Plan B: What It Does, What It Doesn’t, and What to Know Before Taking It
2 days ago
2 min read
If you’ve had unprotected intercourse or experienced contraceptive failure, you may have questions about the morning-after pill, commonly known as Plan B. There is a lot of information online about emergency contraception, pregnancy, and the abortion pill, and it can be difficult to understand how they differ.
Here are some important things to know about Plan B and what to consider if you’re concerned about a possible pregnancy.
What is Plan B?
The morning-after pill is a type of emergency contraceptive used after unprotected intercourse or contraceptive failure, such as a broken condom, to attempt to prevent pregnancy.
Plan B is different from the abortion pill and is not intended to end an existing pregnancy.
Plan B is not the abortion pill
The morning-after pill and the abortion pill are two different things. Emergency contraception is used after intercourse to attempt to prevent pregnancy.
Chemical abortion, sometimes called the abortion pill, uses different drugs to end an established pregnancy.
If you think you may already be pregnant, taking a pregnancy test can help you know what is happening before deciding what to do next.
Your period may be different afterward
After using emergency contraception, some people may notice changes to their next menstrual period. Your period may come earlier or later than expected, and you may notice changes in your flow.
A change in your period does not necessarily mean that you are pregnant. If your period is later than expected or you are experiencing signs that make you concerned about pregnancy, a pregnancy test can provide more information.
