Am I still protected if I had unprotected sex after I took Plan B?
Someone asked us:
I recently took a plan b pill after I had unprotected sex. My question is this: I took a plan b pill after I had sex, then had sex again the next afternoon. Do I need to take a new plan b pill or will I still be protected from the one I took less than 24 hours before that?
Unfortunately it doesn’t work that way — Plan B (also known as the morning-after pill, also known as emergency contraception), only works to prevent pregnancy from sex you already had. It won’t work proactively — you need to take emergency contraception after every act of unprotected sex.
Emergency contraception is completely safe – and if you need to take it two days in a row, that’s okay. But if you find yourself using Plan B often, it’s probably time to find a new Plan A. If you’re not using birth control during sex, you should start. Not only is it a much more effective way to prevent pregnancy than emergency contraception, it’s also a lot cheaper.
- Alex at Planned Parenthood