The morning after pills are an emergency contraceptive method to prevent pregnancy that are usually used, as the name suggests, in exceptional cases in which you have had an "accident" or have not taken precautions. However, you should not take it as another pill. Doctors warn that it is not a contraceptive method and it is for this reason that leads us to emphasize that it should not be taken as normal as a contraceptive pill. But let's put ourselves in a situation: imagine that you have gone to the pharmacy to the family planning center for one and, in a short period of time, you must return for another. ”I’ve already taken one morning-after pill this month, can I take another one?” you may ask. In this article we will try to answer all the questions you have about this pill.

Can I take two morning after pills in the same month?

  • You only need to consult any professional or even do a quick Google search to confirm that the morning after pill has a high level of efficacy. Therefore, it is a practically safe and fast response to the slightest possibility of an unwanted pregnancy, but what else is behind it?
  • On the one hand, it insists on the great hormonal imbalance that a pill like this can cause in your body if you take it regularly. That is why it is advised to take it only once per cycle. This does not mean that, in an emergency, as something specific and given the possibility of facing an unwanted pregnancy, it can be consumed twice in the same month. You should take it on a one-off basis as the risks of side effects increase and, for this reason, this practice is regularly discouraged.
  • What are the side effects? The pill can multiply nausea, give dizziness, mood swings, breast tenderness, abdominal distension, fatigue, stomach problems... It is also important that we try to inform the doctor when we have taken it, so that he can monitor the menstrual cycle and the effects that the pill can cause in him. What should not be done under any circumstances is to take two pills for the simple fact of increasing the possibility of efficacy. For example, one at 24 hours and another at 48 hours. The effectiveness will not increase but the hormonal imbalance will.
  • However, it is not the isolated fact of being able to take two morning-after pills in a month that worries what may be behind it. In this sense we must reflect: what is failing for us to have reached this situation? Are we using adequate contraceptive methods? Should we change them? It is necessary to consider that the situation cannot be maintained over time if it is repeated so frequently. We must consult the doctor which method he recommends according to our situation or consider how to have sex since it is not safe.

How many times a year can you take the morning after pill?

Although it is true that the recommendation of the doctors is clear, since they ensure that the morning after pill should not be abused or taken as a normal contraceptive method, there is no specific number of times that it should or should not be taken. There are those who affirm that the ideal is once a year, but others assure that between 2 or 3 times. And finally, there are those who simply admit that once per menstrual cycle. We must have two very clear ideas:
  • There is no fixed number of times that it can be taken per year, but they do recommend trying to space it out as much as possible. This reason is none other than the one that we have been repeating to you throughout the article: the high hormonal content that can cause major changes in the menstrual cycle.
  • It is not a normal contraceptive method but an emergency one, so we must detect exactly what has happened to have to take it so regularly and find a real solution, with the help of our doctor.

What exactly is the morning after pill?

The morning after pill is an emergency contraceptive created to prevent pregnancy after unprotected intercourse or after unprotected intercourse. It is important to know and remember that, in addition to not being used as a normal contraceptive method, it does not prevent the spread of Sexually Transmitted Diseases. Once you know what it is, all that remains is to answer the usual questions:

Pill efficacy 

The effectiveness of this pill is gradually reduced depending on the days that have passed after maintaining relationships. In this sense, the percentage of effectiveness will be higher if we take it in the first 24 hours after intercourse, achieving an effectiveness of approximately 95%. After that, between 24 and 48 hours the percentage of effectiveness is reduced to around 80% and after this time we cut the percentage to around 60%. Therefore, it is important to go to the family planning center, the pharmacy or the doctor in the first 24 hours after maintaining relations. There they will duly inform us of the contraceptive methods that we can follow and are safe, and they will give us a pill in a single dose to take. As we have mentioned before, the fact of taking more than one pill will not guarantee an increase in effectiveness (in fact, nowhere will they give us two pills, so this action is enough to be aware that it is not good). But it will increase the number of side effects that are not going to do anything other than alter our cycle and our emotions.

When will you have your period? 

After ingesting it, we can find 3 situations: that after a few days we have dark bleeding of short duration (which does not correspond to our period but rather with the effects of the pill), that our period goes down on the days in which it had to having lowered us, that we are delayed or ahead due to the high hormonal content of the pill. Although it is difficult, we must try to control our nerves and be calm after ingesting it and until our period comes down. These are difficult days or weeks but, as you know, nerves and anxiety can interfere with menstruation and delay it, so they won't help us much and we will only feedback on our nerves to see if our period goes down or not. Try to be calm and keep track of the days when your period should come down, the day you took it, the days that have passed since then...

Relations with protection

In this waiting process it is recommended to have protected sex to avoid the possibility of pregnancy. You can use the condom or start a new pack of birth control pills the day after you take the emergency pill. Your body will be undergoing certain alterations and it may not be very reliable when it comes to taking into account if you are ovulating or have a high or low probability of being pregnant. If all of this causes you doubts or insecurities, remember that the doctor and healthcare professionals are also here to discuss any concerns you may have. Your doctor, better than anyone, will be able to recommend and advise the best for you and your sexual health.