is the morning after pill less effective the more you take it?
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It is possible to take Plan B up to 5 days after having sex, but it becomes less effective the longer a person waits. A 2019 review suggests that those who use morning-after pills as a regular form of contraception have a chance of becoming pregnant within 12 months.
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How much is too much? Experts recommend that if you use the morning after pill more than two or three times per month, then you should talk to your doctor about some other form of birth control.
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It is possible to take the morning after pill twice in one week, but it is not recommended for regular use. The morning after pill contains a very high dose of hormones. If taken occasionally, the hormones should not be in your body long enough to cause any harmful effects.
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Of course, if you take it more than once, your risks of side effects increase." Essentially, taking the morning-after pill is akin to taking a bunch of birth control pills all at once. While you probably won't feel great, it won't negatively affect your health or fertility.
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However, research shows that progestin-only emergency contraceptive pills (also called "morning after pills" or "day after pills") are equally effective if you take the two doses at the same time, take them 12 hours apart as recommended, or wait as long as 24 hours to take the second dose.
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If you have sex on at the time you ovulate or after you ovulate, your emergency contraception pill won't be effective (7). If you have unprotected sex again after you take the pill in the same cycle, it could also fail (7).
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The emergency contraceptive Pill (ECP) is also known as the morning-after pill, but it's not just for the morning after. ECPs are most effective when taken soon after unprotected sex, but can still have some effect for up to 4-5 days (96-120 hours) depending on where you are in your cycle and which pill(s) you take.
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If you normally use birth control pills for contraception, you should continue taking your pill on your regular schedule when you use any of these hormonal emergency contraception options. The morning after pill does not prevent you from becoming pregnant after you take it.
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The morning-after pill is super safe, and Plan B side effects aren't super common. There have been no reports of serious problems out of the millions of people who've taken it. After you take the morning-after pill, it's totally normal for your next period to be different from what you're used to.
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Experts recommend that if you use the morning after pill more than two or three times per month, then you should talk to your doctor about some other form of long-term birth control. Regular use is simply not recommended, and you will need to look into alternatives if you want to ensure your safety.
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It is possible to get pregnant after taking emergency contraception. Though the morning after pill decreases the likelihood of getting pregnant, it's not always effective.
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The morning after pills effectiveness depends on which method is used. Levonogestrel based pills, like Plan-B, are up to 89% effective when taken less than 3 days after unprotected sex. It will continue to work up to 5 days after protected sex, but it's less effective as time passes.
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While it is 99 percent effective in women who take the pill on time every day, that figure drops to 91 percent in women whose adherence is less than perfect.1﻿ In the end, the risk of pregnancy increases the more frequently you miss doses and the wider the gap there is between doses.
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It's commonly known as “the morning-after pill,” but we call it emergency contraception because it doesn't have to be taken the morning after. In fact, the sooner you start it, the more effective it is. As long as you're taking it after unprotected sex, it's never too early to take emergency contraception.
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If I drink alcohol before or after taking emergency contraceptive pills, will they be less effective? No, there is no effect of alcohol on the morning after pill. Alcohol can indirectly affect contraceptives – e.g. causing you to forget to use them, or putting on a condom incorrectly.
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The emergency contraceptive pill Both Levonelle and ellaOne are effective only if taken before the release of an egg from the ovary (ovulation). The sooner you take Levonelle or ellaOne, the more effective it will be. Ovulation is triggered by rising levels of a hormone called luteinising hormone (LH).
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There is no limit to the number of times an individual can take Plan B, or the emergency contraceptive pill. People can take it as often as necessary to prevent an unplanned pregnancy.