Frequently Asked Questions About Pregnancy

You do need to have the injection once every month or every three months, depending on the type of injection you have. The amount of hormone which is injected to prevent unintended pregnancy will only last around 4-12 weeks depending on the type, so if you miss an injection you will not be protected against pregnancy.

The patch is designed to adhere to the skin for a week, but if it does become detached you need to replace it as soon as possible as it will become ineffective as birth control if more than 24 hours pass. If more than 24 hours have passed between the patch falling off and it is replaced, then additional use of a backup method of contraception, such as condoms, will be required for one week.

All people experience orgasms in different ways, and they can feel different at different times. So there’s no reason to feel freaked out about asking if your partner had an orgasm 💦💦— asking shows that you care about making your partner feel good, which is super important when it comes to having good sex. Communicating about sex 🗣 — before, during, and after — helps both of you understand what the other one likes and doesn’t like, which can make sex better and strengthen your relationship💏.

Women who take ECPs should understand that they could become pregnant the next time they have sex unless they begin to use another method of contraception at once. Because ECPs delay ovulation in some women, they may be most fertile soon after taking ECPs. If she wants ongoing protection from pregnancy, she must start using another contraceptive method at once.

No. Emergency contraceptives (morning after pill) do not work if a woman is already pregnant. When taken before a woman has ovulated, emergency pills prevent the release of an egg from the ovary or delay its release by 5 to 7 days. By then, any sperm in the woman’s reproductive tract will have died, since sperm can survive there for only about 6 days.

Yes. However, the couples must be highly motivated, well-trained in their method, and committed to avoiding unprotected sex during the fertile time.

For many couples, these methods provide reliable information about the fertile days. If the couple has vaginal sex or does not use condoms, a cervical cap or a diaphragm during the woman’s fertile time, fertility awareness methods can be effective if desiring to get pregnant.

As women and their cycles are different, ovulation varies depending on the length of your cycle, which can range from 21 days up to 35 days.

Let’s have a look at two examples:

Ovulation happens about 14 days before your menstruation starts. That means: if your average menstrual cycle for example is 28 days, you ovulate around day 14, and your most fertile days are days 12, 13 and 14. If your average menstrual cycle is 35 days ovulation happens around day 21 and your most fertile days are days 19, 20 and 21. How to count your cycle? The first day of your menstruation is the beginning of a new cycle, hence day 1.

During monthly bleeding the chances of pregnancy are low but not zero. Bleeding itself does not prevent pregnancy, and it does not promote pregnancy, either. In the first several days of monthly bleeding, the chances of pregnancy are lowest. As the days pass, the chances of pregnancy increase, whether or not she is still bleeding. The risk of pregnancy rises until ovulation. The day after ovulation the chances of pregnancy begin to drop steadily. Some fertility awareness methods that depend on cervical secretions advise avoiding unprotected sex during monthly bleeding because cervical secretions cannot be detected during bleeding and there is a small risk of ovulation at this time.

No, not all, however it is far better to bathe and make sure that anything with ejaculate on it does not get near the vagina within one to six hours, their known lifespan outside the body.

Since a woman is most fertile in the few days prior to or after ovulation, it is never suggested that she have sexual intercourse during that time if she does not wish to get pregnant. Even the most foolproof methods of contraception do have a minuscule failure rate and as the withdrawal method aka “pulling out” or coitus interruptus is only 78% successful, it would be best to avoid having sexual relations during this time.

Tubal ligation is very effective at preventing pregnancy and is intended to be permanent. It is not 100% effective, however. Women who have been sterilised have a slight risk of becoming pregnant: About 5 of every 1,000 women become pregnant within a year after the procedure. The small risk of pregnancy remains beyond the first year and until the woman reaches menopause.

Periods and fertility may take up to a year to return after stopping injections, depending on the type of injectable, and this may vary from woman to woman.

No. Emergency contraceptives (morning after pill) do not work if a woman is already pregnant. When taken before a woman has ovulated, emergency pills prevent the release of an egg from the ovary or delay its release by 5 to 7 days. By then, any sperm in the woman’s reproductive tract will have died, since sperm can survive there for only about 6 days.

You can use the female condom when you are pregnant since the condom doesn’t move beyond the cervix. You can also use a female condom after recently giving birth.

Sterilisation is intended to be permanent. People who may want more children should choose a different contraceptive method. Surgery to reverse sterilisation is possible for only some women—those who have enough fallopian tubes left. Even among these women, reversal often does not lead to pregnancy. The procedure is difficult and expensive, and healthcare providers who can perform such surgery are hard to find. When pregnancy does occur after reversal, the risk that the pregnancy will be ectopic is greater than usual. Thus, sterilisation should be considered irreversible.