Answers to Frequently Asked Questions About...
When to Use Emergency Contraception
When might I need to use emergency contraception?
You can use emergency contraception
any time you need a second chance to prevent pregnancy after
sex. Here are some of the most common reasons women give for needing
to use emergency contraceptive pills:
- The condom broke.
- I started my pack of birth control pills a week late.
- We’re usually so careful, but this time we just got carried away.
- We had so much to drink, we didn't even think about contraception.
- I talked myself into thinking it was okay not to use birth control this one time.
- I barely knew him. I told him I didn't want to sleep with him, but he forced me to have sex anyway.
Even though you have many kinds of birth control to choose from today, no contraceptive method can prevent pregnancy 100% of the time. And people aren’t perfect, either. You might have sex when you didn’t expect to or want to. Young people, in particular, are often unprepared the first time they have sex, and it is far more common than you might think for women to be forced to have sex.
Whatever the reason you might need it, emergency
contraception can significantly reduce
your chances of getting pregnant. And even though emergency contraceptive
pills are often called “morning
after pills” or “day after pills,” they are
safe and effective for preventing pregnancy for up to 120
hours after sex.
Emergency contraceptive pills are more effective the sooner you take them. But getting a doctor's appointment and buying the pills takes time -- wasted time that may make the pills less effective. If you already have emergency contraceptive pills in your medicine cabinet, you can start using them right away – without having to go to your health care provider to get a prescription or to the pharmacy to buy the pills. For these reasons, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists – the leading professional association of doctors who specialize in women’s health – recommends getting emergency contraceptive pills before they are needed.