can someone please give me advice?

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-07-2004
can someone please give me advice?
5
Thu, 10-28-2004 - 2:33pm
i posted somewhere else on the board but i have a question. Me and my husband are not financially stable and i am trying to go to school. well my last period ended on sept. 18 and me and my dh had sex on oct. 4. He did the big no and the only thing that i knew was the emergency contraceptive pill. It says that if it already was fertilized that the pill would not effect it. I got the ecp at 50 something hours and your not suppose to take it past 72 hours. one of the side effects is bleeding and i did that the following week. My question is: I have been having preg symptoms for the past 2 weeks and I was wondering if that bleeding ment that my whole cycle is messed up and i have to wait till next month or if it is okay to test this month because i have no reg. period. Any advice would be greatly appreciated thanks.
iVillage Member
Registered: 06-07-2004
Thu, 10-28-2004 - 2:38pm
also i forgot to add in post that i only took the first dose of the pill
iVillage Member
Registered: 09-14-2004
Thu, 10-28-2004 - 2:45pm
If it was multiple dose, why didn`t you take all of them as prescribed, hon? To increase your chances of preventing implantation, they have to be taken as stated...

In my opinion, if you bled, you`re probably not pregnant - extended bleeding much beyond spotting generally isn`t a sign of pregnancy.

As for a pregnancy test, the absolute earliest that a positive may show up on a home test is two weeks from the day of possible fertilization. If you`re still concerned about pregnancy at that point, take a test and again a few weeks later.

Also, if you really, really don`t want a child at this point, you should look into getting a regular method of birth control - the pill, the patch, the ring, the shot. There are many, many options available to you so you don`t have scares like this in the future. There are Planned Parenthood clinics and Health Departments all over the country that operate on a sliding scale - the amount you pay is based on your income. If you are as finally strapped as you say, you could probably get a regular birth control method for free - and they are always handing out free condoms by the bag, too!

Hope this helps,

Lena


Edited 10/28/2004 2:48 pm ET ET by clannanceilidh

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-11-2004
Thu, 10-28-2004 - 3:24pm
It's already been three weeks since you had unprotected sex, so you can go ahead and test now to see if you're pregnant. It sounds like you've been relying on nothing more than the withdrawal method to avoid pregnancy. This doesn't work very well at all, and you really should look into something better. Unless you're already pregnant, then go to Planned Parenthood or try health services at your school, they should be able to help you for little or no cost.
iVillage Member
Registered: 12-30-2003
Thu, 10-28-2004 - 4:25pm
Hi christie0290, welcome back!

I agree with Lena, it would have been much better if you had taken the EC as directed. You need to be on an effective form of contraception. Your local public health or Planned Parenthood clinic can provide inexpensive and effective contraceptive pills and devices.

One of the possible side effects of EC is delaying your period so that might be what's going on. If the encounter you are concerned about occurred on 10/4 then it's not too soon to test. I hope you get the result you want. Let us know how you're doing, ok?

Hugs,

      Jill

    

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-29-2004
Thu, 10-28-2004 - 4:30pm
i think you should go to planned parenthood and get tested. they are total professionals and treat you with absolute respect. they offer all sorts of services and birth control options at the best price around (take it from a fellow student!)