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The Emergency Contraception Website - Your website for the "Morning After"

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions About...

Risk of Pregnancy

Am I still at risk of pregnancy if I have sex after taking emergency contraceptive pills?


Yes. Emergency contraceptive pills (also called "morning after pills" or "day after pills") only protect against pregnancy when you take them after sex. That means you can still get pregnant if you take emergency contraception and then have sex again without using another kind of contraception or your birth control fails. If you still don’t want to get pregnant, you will need to take emergency contraceptive pills again. (Although emergency contraceptive pills would probably still protect you if you had sex immediately after taking them, there is no research to show how long they would work.)


Some women find they need emergency contraception more than once because they haven’t found a regular type of birth control that fits their health and lifestyle needs. To find out more about which contraceptives might work best for you, click here. And be sure to talk to your health care provider if you are having any problems with your birth control.

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**PLEASE NOTE: AS OF AUGUST 31, 2020, THIS SITE IS NO LONGER BEING UPDATED**

 

This website is operated by the Office of Population Research at Princeton University and has no connection with any pharmaceutical company or for-profit organization.

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