Abortion is a divisive issue, and a topic that women can feel reluctant being open about.

堕胎是一个众说纷纭的话题，女性可能不太愿意提及。

“It is almost a 'silent secret' which women may only find out about if it is brought up openly with friends and colleagues,” says Dr Anne Henderson. “The other issue is that most people are much less judgemental towards women who have had an abortion than might be expected, and there is some evidence that the procedure is much more accepted within society than it has been in the past.”

“这几乎是个‘无声的秘密’，女人可能只会跟朋友和同事提起，”安妮?亨德森博士说道。“另一方面其实大多数人对堕胎的女人很少会批判，有证据表明现在社会对这个过程的接受度已经比过去好多了。”

So, if there isn’t an adequate conversation happening about what the realities of an abortion are like, what would the healthcare professionals want their would-be patients to know?

那么，如果对流产的现状没有适当沟通，专业的医务人员希望他们的潜在病人知道什么呢？

Dr Senior starts with the basics. Firstly, terminations are in one of two ways: medical or surgical. “The medical involves taking one tablet then going home for 48 hours," she says ,"In that time women may experience cramps and bleeding. After 48 hours they come back to hospital and have either a single tablet, usually given as a vaginal pessary, or a course of tablets, depending on how many weeks pregnant they are.

西尼尔博士从最基础的说起。首先，终止妊娠有两种方法：药物或者手术。“药物堕胎就是吃一片药，然后回家待48小时，”她说“这段时间里，女性会经历痉挛和出血。48小时之后，她们回医院吃另一片药，然后拿到一个阴道药栓或者一个疗程的药，这取决于她们怀孕几周。”

“In many units, women under nine weeks are given a single tablet and are welcome to go home as long as they have someone with them who knows what is happening and can easily return to hospital if they need to. The surgical termination involves having a general anaesthetic then the cervix is dilated and any pregnancy tissue is removed using suction.”

“许多单位会给怀孕9周以内堕胎的女性一个片剂，让她们回家，只要有一个知道会发生什么并且能在需要的时候把她送回来的人陪同就行。手术堕胎是全身麻醉然后扩张子宫口，吸出所有妊娠组织。”

Both have similar side effects, she goes on, with the most common being bleeding and cramping pain. Infections in the womb are also common because the cervix is artificially opened during the procedure.

这两种方法有类似的副作用，她接着说，最常见的就是出血和绞痛。由于术中宫颈被人为打开，子宫感染也是常见问题。

“Less common problems include the procedure leaving some tissue behind," she adds. "This would present itself as ongoing heavy bleeding and pain usually. There is also a small risk of preterm labour in future pregnancies because we artificially open the cervix and it can become incompetent in the future but this is a small risk, especially for women who have only one termination. Surgical procedures also carry a risk of making a small hole in the wall of the womb. These heal quickly and rarely cause long term problems.”

“不常见的问题包括手术时留下了一些组织，”她补充道。“这通常会导致严重的出血和绞痛。还有将来怀孕时早产的风险，因为手术时人为扩开宫颈口会导致以后没有收缩的能力，但这种风险很小，尤其是对于只堕过一次胎的女性。手术过程中也可能带来风险，会在子宫内壁留下小洞。不过会很快愈合，不会造成长期问题。”

However, she is also surprised by how little understood the different reasons for terminations are, and how women from all socioeconomic backgrounds seek such procedures out. Financial hardship, the relationship with the father, and mental health issues can all play a role, as well as the health of the baby.

然而，她很惊讶人们对于堕胎不同原因的理解非常缺乏，以及在这种社会经济背景下，女性是如何找到堕胎途径的。经济困难，与孩子父亲的关系以及心理健康问题都会起到一定的作用，也会影响孩子的健康

Abortion is a divisive issue, and a topic that women can feel reluctant being open about.

堕胎是一个众说纷纭的话题，女性可能不太愿意提及。

“It is almost a 'silent secret' which women may only find out about if it is brought up openly with friends and colleagues,” says Dr Anne Henderson. “The other issue is that most people are much less judgemental towards women who have had an abortion than might be expected, and there is some evidence that the procedure is much more accepted within society than it has been in the past.”

“这几乎是个‘无声的秘密’，女人可能只会跟朋友和同事提起，”安妮?亨德森博士说道。“另一方面其实大多数人对堕胎的女人很少会批判，有证据表明现在社会对这个过程的接受度已经比过去好多了。”

So, if there isn’t an adequate conversation happening about what the realities of an abortion are like, what would the healthcare professionals want their would-be patients to know?

那么，如果对流产的现状没有适当沟通，专业的医务人员希望他们的潜在病人知道什么呢？

Dr Senior starts with the basics. Firstly, terminations are in one of two ways: medical or surgical. “The medical involves taking one tablet then going home for 48 hours," she says ,"In that time women may experience cramps and bleeding. After 48 hours they come back to hospital and have either a single tablet, usually given as a vaginal pessary, or a course of tablets, depending on how many weeks pregnant they are.

西尼尔博士从最基础的说起。首先，终止妊娠有两种方法：药物或者手术。“药物堕胎就是吃一片药，然后回家待48小时，”她说“这段时间里，女性会经历痉挛和出血。48小时之后，她们回医院吃另一片药，然后拿到一个阴道药栓或者一个疗程的药，这取决于她们怀孕几周。”

“In many units, women under nine weeks are given a single tablet and are welcome to go home as long as they have someone with them who knows what is happening and can easily return to hospital if they need to. The surgical termination involves having a general anaesthetic then the cervix is dilated and any pregnancy tissue is removed using suction.”

“许多单位会给怀孕9周以内堕胎的女性一个片剂，让她们回家，只要有一个知道会发生什么并且能在需要的时候把她送回来的人陪同就行。手术堕胎是全身麻醉然后扩张子宫口，吸出所有妊娠组织。”

Both have similar side effects, she goes on, with the most common being bleeding and cramping pain. Infections in the womb are also common because the cervix is artificially opened during the procedure.

这两种方法有类似的副作用，她接着说，最常见的就是出血和绞痛。由于术中宫颈被人为打开，子宫感染也是常见问题。

“Less common problems include the procedure leaving some tissue behind," she adds. "This would present itself as ongoing heavy bleeding and pain usually. There is also a small risk of preterm labour in future pregnancies because we artificially open the cervix and it can become incompetent in the future but this is a small risk, especially for women who have only one termination. Surgical procedures also carry a risk of making a small hole in the wall of the womb. These heal quickly and rarely cause long term problems.”

“不常见的问题包括手术时留下了一些组织，”她补充道。“这通常会导致严重的出血和绞痛。还有将来怀孕时早产的风险，因为手术时人为扩开宫颈口会导致以后没有收缩的能力，但这种风险很小，尤其是对于只堕过一次胎的女性。手术过程中也可能带来风险，会在子宫内壁留下小洞。不过会很快愈合，不会造成长期问题。”

However, she is also surprised by how little understood the different reasons for terminations are, and how women from all socioeconomic backgrounds seek such procedures out. Financial hardship, the relationship with the father, and mental health issues can all play a role, as well as the health of the baby.

然而，她很惊讶人们对于堕胎不同原因的理解非常缺乏，以及在这种社会经济背景下，女性是如何找到堕胎途径的。经济困难，与孩子父亲的关系以及心理健康问题都会起到一定的作用，也会影响孩子的健康