When we talk about emergency contraception or the ‘pill’, there is a lot of misinformation and myths which are rampantly spread regarding the same.
From the lack of public education to the stigma associated with these morning-after pills, it becomes hard to find accurate information on their usage and side-effects.
If you have ever been at the receiving end of all this misinformation when you needed the emergency contraception, you know what we are talking about.
Here are 7 things you REALLY need to stop believing in about the morning-after-pill:
1. You need to take the pill the next morning after having sex
Although it is a common misconception that pills are supposed to be taken the morning after the deed, the truth is the sooner you take the emergency contraception, the sooner it starts working.
The usage time of the capsule has always been a huge confusion, hence it is really important to understand that after unprotected sex, the sooner you use any form of contraception you are planning to take, the better. It is because we don’t really understand how the body works or how much time window we have for the contraception to work.
2. You get protected against pregnancy as soon as you take the pill
If you have just begun using the pill, it is strongly advisable to use extra-protection while having sex. This is because sometimes it might take at least one menstrual cycle for the pills to kick in and start working.
Keep in mind that the pills actually prevent you from ovulating i.e. from releasing the egg, hence, you should always take the contraceptive as and when asked by the doctor.
3. Contraceptives may cause abortion
We need to understand here that any form of contraception is used to PREVENT pregnancy and not abortion. The way pills or any other form of emergency contraception work is by preventing the releasing of the egg from the ovum. There is a huge difference between the prevention of pregnancy and abortion. Medical abortion is actually expelling the pregnancy tissue or preventing the implantation of an embryo into the uterine lining.
4. Contraceptives will make you FEEL really nauseous
While some women may experience minor nausea after taking the contraceptive pill, it is not always the case. Emergency oral contraceptives, more often than not, do not cause terrible sickness. Even if you feel nauseous and dizzy, the majority of the symptoms go away on their own, without requiring any further treatment.
5. You cannot get pregnant if you are on birth control
We need to understand that it does not matter which birth control you are on, none of them are actually completely flawless. So you need to keep in mind as reassuring as these birth controls are, none of them are a 100 hundred per cent effective. (Yes, like Ross found out later, not even condoms.)
6. The after-pill makes you gain weight
A lot of women have this question about the contraceptive pill and its relation to weight gain. Although there are a lot of theories in play, recent researches have not found any link between the pill and weight gain. Ladies, you can take a sigh of relief.
7. Long time usage of the pill can result in infertility
Another common myth floating around regarding the morning, after-pill is its connection with infertility. However, no direct connection has been found to date between infertility and taking the pill. The women who face difficulty in getting pregnant after quitting the pill are those who usually had irregular periods even before the pill.
