A Closer Look at Plan B
Plan B is an at-home over-the-counter form of emergency contraception. It is sold without a prescription in drug stores and online. This is a levonorgestrel 1.5 mg hormonal morning-after pill.
It is not intended to be used as birth control, rather it is a backup method should your birth control fail. To be effective it needs to be taken within a 72-hour time window following unprotected or failed birth control sex. The sooner it is taken, the better and more effective it is.
Effectiveness: 84% (far less than proactive pregnancy prevention).
Warning: If you weigh over 155 lbs. it becomes less effective and possibly won’t work at all depending on how far over that weight “suggestion” you are.
It does not say this anywhere on the box! The average woman in the USA in 2023 is 170.8 lbs. This means that for the average woman here in the United States of America Plan B would not be ideal or recommended. Doubling the dose is not any more effective, nor is it recommended.
It is important to understand that Plan B is not chemically the same as the abortion pill RU486. Plan B is not effective after pregnancy has occurred and cannot interrupt it. Plan B stops the fertilization and implantation of the egg before pregnancy occurs after sexual contact.
Side effects of the morning-after pill, which typically lasts only a few days, may include:
- Nausea or vomiting
- Dizziness
- Fatigue
- Headache
- Breast tenderness
- Bleeding between periods
- Heavier periods.
Other health problems reported by Levonogestrel users in a study of 16000 women included skin issues, headache, upper limb neuropathies, dizziness, nervousness, malaise, minor visual disturbances, respiratory issues, arthropathies, weight change, anxiety, and non-clinical depressed mood.
It also may be rendered less effective if you take:
- St. John’s Wort (herb)
- Certain HIV medications
- Anti-seizure medications
- Antifungals
- Antibiotics
Please speak with a pharmacist if you take any of the items listed above.
If you take Plan B – follow up by taking a pregnancy test a few days later to be sure that it worked.
The best choice, of course, is to have a birth control plan in place before sexual encounters ever happen. Stay safe, Ladies.