Emergency Contraception

If you’ve had unprotected sex in the last 3-5 days, or if your regular method of contraception has failed, and you’re worried about the risk of pregnancy, emergency contraception or the morning after pill can help. Depending on which morning after pill you choose to use, Levonell or ellaOne, it can help to reduce your chances of becoming pregnant following unprotected sex by up to 95%.

Emergency contraception can provide you with additional control over your body and lifestyle, allowing you to be sexually active whilst also reducing the risks of you developing an unwanted pregnancy.

It is important to note however that using regular methods of contraception, such as condoms or daily contraceptive pills, can be more reliable at preventing pregnancy and you should not rely on emergency contraception alone. Regular use of the morning after pill should be avoided where possible. At Smart Chemist we always advise practicing safe sex and recommend the use of barrier methods, to not only reduce your chances of becoming pregnant but also prevent against the contraction of sexually transmitted infections.

When considering which morning after pill is right for you it is important to understand the differences between the two.
EllaOne 30mg tablets are often considered to be a more effective form of emergency contraception as ellaOne has up to a 95% success rate if taken within 5 days or 120 hours of having unprotected sex. When using ellaOne, if you are on the combined oral contraceptive pill, you would need to stop your daily contraceptive pill and restart it 5 days after taking ellaOne. During this interim period it is important to remember that you must use alternative forms of contraception (ie. barrier methods – condoms). Additionally, unlike Levonelle One Step you can only use ellaOne once within the same menstrual cycle.

Levonelle One Step is the most common form of emergency contraception and works up to a maximum of 72 hours after having unprotected sex. The success rate of Levonelle is also 95% if taken within 24 hours of having unprotected sex, however it is less effective when compared to ellaOne following the initial 24 hours.

The advantage of using Levonelle One Step over ellaOne is that the combined oral contraceptive pill (daily contraceptive pill) can be taken just 12 hours after taking the Levonelle. You can also take it more than once within the same menstrual cycle, although it is important to remember that neither form of morning after pill should be used as a regular form of contraception.

If you’ve taken the morning after pill during your cycle and you find your next period is more than 5-7 days late, you are required to take a pregnancy test and consult a medical professional as there is a chance you may be pregnant. Urgent medical attention would also need to be sought if you begin to experience pain in the lower part of the abdomen.

With both forms of emergency contraception we recommend using barrier methods(i.e. condoms) until you start long term contraception, and for 7 days from the commencement of long term contraception.

Emergency contraception does not protect you from the risks of contracting sexually transmitted infections.