With our busy daily lives, it’s common to forget to take birth control! The problem is when you take it to prevent pregnancy and are in a relationship with frequent sexual activity. Forgetting to take your birth control can cause a hormonal gap in your cycle. This opens up the chance for ovulation, which can result in a pregnancy.
Don’t worry, I’ll explain it more clearly! Constant and small doses of the medication prevent hormones from reaching the peak needed for ovulation to occur. Most birth control pills are hormone-based, whether natural or artificial. They can be used in different ways, and two of these methods are likely to be forgotten by women:
Methods of use
Oral: Birth control pills based on estrogen1 or progesterone and other combined substances.
Injectable: Hormonal injections2 that are released little by little in the body throughout the month or, in some cases, quarterly.
What happens if you forget the pill?
If you miss a day or forget for more than 12 hours, there may be a drop in the constant hormone levels from the birth control. This can lead to ovulation. Normally, the maximum time you can safely take your birth control without major issues is 12 hours. It is common to forget sometimes, but women should take the missed pill as soon as they remember.
What should I do if I forgot to take the pill?
Steps to follow if you forget a pill from a 21-pill pack:
Forgot your birth control at the start of the cycle: If you forget at the very beginning of the pack, there is a greater possibility of ovulation occurring during the cycle. Couples should take precautions and use other forms of birth control like condoms for the rest of the cycle.
Forgot your birth control in the middle of the cycle: The chance of ovulation here is lower. However, it still exists, about 10 days after the mistake in the pack.
Forgot your birth control at the end of the cycle: It is recommended to take the missing pill together with the last one taken without major problems. However, if your period does not come at the correct time, you should see your doctor.
Injectable birth control should be taken every 30 or 90 days, depending on the chosen method. The maximum delay is 3 days. After that period, effectiveness is not guaranteed: you need to take a pregnancy test before taking it, or you should wait until your next period and start again between day 1 and 3 of your cycle.
I forgot to take my injectable birth control, can I take it as soon as I remember?
Yes, you can! But it is important to remember there is a limit for how late you can take it. You should take it at most on the 14th day of the cycle. Considering the break, that’s a delay of about a week only. However, this shouldn’t become a habit. These are exceptional cases and should be clarified with a doctor. In these situations, always use condoms to prevent unwanted pregnancy during sex. Remember, if you take the injection on a different day (late), you should expect your period a few days later as well.
Morning-after pill and contraceptives
Using the morning-after pill is not necessary when you are using a regular contraceptive. Forgetting your birth control can, in fact, result in an unplanned ovulation, but the MAP should not be used as an emergency method. The morning-after pill is a hormone bomb and can overload the woman’s liver because all the hormone is processed there3.
Ovulation doesn’t happen instantly if you miss one pill from a birth control pack. Usually this effect takes about a week, or up to ten days. In this case, it’s better to abstain or use a barrier method to avoid an unwanted pregnancy.
Normally, the break from birth control is safe. There shouldn’t be ovulation during this time. However, if there is a missed dose right after the break, you need to be careful. Hormone levels can peak as mentioned earlier. It’s important to take birth control at the same time every day to maximize effectiveness.
If you’re the type who keeps forgetting your oral birth control, or you often miss your injection date, it’s better to consider another form of contraception. There are safe IUDs, implants, patches, and other ways to prevent pregnancy. Don’t forget to talk to your doctor about it!
Reader questions:
I forgot to take my birth control for 1 day and had sex the next morning or at night, can I get pregnant?
Unlikely! The fertile window can take a few days to occur. This would only be a concern if you are at the beginning of your pack, within the first 2 or 3 days.
I took my birth control and had diarrhea, can I get pregnant?
It depends. If you have diarrhea about five hours after taking the pill, it’s possible that the pill passed straight through your system without being absorbed. The more worrying problem is vomiting within about one hour after taking it. If in doubt, take another pill.
I forgot to take my birth control pill and had unprotected sex, and my period didn’t come during the break, what should I do?
You should check when you missed the pill. If more than 20 days have passed, you should take a pregnancy test and talk to a gynecologist.
I took my birth control and vomited after a while, am I at risk of pregnancy?
It depends on how long after taking the pill vomiting occurred. Normally, oral medications take about two to three hours to be absorbed. But to be safe, we say at least 4 hours. Therefore, if vomiting occurred within this time, the most recommended is to take a new pill to be sure. However, be aware that this will cause your pack to finish a day ahead of schedule. This will change the start of your next pack, which should also be started a day earlier. If you don’t take a new pill, the best recommendation is to use condoms to be safe!
I’m breastfeeding and forgot to take my birth control, am I at risk?
Breastfeeding is theoretically considered a natural contraceptive method as long as the baby feeds every 2 to 3 hours. However, because this schedule is rarely regular and longer intervals can occur, it is not a safe option if you don’t want to get pregnant. That’s why it’s recommended to take a birth control made for breastfeeding. If you forget a pill, the chance of pregnancy is the same as a woman who does not breastfeed. So, take the missed pill with your next pill or use a condom until the cycle ends to be sure.
I forgot to take my birth control for 2 days and had bleeding, is this normal?
This bleeding after forgetting a birth control pill is called breakthrough bleeding. This happens because hormone levels fluctuate due to missing your birth control. Some pills also have breakthrough bleeding as a common side effect. Usually, it happens during the first cycles using the method.
Important tip: To check if you are pregnant or not, it’s recommended to take a sensitive pregnancy test. More sensitive tests can detect pregnancy even before you miss your period. We recommend the Famivita pregnancy test.
See also: Injectable Birth Control – More Benefits or Drawbacks?
