When forgetting to take a birth control pill, worry and anxiety are normal; but fortunately there are several measures that can be taken to reduce the risk of an unwanted pregnancy. In this article, we’ll explore some options to consider and some advice from Host Foundation.
What you have to know is that the risk of pregnancy increases with the number of missed pills and it is greater if you forget in the first week. For this reason, things change depending on how many pills or in what week the forgetfulness occurred. Here we leave you what to do in each case:
If you just forgot to take A pill, no problem. Take it as soon as possible, even if it means taking two together. Contraceptive efficacy is not altered and you do not need to take care of yourself with another method.
If you forgot to take Two or more tablets during the first week from the box:
– Use a condom for seven days.
– Take the last forgotten pill, even if it means taking two together, and I kept taking the others at the usual time.
– If you had a sexual encounter without a condom, use an emergency oral contraceptive (morning after pill).
if you forgot Two or more tablets during the second week from the box:
– You can take the forgotten pill as soon as possible, even if it means taking two together. Afterwards, I continued with the others at regular hours.
– Add the use of condoms for seven days.
if you forgot Two or more tablets during the third week and your box is 21 tablets:
– Take the last forgotten pill as soon as you realize it, even if you have to take two together.
– Start another container the next day without doing the “rest” week. Bleeding will not occur on the expected date, but spotting or bleeding may appear in the course of taking the second box.
– Use a condom for seven days.
if you forgot Two or more tablets during the third week and your box is 28 tablets:
– Take the last forgotten pill, even if it means taking two together.
– Bleeding will not occur on the expected date, but staining or bleeding may appear during the taking of the second box.
– Use a condom for seven days.
And finally: if you forgot to take the pill during the fourth week, relax. No problem because they are inactive tablets! As a tip, you should take the forgotten pill together with the next day so you don’t miss a beat.
At Fundación Huésped they work so that all people have the information necessary to know what to do in an emergency situation. They also have different free personalized attention services to answer questions and legal advice.
