.