Prescription EC pill (ella)

The effectiveness of almost all types of birth control will not be impacted by your weight. Two exceptions are the patch and emergency contraception.

For the patch, Xulane may be less effective if you weigh more than 198 pounds. Twirla, the other patch option, may be less effective at preventing pregnancy if your BMI is 25 or greater, and it should not be used at all if your BMI is 30 or greater because of decreased effectiveness and a potentially increased risk of blood clots.

When it comes to emergency contraception, over-the counter levonorgestrel-based emergency contraception, like Plan B One-Step, Next Choice One Dose, and others, may not be as effective in people who weigh 165 pounds or more. Ella, which is prescription-only emergency contraception, is equally effective in people who weigh between 165 and 194 pounds as it is in people who weigh under 165 pounds. But ella may not work as well if you weigh 195 pounds or more. The copper IUD and IUDs with 52mg of levonorgestrel (Mirena and Liletta) are the only emergency contraception options proven equally effective if you weigh 195 pounds or more. IUDs are also the most effective form of emergency contraception for everyone, regardless of weight.

EC should be available at most pharmacies and health clinics, but it’s probably worth looking into where in your area it’s available before going to get it. That said, we highly recommend always keeping EC on hand “just in case.” The sooner you take it, the more effective it is. And it’s a lot less stressful than running around town looking for some after the fact.

Medications and herbal supplements that may make regular birth control pills less effective may also reduce the effectiveness of emergency contraceptive pills. So if you are using an enzyme inducer, it probably makes sense to increase the dose of EC. You should talk to your doctor about how much to increase the dose.

Yes. To be safe, you should take another dose of emergency contraception.

Yes. You can take emergency contraception pills (the morning-after pill) at any time of day for up to 5 days after unprotected sex. For emergency contraception pills like Plan B One-Step, Next Choice, Next Choice One Dose, and Levonorgestrel, the sooner you take them more effective they are. The emergency contraceptive pill ella doesn’t decrease in effectiveness over those 5 days.

Any person can get levonorgestrel-based EC pills at their local pharmacy or clinic without a prescription, regardless of age or gender.

Whatever age or gender you are, you can buy levonorgestrel-based emergency contraception (EC) pills including Plan B One-Step, Next Choice One Dose, and My Way over-the-counter at the pharmacy without a prescription. Learn more about getting EC.

Plan B One-Step, Next Choice One Dose, and other levonorgestrel-based emergency contraception pills work because of the synthetic hormone progestin. Basically, progestin tricks your body into thinking it’s already pregnant. And that jumpstarts your body’s pregnancy-preventing reactions. Birth control pills use this same science (in low, daily doses). On the other hand, ella acts to suppress progesterone. This delays ovulation for up to five days, giving sperm time to die before an egg is released. (And that’s good because sperm can survive in your uterus anywhere from three to six days after sex.) Ella may also thin the lining of your uterus, making it harder for a fertilized egg to be implanted.

While all methods of emergency contraception can be used up to five days after unprotected sex, Plan B One-Step and Next Choice One Dose are most effective when used within 72 hours (three days), and they work even better within 24 hours. But ella is just as effective on the fifth day as it is on the first.

If you had unprotected sex within the last five days, you might want to use emergency contraception. You can get Plan B One-Step over the counter without a prescription. You can also look into getting a Paragard IUD, the most effective emergency contraceptive option.

If it’s been more than five days, you can get a pregnancy test or go to the doctor to see if you are, in fact, pregnant. You have to wait at least 10 days after unprotected sex for the tests to work, and they are more accurate if you wait to take them until a few days after you expect your next period. If you’re not pregnant, talk to your doctor about preventing future instances of unprotected sex.

In the U.S. the only forms of birth control available over the counter (OTC) are condoms, internal condoms, spermicide, the sponge, and emergency contraception pills. There’s been some debate about whether birth control pills should be sold OTC too as they are in many other countries, but for now you need a prescription.

If you’re looking for a method that requires a prescription, visit your local health clinic or find the nearest one here.

Levonorgestrel is one of the longest-studied types of progestin, and all the scientific evidence to date shows it is super safe. It’s used in hormonal IUDs, some emergency contraception pills, and certain birth control pills.

The effectiveness of emergency contraception depends on what type you use and on how soon you take it. We’ll give you the basics here, but there’s more to read from the EC experts.

If you’re taking Plan B One-Step, Next Choice, or using the Yuzpe method (which means taking a combination of some birth control pills), the quicker you take it after unprotected sex, the more effective it is. We repeat: the sooner, the better. You can take it for up to 5 days, but within 3 days is better, and within 24 hours is the best yet. (That’s all the more reason to get some and have it around, just in case.)

Progestin-only pills—which includes Plan B One-Step and Next Choice—are more effective than EC pills with both progestin and estrogen (aka “combined” pills). Both types will reduce your chances of an unplanned pregnancy, but if you can get your hands on a progestin-only method, then take that.

There’s a new oral EC that hit the market in the U.S. in December 2010, called ella. You can use ella for up to five days and unlike the other types of oral EC, it’s as effective on day five as it is on day one. Just be sure to use it within five days!

Finally, if you get a Paragard IUD inserted within five days after unprotected sex, it will lower your chance of pregnancy by 99.9%.