Emergency Birth Control (Emergency Contraception): What to Know

• When a condom breaks.
• After a sexual assault.
• If you forgot to take your birth control pill.
• If you didn't use good enough birth control during sex.

Emergency birth control is most effective if used as soon as possible after sex. It doesn't protect against sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

Do not use emergency birth control as your only form of birth control.

Types of emergency birth control

• Hormonal pills that have a chemical called a hormone in them that prevents your ovaries from releasing an egg and preventing fertilization of an egg. There are two types of hormonal pills:
  • A pill that contains high doses of estrogen and progesterone.
  • A pill that contains only progesterone. This may be a single pill or two pills taken 12–24 hours apart.
• A non-hormonal pill that works by preventing progesterone from having its normal effect on ovulation and the lining of the uterus. A prescription for this medicine is usually required.
• A non-hormonal medical device that is put into your uterus. This is called a copper intrauterine device (IUD). The copper in the IUD causes the sperm to be less able to fertilize the egg. A health care provider must put in the IUD.

Most types of emergency birth control pills are available without a prescription or a visit with your provider. If you are younger than 17 years old, you may need a prescription. Talk with your pharmacist about your options.

Side effects

• Belly pain and cramps.
• Feeling like you may throw up or throwing up.
• Breast tenderness.
• Headache.
• Dizziness.
• Tiredness.
• Irregular bleeding or spotting.

If you take emergency birth control pills while you're pregnant, it will not end your pregnancy or harm your baby.

Follow these instructions at home:

• Take your medicines only as told.
• Eat something before taking the emergency birth control pills to help prevent feeling like you may throw up.
• If you feel tired or dizzy, rest until you feel better.
• If you used a hormonal emergency birth control pill, continue using your normal method of birth control. Be sure to use a barrier method of birth control, such as condoms, for at least 7 days.
• If you used the non-hormonal emergency birth control pill, do not go back to your normal hormonal birth control pills for at least 5 days after taking the emergency birth control. Be sure to use a barrier method, such as a condom, until the next menstrual period.

Contact a health care provider if:

• You throw up within 3 hours after taking a pill. You may need to take another pill.
• You have a very bad headache.
• You have bleeding from your vagina that doesn't stop.
• It has been 21 days since you took an emergency birth control pill and you haven't had a period.

Get help right away if:

• You have chest pain.
• You have leg pain.
• You have numbness or weakness of your arms or legs.
• You have slurred speech.
• You have problems seeing.

• Do not wait to see if the symptoms will go away.
• Do not drive yourself to the hospital.