Medical termination of pregnancy generally consists of giving birth vaginally.
The patient is first given medication to “stop” the pregnancy. Childbirth is then triggered by injection of hormones, causing contractions, opening of the cervix and expulsion of the fetus. The mother, to endure the pain, may benefit from an epidural.
Beyond 22 weeks of amenorrhea, the doctor first “puts to sleep” the child in utero, by injecting a product via the umbilical cord.
Why is a cesarean section avoided?
Many women imagine that a cesarean would be less difficult to endure psychologically. But doctors avoid resorting to this intervention.
On the one hand, it damages the uterus and poses a risk for future pregnancies. On the other hand, the cesarean does not help to grieve. Florence testifies: “At the beginning, I wanted to be put to sleep so as not to see anything, not to know anything. Finally, by giving birth vaginally, I had the feeling that I was accompanying my baby to the end …«