Please give me some advice on the morning-after pill

[NickB79]

Mods, I'm sorry if this violates the no-sex-talk rules of the board, if you feel it does feel free to pull it. But, since I'm asking an honest question in hope of advice and not something sick and perverted, I hope it's still here a few hrs from now. Last night my girlfriend and I had sex, and at the end the condom came off and stayed inside her. She went to the bathroom and was able to remove it, but she said it looked like there was semen on the outside as well as the inside of the condom. She's still waiting for her health insurance to start in another month, so she's not on birth control yet. Her period ended 1 1/2 weeks ago, but ovulation usually occurs ~1 week after the end of the period, correct? I know that each woman is different and can ovulate at different times, I'm just trying to find a way to calm myself right now. I'm about to call the local Planned Parenthood to inquire about the morning-after pill, and was hoping someone could give me advice on what else to do? Just how bad are the side-effects of taking the morning-after pill You can imagine how scared I am right now; I don't think either of us slept more than a couple hrs last night because of worry. Thank you so much for any advice.

[Goldmund]

1. If you can't find the morning-after pill...

she can take 6 regular birth control pills, it'll have the same effect. It happened to me and my gf, and that was what her doctor told her. She didn't have any side-effects.

[hippiechick]

6. no side effects ?

In my experience, I've gotten really really bad headaches and some nausea a day or so after taking that many bc's in one shot because it's an incredible dose of hormone overload.

But it DOES tend to work as an aborificent.

I'd still recommend calling PP, though, cause I'm no doctor.


:hippie:

[southerngirlwriter]

25. If she didn't, she's the only woman I've ever heard of

who didn't.

That much hormones all at once usually causes headaches, irritability, and stomach upset.

Not nearly as bad as an unplanned pregnancy or having to go through a suction abortion, but it's also not "no side effects."

:shrug:

[SoCalDem]

2. Ovulation usually occurs "mid cycle"

sounds like a tricky situation.. Call planned parenthood..they can give you/her better advice :)

Good luck

[Florida_Geek]

3. But mid cycle is not always mid cycle.

I would do the PP thing.

[supernova]

4. The morning after pill = double dose of BC

Call PP or the county health department to get a script for a dose.

And yeah, I do wish all BC were OTC. It's nuts to get a script for something so common.

Good luck to you both.

[northzax]

7. actually, there are good reasons for the Pill to be restricted

there are side effects and cumulative effects that can be harmful. another reason is that it gets women who are sexually active to go to the gynocologist every six months, and that is a good thing.

[supernova]

9. Every six months?

Where are you? I go once a year. :shrug:

And I still say the pill should be OTC. You still should get your pap smear once a year, but that has little to do with the pill.

[northzax]

5. first off, calm down

the likelihood of any 'problem' is pretty small. Second off, call Planned Parenthood, they have a sliding scale and can help you and her make the right decisions about what sort of medical treatment is appropriate for her.

If she does end up taking the morning after pill (which is just a large dose of Birth Control pills, realize that she will have some serious cramping and be feeling miserable for a couple of days, so, since you got her into this, make sure you are there to take care of her, hear?

[LynneSin]

8. GET THEE TO THY CLOSEST PLANNED PARENTHOOD!!!

They'll help you out even without insurance (they'll work something out).

[Elidor]

10. For future reference, use the Ovulation Calculator

http://www.4woman.gov/Pregnancy/ovulation1.cfm

Very handy. And the site has a lot of good info that I wish I had known when I was younger.

I've had the same experience. Fortunately, the window for conception is very small. There's a pretty good chance that the worst problem you'll have is the stress of waiting for her period to begin. Good luck, and be sure to educate yourself on the subject. Education is the best contraception.

[NickB79]

11. Uh oh

According to this site (if I'm using it right) she ovulated 2-4 days ago. How long does an egg remain fertile after release? I know a sperm cell can hang around for up to 3 days in the female reproductive tract, but what about eggs?

[supernova]

12. You should be asking a Doc

we're not professionals, just slightly enlightened patients. :crazy:

I reiterate: Get thee and thy girlfriend to Planned Parenthood.

[Elidor]

13. I gotta second all the people calling for professional advice

As for the egg, it's only viable for - don't quote me on this, my girlfriend isn't here to correct any mistakes - about 24-36 hours. Should you be interested in obtaining the advice of a medical professional rather than a quack like me, I'd look up PP.

[Kadie]

14. Don't rely on a chart

Everyone woman is different and every cycle is differnt. Take it from me, I went through years of fertility problems, I was as in tune with my body as anyone can be, and you can never be 100% sure when exactly ovulation took place and when the sperm might have met up with the egg. It is a real guessing game. Go to Planned Parenthood. They are there to help people just like you two. Take Care and Good Luck.

[Xithras]

23. A woman is most fertile before she ovulates

If I remember correctly from when the wife and I were working on #2, a woman is most likely to get pregnant if she has sex in the 48 hours preceding her ovulation. Fertility peaks on her ovulation day, and declines rapidly in the days following. The fertility drops to near zero within 5 days after ovulation.

If your math is correct, then there IS still a decent possibility of pregnancy, but you missed the peak. Of course, if she's even a day or two off in her calculations...get her to a PP clinic!

And if she's not going to be on the pill, she REALLY needs to keep track of her ovulation cycle. If you don't want any children yet, you shouldn't have ANY sex during "fertility week"...even with condoms, dams, or other removable birth control. If you aren't capable of abstaining that week, I seriously recommend that you two have a discussion about her going on the pill, getting an implant, or getting an IUD.

[jean]

16. Cyclebeads - an innovative, healthy way to calculate ovulation

Go to PP for the immediate situation - but for the future and anyone interested, here's a cool innovation:

CycleBeads are based on a natural method of family planning called the Standard Days Method™. This method was developed by the Institute for Reproductive Health at Georgetown University.

"CycleBeads are a color-coded string of beads that represent a woman's menstrual cycle. Each bead represents a day of the cycle and the color helps a woman to determine if she is likely to be fertile that day."

There's a ton of info at this site:


http://www.cyclebeads.com/

[northzax]

17. after all, you know what they call a couple using the rhythm method

right?

[geniph]

24. Parents.

[supernova]

18. No thanks,

I prefer the reliability and safety of good, old-fashioned modern chemistry.

[jean]

20. While I'm not a natural family planning fanatic, I do regret using

birth control pills because of the good old fashioned yet modern chemistry method of using synthetic hormones to achieve birth control.

Synthetic hormones have been shown to wreak havoc, some side effects being permanent and even life threatening, in hormone replacement therapy patients.

Birth control pills use the same types of synthetic chemicals (not compatible with human hormone receptor sites) and who knows what this does to your body short or long term?

[cmf]

15. Go to planned parenthood, and some tips.

In some states, the morning-after pill is behind the counter. That means that you can get it directly from a pharmacist. It is this way in Washington where I live.

I have never taken it myself, but I heard that the number one side effect is nausea. If your girlfriend has taken BC pills before, it is akin to the nausea that you feel if you double up when you miss a pill. Basically it's a large dose of hormones. The morning after pill is NOT AN ABORTION. It is just a large dose of birth control. To be effective, it must be taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex.

Good luck with everything. A woman's fertile window is only a few days long, so chances are you will be ok.

[Shananigans]

19. As a Planned Parenthood volunteer...

I'd suggest you get in right away. The sooner the morning after pill is taken, the more effective it is. Technically, you have up to 72 hours to take the pill for it to have a 75% to 89% chance of effectiveness. You can still take the pill up to 120 hours, but it's effectiveness wears off with each hour you wait.

I have heard of various different side effects from the "morning after" pill. Many women get severe cramping and this tends to be the most common side effect. Others are upset stomach, nausea and occasional vomiting. I'd say the majority of women tend to get slight cramping, but nothing major.

What the morning after pill does, is just gives you a huge shot of estrogen and progestin which basically kicks everything it possibly can out of the uterus. It's not any type of abortion form, and if I remember correctly it instead effects things BEFORE the egg is actually fertilized.

All Planned Parenthoods work on a sliding scale, so if your girlfriend and you have monetary issues, just talk to them at the clinic. They are wonderful people and will do anything to help you out!

Other than that, take a deep breath and calm down! Everything will be alright and I guarantee you that after talking to the Planned Parenthood individuals you will feel so much better!

If you need anything else, let me know!

[Stephanie]

26. This is some very excellent and professinal advice, above

You're smart to check in with DU, because we have an expert in every field.

I'm sure Shannee would be happy to respond to your PMs if you have any other questions.

[Nikia]

21. Go to Planned Parenthood

I took the morning after pill under similiar circunmstances. Others have mentioned possible side effets which may or may not occurr for her. She should be aware of them. It would probably be best if you two just relaxed at home in case she isn't feeling 100% afterwards.

[NicoleM]

22. I don't know what

the side effects for the MAP are, but I know what the side effects of pregnancy are and they suck. Hard. Get the woman to a clinic, if you haven't already.