Misoprostol and Sweating: What Users Say

• Cla...
• January 10, 2019

For Abortion "Abortion is never an easy choice, but you always have to do what you feel is right for YOU and not anyone else. I did decide to do the pill because I felt it was the more natural way of going about this. Once I took it, I didn’t feel too bad until about an hour or so later, the cramping was pretty intense. It feels like a really, really bad period, honestly, and it came and went faster than I thought. The only thing that was comfortable for me was sitting on the toilet and rocking side to side. The extreme cramping lasted about two hours, and I felt like my body was going into shock. I was shaking, sweating, and crying, and then it slowly just went away. I recommend sitting on the toilet and just letting the clots pass. I feel better now and have very mild cramping that comes and goes. I feel better now that the hard part is over. I promise it’ll be over before you know it."

• Ano...
• February 1, 2020

For Abortion "My experience with a pill abortion: I was 8 weeks pregnant. I had my vitals and medical history taken, my blood type tested, and was given a vaginal ultrasound to see exactly how far along I was. I was given the first pill and a Zofran and sent on my way with the second round of pills. I went home with minor cramping, barely noticeable. Waited 24 hours to vaginally insert the next four pills. I waited about 2 and a half hours before I started having any symptoms, I was struck with some pretty serious cramping and was getting hot and cold sweats and nausea. This painful period only lasted about an hour. I fell asleep, I slept for about three hours and woke up, stood up, and the blood literally started pouring out of me. I sat on the toilet and bled for about 20 minutes and passed most of the clots and blood. I cramped and bled slightly the rest of the night. I woke the next morning and felt new."

• Kel...
• May 31, 2020

For Abortion "I started mifepristone at the doc. The next day I felt fine, light period, (I’m apparently the 5% that bleeds from it) BUT I started to feel dizzy, lightheaded, cramping was 3/4, and bleeding became HEAVY. I had clots, and I think I already passed the sac in the morning. Called the doc to confirm to still take misoprostol. The answer was yes (to get everything out). Took them orally. After about 15 min the cramps intensified. I sat on the toilet, crawled to the shower, cramps got to an 8/9, I moaned, got shaky, had cold sweats, and my vision got blurry. I was in solid pain for about 45 min. They prescribed me 800 mg ibuprofen and it did close to nothing. Probably the pain is a 5/6 now after about an hour. There were a few “OW” moments, but nothing compared. It sucks, but for 45 min it’s worth it. My advice: take the ibuprofen throughout the day and rotate Tylenol. I’m not bleeding much, but I was bleeding through 3/4 pads earlier. You got this and don’t read too much into these reviews!"

• Mar...
• January 30, 2021

For Abortion "I’m 20 and was about 4 weeks pregnant. I’m really prone to getting bad cramps. I took the first pill orally at the women’s center. Two days later, I took 4 pills and inserted them into my vagina at 8:00 AM that morning. In 30 minutes, I was experiencing extremely painful cramps/contractions. I began sweating profusely, became lightheaded, and had to lay on the bathroom floor. They also caused me to be very nauseous and felt like my stomach was twisting. I experienced this all day. I was so exhausted but couldn’t sleep, I just laid in a fetal position in different areas of my room and tried to breathe. I tried to drink water, but couldn’t keep it down. My heartbeat was super fast. I didn’t start bleeding until a few hours in. I started feeling better around 8:00 pm but still cramping mildly. Probably the worst uterine pain I’ve ever experienced. It seems to me that people who aren’t very prone to cramps like these don’t experience it to that extent and everyone’s body is different."

• Hol...
• January 10, 2020

For Labor Induction "At 8 weeks, we went in for our scan and unfortunately, there was no heartbeat. My doctor told me to take this medicine or a D&C. I picked this drug because I wanted to be at home when the tissue passed. I took tramadol 50 mg and ibuprofen 600 1 hour before starting the misoprostol pills. Within 30 minutes, I started bleeding lots of clots. Was fine until maybe 2.5 hours after taking the medicine. It was honestly the worst pain I have ever had. I had vomiting, sweats, shakiness, and extremely painful cramps. I was in so much pain I started making so much noise that the lady in the condo beside me came to see what was happening. If I knew I would have had so much pain, I would have had a D&C. However, after about 6 hours after taking the pills, the pain started to calm down. I found that once all the clots and placenta came out, the pain started to go away and just turned into a heavy period. If you are taking it for the same reason I did, I pray you don’t have the same experience I did. I am very sorry for your loss :( ❤️"

• Joa...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 18, 2021

For Cervical Ripening "I had to take this medication for a biopsy and ended up in the hospital. I woke up in the middle of the night vomiting. I couldn't stop vomiting. It was horrible. I started to have chills and sweats, which is when I called the ambulance, being that I live alone. I'm still a little off several days later. Now I have to be tested for COVID because I'm wondering if I caught it when I went to the hospital. Horrible experience."

• Tin...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 25, 2021

For Cervical Ripening "Took four, two each at two different times prior to evacuation of uterus for missed miscarriage. First lot came with mild cramps that were managed from breathing exercises. An hour after taking the second lot was a different story. Unbearable cramps, sweating, chills, loss of hearing, dizziness; then made worse from Buprenorphine given to me for pain. Dropped in blood pressure to 75/45, and it was all hands on deck for a bit. Procedure was carried out and feeling much better after, no cramps, normal bleeding. Anaesthetist said it was all from me undergoing 'hyperventilation syndrome.' Yea, righto."

• Jan...
• November 28, 2019

For Abortion "Took the second pill 34 hours later (I was 6 weeks). Took it by myself and asked a friend to come stay over. It took an hour to feel proper cramping after swallowing the pills. Make sure you take the pain meds 1 hour before, as that helped me. The second hour, I started bleeding like a slightly heavy period. In hour 3/4, that’s when I felt 8/10 pain. I vomited and was dripping in sweat from the cramps, got into the shower and put on warm water and sat on the floor for 15 minutes, which helped. This pain lasted 30 minutes. My friend helped towel me down, and I had a heat pack on my stomach and fell asleep for an hour. It’s now the next morning, and I feel back to normal, just feels like I did ab exercises last night. I just have light to normal bleeding. But if I can do it (my pain threshold is just below average), then you can too. I just would have preferred a quick thing instead of it dragging. But so happy to wake up normal-ish that it’s almost worth it."

• Cou...
• October 23, 2019

For Abortion "This was the most painful experience of my life. I was told it would cause mild cramping. It is hard to describe the pain I felt 2.5 hours after having this inserted. The cramping started and was so aggressive it made me decide to never have natural birth. I was groaning so loudly in the prep room they had to expedite my DNC process. I could not breathe properly because of the pain, I was sweating through my clothes so much so that they had to give me fluids through IV. I pleaded with my nurses and doctor to give me more pain relief and begged God to make the pain go away. I prepped with 1000 mg ibuprofen, and this did nothing. I lost all feeling in my arms, hands, and fingers and went into a trance-like state. I honestly wish I had passed out because the pain was so intense. To anyone who deals with regular period cramps, just prepare for this to be the most agonizing pain you’ll ever experience. I felt like I was literally dying from childbirth."

• Tin...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 7, 2024

For Abortion "24 hours later at 3 pm the next day, I put the 4 pills in my cheeks. I took anti-nausea medicine 30 minutes before and diclofenac 100mg. I also had my hot water bottle with me. I was ready, bracing myself for the worst while hoping for the best. 30 minutes later, I chugged down what was left of the medication in my mouth with water. I had already started cramping at this point. 5 minutes later, it started getting worse. 10 minutes later, it was really painful. I was rolling around in bed. Another 10 minutes later, I was kind of screaming and also on the toilet. After 5 minutes of sitting there, I was throwing up and having diarrhea simultaneously. I was shaking and sweating because of the pain. Everything was unbelievably painful. 1 hour later, I was still not bleeding. That was worrisome to me because I was already exhausted. I eventually bled a lot, with lots of blood clots and spent lots of time sitting on the toilet. I threw up twice. Pain level: 100."

• Cyt...
• July 23, 2021

For Cervical Ripening "My Dr. recommended this prior to an IUD insertion. Within 30 mins of vaginally inserting the 4 pills, I was throwing up on the side of the freeway. I had cold sweats, non-stop vomiting, diarrhea, and the worst cramping I’ve ever had in my life. I ended up at the ER to get pain medication and an IV as I quickly got dehydrated and couldn’t hold down any liquids. (Heads up - this medication is also used to terminate pregnancies, so the ER staff kept on asking me if I was trying to have an abortion.)"

• Ban...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• December 16, 2019

For Labor Induction "Just a note for women reading these reviews... using this for an abortion in early pregnancy is VASTLY different than using it for a missed miscarriage further along. Which is why people think it’s a bad period at 6 weeks vs. feeling like natural labor. I was prescribed this to help me remove remaining tissue after a 13-week miscarriage. I had already passed the baby and placenta naturally but had remaining tissue. The ER sent me home with Cytotec and no meds. It was the worst pain of my life. It was worse than the miscarriage portion. The contractions went nonstop, so I didn’t have any time to properly breathe or regain control. I was shaking, sweating, moaning, and losing tons of blood. It was the worst experience. When I saw my OB that next week, he ended up telling me that it is like full-term labor at this point. Horrible!"

• ano...
• November 21, 2019

For Abortion "I decided to give this medicine a 3 because of the pain that comes along with it. I was 7 weeks and 4 days along. My doctor implanted a pill vaginally and told me to put 3 pills in my cheeks and let them dissolve. Mild cramping began about 45 minutes afterward but was bearable. Still no bleeding. Then about an hour and a half after the pills, I had THE WORST cramps, and my pain tolerance is very high. I was shaking, sweating, unable to walk on my own, rapid heartbeat, dizzy as anything, but no nausea. The bleeding then started and got so heavy I was using a maxi pad every 2 hours. The cramps overall lasted 5 torturous hours. My doctor told me by no means at all to take any pain medication (NOT EVEN TYLENOL), but I was beyond desperate and going out of my mind, so I took Tylenol to stop the pain. Ladies, this pill works, but be aware it’s a gamble how your body will take to these. I had one other abortion which I did under anesthesia, and I really regret not going about this one the same way."

• Nan...
• February 4, 2020

For Abortion "I was 5 weeks, from what I heard, I thought it’d be a manageable experience for me, since my normal periods are on the extra painful side. This was easily THE most agonizing experience of my entire life. Not two minutes after I swallowed the pills that sat in my cheeks, intense pain started. I became hot/cold/sweaty, almost passed out walking from the bathroom to the bedroom. Ibuprofen didn’t work for pain, and neither did my leftover pain medication from a previous surgery, nothing worked. The pain was almost paralyzing because moving made it intensify, and my neck and lower back were twitching rather than shaking. I could feel the pain contracting, and the two seconds of relief I’d be out of breath from the tension. It’s been four months, and my back/neck still twitch when I’m laying down. I’ll never do this again, I know it differs from woman to woman, but this was a rough experience for me, to say the least."

• Liv...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 9, 2020

For Abortion "Yesterday, I took the first pill at the clinic. This morning, I woke up and took my Tylenol and Anaprox (naproxen). Beforehand, I had put the 4 tablets between my cheeks for 30 minutes and then swallowed them. About 2 minutes later, I threw them up (they make you nauseous and it's totally normal). I started bleeding almost instantly, and the cramping started. I had really bad shakes and cold sweats for the first two hours. The cramping for me is still going on, and it’s been 6 hours since. I bled through 3 pads and had to change my clothes completely. I still have clots coming out. Hoping that soon it will start to slow down. I am taking another Anaprox to help with the pain. All people are different, but this is my experience today as I am having an abortion."

• Lil...
• December 18, 2020

For Abortion "I was around 6 weeks. Took the first pill at the clinic, felt nothing after the first pill. The next morning at the same time (10 am) I put the four other pills in my cheeks to let dissolve for 30 minutes. I immediately felt heavy cramping and bled about 45 minutes after. Heavy cramping, nausea, sweating, shaking, and dizziness for about 2 hours. Felt like my body was forcing it to be pushed out. Tried to sleep, cramping/sweating continued till about 7 pm, and then the cramping lightened but still continued. Was not able to eat all day without throwing up! Did not bleed crazy amounts like I read on other reviews. You definitely need 800 mg ibuprofen and a heating pad. Very painful experience."

• Jer...
• March 14, 2021

For Labor Induction "I went in for my 8 wk OB appointment, they told me I had a miscarriage at about 6 weeks. I decided to do the Misoprostol pills. The first pills I took caused a fever of 100 and flu-like symptoms: diarrhea, sweats, horrible aches, and bad pulsating cramps. No bleeding. The second dose, I started to lightly spot brown blood, the bad cramps continued. The next 12 hours, I didn't take anything else since that was my full dose. Still no bleeding. My doctor advised me to take a 3rd dose and 4th dose if I wasn't bleeding red blood, which I did. The next day, the red blood/tissue started coming out with pretty bad cramps. 12 hours after that, the blood lightened, but I was having a hard time peeing with burning and pelvic pain. I went to Urgent Care, and it was a bladder infection, which is a side effect of the drug. A few hours after that, the blood came back full force with cramps I can only describe as extreme labor-like. Worst pain and experience I've had ever with a drug in my life. Highly DO NOT recommend."

• nin...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 31, 2023

For Abortion "19-year-old. Accidentally got pregnant. Around 7 weeks. Took one pill yesterday in clinic (mifepristone) and then took four pills buccally (placed under my cheeks for 30 minutes) (misoprostol). I was scared, too. But it's okay to be scared! This isn't easy. After taking the pill, I did have terrible cramps, but a good friend, Tylenol, helped me before I took the four pills. Cramping lasted around 5 hours for me. Was very nauseous at first, and cramping started in around an hour. Lots of sweating and pain, but it is important to remember that it is only temporary. The doctors told me beforehand that the worst cramping would last 4-6 hours, and they were right. Trust them and trust yourself. I am sending so much love to all of you reading this. You will get through this! You can do it, and I believe in you :)"

• Ren...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 10, 2023

For Abortion "I am 22 years old, currently 9 weeks and maybe 2 days. Honestly, I thought I would have the worst experience being further along. I started by taking the first pill at about 2:30 pm one day and felt NOTHING. I was in the sun and heat and didn't feel any symptoms. At about 3:30 pm the next day (25 hours), I then took 4 misoprostol pills orally between my cheeks and gums and let it sit for 30 minutes (just a pasty taste). After 30 minutes ended, I then drank water to dissolve the rest of the pill. Now I didn't feel anything. I was actually expecting the pain to come, but I had nothing for about 4 hours, but I did bleed, and there were clots. At about 8 pm, the pain intensified, I started cramping, and I felt a little nauseous, but no dizziness. I had a slight flash of hot and cold sweats, but they were literally for seconds. My sleep pattern was on and off throughout the night but not terrible. I woke up this morning still bleeding and passing smaller clots, but as of right now, I feel great!"

• Ano...
• February 9, 2020

For Abortion "5 weeks. The first pill, no side effects. Next 4 taken at 24 hours in my cheeks. Within an hour, mild cramps. I became overwhelmed physically - nausea, dizzy, and I was sweating so excessively I thought I was about to pass out. Barely saw any blood pass, but feel most passed when going to the toilet. The nausea, sweating, and dizziness felt like it switched off after 20 mins, but the abdominal pain was excruciating. Contractions came in waves for hours. I would get a 5 - 10 second break in between. The pain meds they gave me completely failed, and I had zero pain relief. I eventually was taken to the hospital as the pain was unbearable. I felt the urge to push and keep my body moving. I was given an endone after 40 minutes waiting, and the pain vanished completely after 20 mins. This morning, I feel 95% better. I didn't want the surgical option as I didn't want to be mentally scarred. Although this was still traumatic, I was at home - most of the time. If your pain medication fails, please seek medical help. Endone was my savior."

• Meg...
• April 29, 2021

For Abortion "Took the first pill at the doctor's office, took the next 24 hours later, followed the directions perfectly. I took the pills orally, then after the half hour, I swallowed the pills and started sweating and shaking. I had to call my boyfriend to meet me in the bathroom because I thought I was going to die. A few seconds after he got to the bathroom, I passed out and stopped breathing. When I came to about 5 minutes later, he was on the phone with 911. I didn’t go to the hospital because I knew it was just a bad reaction but spent the next 10 hours throwing up anything I tried to put in my body. Horrible pain, but after that ten hours, I was completely fine, just felt heavy period cramps, which, compared to blacking out and nonstop puking, was a cakewalk."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 12, 2021

For Abortion "I'm 30 and went through with the abortion pill at 6 weeks and 2 days of pregnancy. Yesterday I took the Mifepristone in the clinic at 10:20 am. I felt a little nauseous that night, but nothing serious. Then at 10 am today, I took 1 pill for nausea and 2 ibuprofens (800 mg). At 10:30 am, I placed 4 of the Misoprostol tablets in my mouth and waited till 11 am for them to dissolve. I have to be honest, I was not able to swallow what was left of the medicine because my cramps came on so strong. I immediately ran to the bathroom and threw up because the pain was severe for me. I was sweating/had chills. Then I sat on the toilet and a few huge clots came out, which I think was the pregnancy that passed. This was at about 11 am. After that, the pain subsided, and I continued to cramp no worse than period cramps. It's now 9 pm, and I only have light cramping/light bleeding. I would say this was overall manageable. Be sure to use a heating pad and have someone near you for comfort."

• 123...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 10, 2021

For Abortion "It won’t be as bad as you think! I was 7 weeks. The nurse gave me 3 tablets to dissolve under my tongue with water (they’re very chalky and dry). They dissolved after around 15 mins. I took these at 8:30 a.m. 9:30: Light bleeding, very mild cramps. 11:30: I went for a wee, passed more blood but not a lot. Mild cramps. I actually asked the nurse if I needed more tablets, but she assured me that it was working. 12: I moved and felt a big gush. Passed slightly heavier blood, felt clots pass. Moderate cramping (no pain relievers so far). 12:50: I took one 30/500 mg cocodomol. 1:00 p.m.: I had around a 10 min period when I did struggle. I bled a lot and felt quite large clots pass. I suddenly felt like I was going to be sick and faint both at once. I went cold and clammy and my ear started ringing, but I made it to the bed, had a lie down, and I felt fine within 10 mins. The clots and pain mostly stopped here. Don’t look at the clots is one thing I’ll say."

• Sta...
• July 10, 2021

For Abortion "Took the medication in the morning orally. I was 6 weeks pregnant. I had already begun bleeding, which was expected as an effect of my first dose taken at the clinic. Shortly after swallowing the pills, I began to experience light cramping that gradually increased. About 25-30 minutes later, I positioned myself on the toilet and began to rub my stomach to help the pain subside. During this time, I began to vomit and experience chills accompanied by sweat. Still on the toilet, I also began to pass small clots, followed by a big one. I didn’t look in the toilet, but I knew that the process was complete due to cramping drastically decreasing. The total time after taking the medication to allow the pregnancy to pass was about 35 minutes. I experienced light cramps for the next 2-3 days, but nothing that wasn’t manageable. For the next week and a half, I experienced bleeding similar to a light period. Pregnancy symptoms began to disappear after the first day as well."

• Not...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 6, 2022

For Abortion "The other reviews had me shaking in my boots. I was about to say never mind and bear the consequences. But I had to do this. I took my pills orally. Stuck them in my cheeks for 30 mins, then swallowed around 7:15. Waited for an hour or so, then had some light cramping and heavy bleeding, also felt really out of it. Kinda air-headed. Around 9:30-10, it started to get extremely painful. I mean, wincing in pain from the stinging of cramps, crying on the bathroom floor, painful. I typically get heavy periods, so I was prepared for cramps of this measure, but it still knocked me on my ass. Had my first blood clot pop out, and honestly, I got a little lightheaded looking at it. It was enormous. The cramps, nausea, sweat, and heavy bleeding continued till about 3 AM, and that's when I decided to try and sleep. It wasn't easy getting comfortable. I would recommend trying to sleep more upright than flat, it helped with the symptoms slightly. You got this!"