Questions about pregnancy and the pill

Hi Suzanne,
You can put your fears and worries to rest...a few hours late taking your pill will not decrease its effectiveness!

The pill is up to 99% effective at preventing pregnancy when taken consistently and correctly every time. The closer you are to the same time every night (or day), the better..but a few hours "off" of your normal schedule is not detrimental. Using a condom is a great idea, as that provides even more protection from pregnancy, as well as any sexually transmitted infections or diseases.

Many women forget to take a pill, or forget 2-3 pills in-a-row. This is when the pills' effectiveness rate can begin decreasing, and you would need to use a back-up method (condom) for 7 days. Taking a pill late by a few hours does not require a back-up method.

Hope that helps!

Wow, I'm glad I'm not alone on the crazy train on this one.
I'm in kind of a similar situation. 20 years old, newly sexually active... except I've been on the pill for about 2 years. I started taking it way before I started having sex, because I was only getting periods twice or three times per year, and my doctor said that was the easiest way to fix that. For the first, I'd say about year and a half of taking the pill, I wasn't having sex and was just using it for hormones, so I was pretty lax about actually taking it at the same exact time. But recently, I have been CRAZY paranoid that I'm going to get pregnant. My boyfriend and I are great together, really- but let's face it. college isn't exactly the best time for a fetus! We use condoms every time (with the exception of occasionally in the shower, but he never finishes that way) - so the risk is pretty low. I was just wondering, if I take a pill by several hours late - like maybe around 7-8 - I know you're supposed to use a back up method for a week but after that - will protection-wise everything go back to normal? I take a triphasic pill (trisprintec) and it was at the end of the first week in the pack. Do you know of a lot of people who took the pill properly and still got pregnant? Do you know of people who missed an occasional pill - not by a whole day or anything - but but a few hours - getting pregnant? Sorry if this is rambl-y too, I'm almost done I promise! I am especially concerned, because I'm having a conflict of interest. After the few shower "slip-ups", the whole lack-of-condom thing is growing on me... and since I've been taking the pill for a long time I think it might not be the worst thing. But like i said, I'm also really paranoid, so can anyone help to put my mind at ease and faith in the pill?

Great for being proactive with your birth control!

Here are some answers to your questions:
1. The pill does not offer immediate protection. You will need to use a back-up method of birth control for at least 7 days until it is at its full effectiveness; 14 days is even better to use back-up protection. If you plan on taking your pill in the mornings, the morning after your period begins is great.
2. The birth control pill is 99% effective at preventing pregnancy. The implant is also 99% effective, as well as the Nuva Ring, Depo Provera shot, etc. The implant has less "user error", and is the reason there are not as many "horror stories" (it is also not as highly used as the pill). The pill is only effective when used correctly and consistently every time. The "horror stories" you have read are primarily from women who have not taken their pill consistently and correctly each and every time. Of course, there is 1% of women who can become pregnant while taking the pill, as the only 100% effective method to prevent pregnancy is not having sex at all.
3. Using hormonal contraception, plus a condom (barrier contraception), plus the withdrawal method provides the best protection when used in combination. The pill is still best (at 99% effectiveness), where the condom has much more "user error potential", and can be anywhere from 80-98% effective when used alone. The withdrawal method is about 75% effective when used alone. Most likely, you will begin to trust in your pill's effectiveness the more you use it, and will probably use condoms less.

What you can do: use condoms and/or withdrawal method during the middle of your cycle to offer you peace of mind. The pill works by preventing ovulation, so you don't really have a "most fertile" time, but you are least likely to become pregnant during your least fertile times, and that is typically right before your period. Does that make sense? I can explain better if you would like.

4. As long as you take the pill within an hour or two at the same time every day (morning or evening), this is considered as taking it at the same time. For instance: if you take it at 9am every morning when you brush your teeth, you can take it anywhere between 7am-11am, and it would still be effective. It is important to try to keep it at 9am, or within an hour of that time, every morning. (You would not want to get in the habit of taking it at 7am some mornings, then 11am other mornings...that would be a 4-hour time span. A few hours here-and-there is fine).

I feel as though I rambled, too, in my response...not very articulate! :) Let me know if you have any additional questions!