Hi! Sorry to bother but I have a question about plan b, will it still be effective if used right away? I had sex with my partner but his condom broke and we rushed to the nearest drug store and I took it like 10-15 minutes right after we had sex, just wondering if it was too soon or not?? Thank you!
Ya done good! When it comes to emergency contraception (AKA the morning-after pill), speed is the name of the game. Plan B (and all other brands of over-the-counter emergency contraception) work best when you take them as soon as you can after unprotected sex. Meaning you can take it the second you realize after sex that you had a birth control oopsie.
Sperm can live in your body for up to 6 days after sex, looking for an egg to fertilize. The way emergency contraception pills work is by stopping your ovaries from releasing an egg (it’s kinda like pulling the emergency brake on ovulation). And the more time it has to work its magic, the better your chances of preventing pregnancy will be.
If I take plan B a few hours before sex am I protected?
Plan B and other morning-after pills work when you take them after sex. That’s because emergency contraception like Plan B prevents pregnancy by delaying when you ovulate and thickening cervical mucus (to stop sperm from getting to an egg). By taking emergency contraception before sex, you may not be delaying ovulation long enough. That said, if you take emergency contraception and then have sex again within 24 hours, you don’t have to take it a second time.
Want to be proactive about preventing pregnancy? Start a regular birth control method like IUDs, implants, or birth control pills. Regular birth control is way more effective than Plan B. And remember that a condom is important for protecting you from STDs.
Does Plan B have a shelf life? Can I buy some so that I have it on hand and keep it for a while, or does it have to be taken the day it’s bought?
Plan B and other over-the-counter emergency contraception brands do have shelf lives and expiration dates — but luckily they’re long, usually a few years away from when they’re stocked on the shelf. Stocking up ahead of time is a totally splendid and very practical idea — especially because emergency contraception works better the sooner you take it. Keeping it somewhere convenient so you can take it right away if you need it? You’re a genius!
Plan B and other over-the-counter emergency contraception brands (like Next Choice, Take Action, or levonorgestrel) aren’t the only kinds of morning after pill. Ella is another kind of emergency contraception that may work better for you as long as you’re not currently using hormonal birth control — but you need a prescription to get it. Take this quiz to find out what kind of emergency contraception is right for you.
I was at the drugstore and I saw that they had a few different brands of plan b. Some of them were cheaper than others so like, do they all work the same or are more expensive ones stronger?
Short answer: all morning-after pill brands that you can buy without a prescription work the same, regardless of price. It doesn’t matter if you get it at a pharmacy, convenience store, health center, or a reliable online drugstore. Get yo bargain on!
Like most medicines, there are different brands of morning-after pills. They may be different prices, but they all have the same active ingredients and have the same effectiveness.
In the U.S., all over-the-counter morning-after pills use 1.5mg of levonorgestrel to prevent pregnancy. Levonorgestrel is a type of progestin, the same kind of hormone that’s in all hormonal birth control, like the IUD, pill, and shot.
Some brands of levonorgestrel morning-after pills that are sold in the U.S. include:
Plan B One-Step
Next Choice One Dose
My Way
Aftera
Take Action
EContra EZ
Option 2
Athentia Next
Fallback Solo
Opcicon One-Step
Morning After
AfterPill (only available online)
Less expensive brands are often called “generics.” The FDA requires generic medications to have the same active ingredient, strength, dosage, quality, and effectiveness as name brands. So why can they cost less if they work the same? Because the companies making generics don’t usually pay for advertising, and they don’t have to run the expensive clinical trials that the original brand needed to do to get FDA approval for that kind of drug.
You can always double-check with the pharmacist if you’re concerned about buying the right pill. But as long as it says “levonorgestrel 1.5mg” somewhere on the package, feel free to buy the cheapest morning-after pill on the shelf — it will work exactly the same as more expensive brands.
Would taking the morning after pill provide more protection if I’m on birth control (gildess)?
As long as you’re taking your birth control pills every day as directed, you don’t need to use the morning-after pill (AKA emergency contraception). Regular birth control pills are actually much better at preventing pregnancy than emergency contraception pills, and using them both at the same time won’t do anything extra. If you want even more protection from pregnancy, use condoms along with the pill. Plus, condoms will help prevent STDs.
However, you can definitely use the morning-after pill if you miss a few of your regular birth control pills and have unprotected sex. This only applies to the birth control pills with hormones in them — if you miss any of the placebo (non-hormonal) pills, you’re still protected from pregnancy and don’t need the morning-after pill.
If you DO miss some of your birth control pills and need to use emergency contraception, you can use the Plan B morning-after pill (or other Plan B generics, like Next Choice, MyWay, AfterPill, and Take Action) to help prevent pregnancy. You can get these types of emergency contraception at a drugstore, without a prescription. They work better the sooner you take them.
The bottom line is: if you use your birth control pills correctly, you don’t need to take the morning-after pill. Using condoms + the pill is the best way to double your pregnancy prevention.
I can’t find any straightforward info online, so do you know what age you have to be to purchase over the counter morning after pills in CA?
There’s no age restriction for buying the morning-after pill (AKA emergency contraception) over the counter at pharmacies and drugstores in California — or anywhere else in the U.S. Anyone of any age or gender can buy Plan B, Next Choice, and other levonorgestrel emergency contraception pills over the counter. Yay!
Over the counter morning-after pills are great news. But they work best if you take them within the first 3 days (72 hours) after unprotected sex. ella is another kind of emergency contraception pill that works even better than the over-the-counter kinds — especially if it’s been 4 or 5 days since you had unprotected sex, but ella’s not over-the-counter. You need a prescription from a doctor or nurse, like the staff at your nearest Planned Parenthood health center, to get ella.
Want something even better than ella? ParaGard IUDs are the most effective emergency contraception you can get, and you can leave them in as birth control for up to 12 years. You still only have 5 days after unprotected sex to get the ParaGard to work as emergency contraception, and since you need an appointment with a doctor or nurse to get one, you have to act fast. If you’re interested in this option, contact your nearest Planned Parenthood health center right away and let them know your situation.
can taking the morning after pill (“plan b”) too many times make you infertile, or less able to easily conceive? i had never heard this until some friends said so recently, and it is horrifying me!
No way — you have nothing to fear. Taking the morning after pill (aka emergency contraception) will not make you less fertile in the long run. Emergency contraception prevents pregnancy after one act of unprotected sex. Period.
BUT, if you find yourself taking Plan B frequently, it might be time to get a new plan A. Save yourself some stress and talk to your doctor or nurse about hassle-free birth control methods that might work well for you — like the IUD or implant. Using birth control is your best bet if you want to prevent pregnancy — it’s more effective, costs less over time than Plan B if you use insurance, and (just like emergency contraception) won’t make you infertile after you stop using it.
Again, if it’s an urgent situation you can totally rely on emergency contraception without worry. If you hear your friends spreading misinformation about emergency contraception, be a sexual health superstar and get them the facts.
(AKA the morning-after pill) causes an abortion. But that’s just not true. Emergency contraception prevents pregnancy from happening. If you take it and you’re already pregnant, it won’t harm an existing pregnancy. Emergency Contraception = birth control.
Note: If you’re a trans guy who takes hormones, you should talk with your doctor and see what they recommend when it comes to taking emergency contraception. Unfortunately, right now there isn’t enough research that tells us how hormonal EC will affect you, so your best choice may be the non-hormonal ParaGard IUD.
