Emergency Contraception
Emergency Contraception / Morning-After Pill
Emergency contraception/the morning after pill is a type of drug that can be taken after sex than might prevent pregnancy in certain cases. Before you take any kind of emergency contraception, it is important to get all of the information so that you are capable of making an educated and informed decision. Your health is important.
Certain types of emergency contraception are not effective if you are already pregnant from a previous sexual encounter. Emergency contraception options contain a large does of chemical hormones the would be unnecessary and expensive if you are already pregnant. If you are unsure if you are already pregnant, we can provide you with a free and confidential pregnancy test provided to help protect your health and safety.
Many people choose to buy emergency contraceptives over the internet; however, it is never safe to purchase any medication online without seeing a medical professional. Your health and safety are important.
What Is Plan B One-Step?
Plan B One-Step is a type of emergency contraceptive that can be taken after sex with the hope of preventing pregnancy.
Is Plan B One-Step Safe? [1-2]
It is a large dose of chemical hormones, larger than a dose of daily birth control pills. Common side-effects include a heavier period, nausea, lower abdominal pain, fatigue, headache, dizziness, breast tenderness, or a late period. After taking Plan B One-Step, it is likely that you will quickly return to you cycle and your body will be triggered to ovulate as a result of the drug.
Is Plan B One-Step Effective? [4]
Pregnancy can occur for a few days out of each month. If you had sex during a time in your cycle when you were not able to become pregnant, Plan B One-Step would be not only be unnecessary but also a large, expensive dose of chemical hormones. One study that was conducted by the makers of Plan B One-Step found that the drug fails up to 39% of the time depending on when it was taken.
When Is Plan B One-Step Effective? [5]
The makers of Plan B One-Step state that the drug should be taken seventy-two hours (three days) after sex. Some women’s health clinics state that it can be taken up to 120 hours (five days) after sex. For your health and safety, it is important that you follow the correct dosage recommendations given for the drug. You should be cautious of any organizations that might be trying to take advantage of you by selling these drugs outside of its recommendations for usage.
What Is ella?
Ella is considered to be a type of emergency contraception. It is different than Plan B One-Step because it works similarly to RU-486, the abortion pill.
Is ella safe?
Many times, women may panic after having unprotected sex so they rush to take drugs such as ella. However, it is important to remember that you can only become pregnant on specific days of the month depending on your cycle and when you ovulate. If you take ella during a time when you cannot become pregnant it unnecessarily exposes you to chemicals and it is a waste of your money. Common adverse reactions to ella include: headache, nausea, stomach (abdominal) pain, menstrual cramps, fatigue, and dizziness.
There any many unknowns about ella, including the following:
- Its effect on women under eighteen years of age.
- Its effect on women over the age of thirty-five.
- Its effect on women taking other forms of hormonal contraception.
- Its effect on pregnant women.
- Its effect on women who are breast-feeding.
- Its effect after repeated use within the same menstrual cycle.
- Its effect on women who have not yet started their period
Is ella Effective?
If ella is taken as directed, it is possible that it can reduce the risk of pregnancy, but it is not effective in every case. In two studies mentioned in the package insert, ella reduced the number of expected pregnancies from roughly 5.5% to roughly 2.2%.
It is important to not that if you are taking hormonal contraceptives when you take ella, it can cause it to become less effective and leave you more vulnerable to pregnancy.
It should be noted, however, that if you are taking hormonal contraceptives at the time you take ella, it can become less effective leaving you more vulnerable to pregnancy.
When Is ella Effective? [8]
The makers of ella say that it should be take 120 hours (five days) after sex.
The decision to use emergency contraceptives is not something that should be taken lightly. We would be happy to help you with any questions you may have concerning emergency contraceptives. Please contact us for more information. You can speak with a trained peer specialist about your specific situation. Everything we offer is both free and confidential.
[1] Morning After Pill. Mayo Clinic Website: https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/morning-after-pill/about/pac-20394730. Published December 31, 2019. Published June 5, 2020.
[2] Ella. Drugs Website: https://www.drugs.com/pro/ella.html Published May 1, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
[3] Plan B Oral. Drugs Website: https://www.drugs.com/cons/plan-b.html. Published November 27, 2019. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
[4] Plan B The Original Morning After Pill. Plan B Website: https://planb.ca/faq.html#:~:text=The%20sooner%20you%20take%20plan,the%20efficacy%20rate%20is%2061%25. Published 2018. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
[5] Plan B One Step Fact Sheet. Plan B Website: https://www.planbonestep.com/assets/downloads/plan-b-one-step-fact-sheet.pdf. Published January 2019. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
[6] Ella Side Effects. Drugs Website: https://www.drugs.com/sfx/ella-side-effects.html. Published August 18, 2019. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
[7] ELLA- ulipristal acetate tablet. U.S. Library of Medicine Website: https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/drugInfo.cfm?setid=052bfe45-c485-49e5-8fc4-51990b2efba4. Published January 27, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
[8] Ella Package Insert https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2010/022474s000lbl.pdf. Retrieved June 5, 2020.