If you’ve had unprotected sex, or your usual method of contraception has failed i.e., you forgot to take your contraceptive pill or the condom used has split, and you want to reduce the risk of pregnancy, emergency contraception may be able to help depending on how much time has passed since you had unprotected sex. Don’t worry – accidents happen.

 

Emergency contraception comes in 2 forms:

  • The morning after pill
  • The intrauterine device 

 

What is the Morning After Pill?

The emergency contraceptive pill, otherwise known as the morning after pill, can help to prevent pregnancy in the event of unprotected sex. As the name suggests, the morning after pill should only be used in emergencies, and not as a regular method of contraception – there are contraceptive pills available for this purpose e.g., Lovima. This method of emergency contraception is essentially a pill that you take as soon as possible after unprotected sex. Despite being called ‘the morning after pill’, it can be taken at any time of the day. It will vary depending on the type of pill but some pills can be taken within 5 days of having unprotected sex, whilst other pills will only be effective if taken within the first 3 days of having unprotected sex. It’s important to note that the morning after pill will only work if ovulation has not yet occurred, as it is not an abortion pill and will not terminate a pregnancy if sperm has already fertilised an egg. 

 

Different Types of the Morning After Pill

On iPharm, we offer 2 different types of the morning after pill:

You don’t need a prescription to buy either ellaOne or Levonelle.  

 

ellaOne

The ellaOne morning after pill can be taken up to 120 hours, or 5 days, after unprotected sex. It contains the active ingredient ulipristal acetate and works by delaying the release of an egg (ovulation) so that there is no egg for the sperm to fertilise. Even though ellaOne can be effective up to 5 days after unprotected sex, it’s important to remember that the sooner you take it, the more effective it will be at preventing pregnancy. 

How effective is it? ellaOne is not 100% effective, just like all contraception. In a trial where ellaOne was taken within 24 hours of unprotected sex, it was shown to decrease the rate of pregnancies to just 9 in 1000. In a 2017 review, it was estimated that approximately 1 to 2% of women will get pregnant when taking ellaOne after unprotected sex.

 

Levonelle

The Levonelle morning after pill can be taken up to 72 hours, or 3 days, after having unprotected sex, but as with all emergency contraception, the sooner you take it, the more effective it will be. It contains the active ingredient levonorgestrel and it is thought to work by either: stopping or delaying the release of an egg (ovulation) and/or preventing sperm from fertilising any eggs that may have already been released. 

How effective is it? The ingredient levonorgestel (in Levonelle) is said to be 2.5 times less effective than the ingredient ulipristal acetate (in ellaOne). In a 2017 review, it was estimated that approximately 0.6% to 2.6% of women will get pregnant when taking Levonelle after unprotected sex.

 

FAQs

 

There’s a chance that I’ve already ovulated this month, will the morning after pill still work? 
If you’ve already ovulated, the morning after pill will not be effective. This is why it’s important to take it as soon as possible so that it can help to prevent you from ovulating if you haven’t already.

 

I’ve already taken the morning after pill this month, can I take another one? 

The morning after pill is intended to be used in case of emergencies only and should not be used as a regular method of contraception, but if you do need to take the morning after pill again in the same month, it’s best to speak to a pharmacist about this as they will need to assess the specific situation to see what the best course of action is. 

 

How will I know if the morning after pill has worked?
The only way to know if the morning after pill was effective is to wait for your period to arrive when it’s supposed to and/or take a pregnancy test.

 

What should I do if I vomit after taking the morning after pill?
If you vomit within 3 hours of taking the morning after pill, you should get in touch with your pharmacist as it is likely that you will need to take another tablet.  

 

Will the morning after pill still be effective if I have sex after taking it?
You can get pregnant any time after taking the morning after pill so ensure that you use other methods of contraception if you do not want an unplanned pregnancy.

 

Can the morning after pill cause an abortion?
The morning after pill primarily works by delaying ovulation to help prevent conception, it can not terminate a pregnancy if sperm has already fertilised an egg. 

 

Can the morning after pill prevent STIs?
The morning after pill can not protect you against STIs so if you’ve had unprotected sex, you will need to have an STI test to check for any STIs that may have been transmitted.  

 

Will I experience any side effects?
Everyone will react to the morning after pill differently. Whilst some may not experience any side effects, there may be others who do, but these are typically short-term.

Possible side effects may include: 

Stomach pain 
Nausea
Headache
Fatigue
Breast tenderness
Mood swings 
Irregular bleeding until next period

 

References:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/contraception/emergency-contraception/

https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/product/133/pil#gref

https://www.ellaone.co.uk/all-you-need-to-know-about-taking-ellaone/

https://helloclue.com/articles/sex/why-the-emergency-contraception-pill-fails

https://www.nhsinform.scot/healthy-living/contraception/emergencies/emergency-contraception