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I started taking birth control for the first time the day my last period ended. My boyfriend and I have been having sex a lot this month, but a few times we didn't use a condom.
Even when we use a condom, we practice the withdrawal method, and I know for a fact that he never ejaculated inside me. Should I be worried about pregnancy since I've only been on the pill a few days? I've been feeing sick...but I just figured those were birth control side effects.
Posts: 2 | From: u.s. | Registered: Sep 2010
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You'll want to check the insert about your pill for information about how to take it for it to be the most effective. We always recommend being on the pill for a month before relying on it to be fully effective. Some pills will say that they are effective from day 1 if you began taking it on the first day of your period, or after 7 days if you began on another day. Since you did not start until the end of your period, you probably would not want to count on full efficacy until at least 7 days (or more) after starting the pill.
However, even if your pill wasn't fully effective, you were backing up with other methods. When you used a condom, as long as it did not break or otherwise fail and was used for all genital contact, it would have provided you with excellent protection. Withdrawal tends to be less effective, but would provide some protection as well. You can find the effectiveness ratings for the various combinations here: The Buddy System: Effectiveness Rates for Backing Up Your Birth Control With a Second Method
Since you have not been on the pill for a full cycle (and did not start on day 1), I'd probably look at the "typical" use rating for the pill.
If you want to take a pregnancy test, you'll want to wait until at least 10-14 days after any "risk". For the rest of this cycle, I'd really encourage you to backup with something like condoms until you've been correctly taking the pill for at least a month.
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