Is it possible to prevent getting pregnant after sex?

Have you ever had unprotected sex even though you weren't ready to get pregnant? Various situations and conditions can cause a woman to be "unprepared" for the risk of sexual activity. However, this does not mean that pregnancy cannot be prevented if you have had unprotected sex. Then, could there be a way to prevent pregnancy after intercourse?

Contraception to prevent pregnancy after sex

To prevent getting pregnant after sex, there are several contraceptive options that you can use. Here are some contraceptive options that are quite effective at preventing pregnancy after unprotected sex, including:

1. Emergency contraceptive pills

Have you heard of emergency contraception? This is one of the contraceptive options you use to prevent getting pregnant after sex. This emergency contraceptive is a pill that you should take as soon as possible after having sex with your partner.

The sooner you use emergency contraception, the more effective it will be in helping you prevent pregnancy after sex. These contraceptive pills can help you prevent pregnancy for up to 72 hours after unprotected sex.

However, you cannot use emergency contraception as the main method of contraception that you use every day. The reason is, as the name implies, this contraceptive is used for emergency conditions only. It's just that, you can no longer use it if you are already pregnant.

This emergency contraception can help you prevent pregnancy by preventing ovulation and fertilization or conception after you have intercourse. However, you need to pay attention to the side effects of emergency contraception, such as nausea, fatigue, headaches, to breast pain.

2. Ordinary birth control pills

Apparently, it's not just the emergency contraceptive pill that can help you prevent pregnancy after intercourse. Launching the Emergency Contraception Website managed by Princeton, the usual birth control pills that should be used for daily contraception can also help you prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex.

However, not all types of birth control pills function as emergency contraceptive pills. Therefore, you need to find out what types of birth control pills and from which brands can be used as emergency contraceptive pills. However, when you use regular birth control pills for pregnancy prevention after intercourse, the availability of birth control pills may not be sufficient for use as an everyday birth control pill.

This means you may have to use backup contraception such as condoms when you have sex with your partner again, until you have your period. Only after that, you can use birth control pills as a regular method of contraception withpackthe new one.

3. The copper IUD

Another form of contraception that you can use as a way to prevent pregnancy after intercourse is the copper IUD. This device that is inserted into the uterus can effectively prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex. It is not recommended that you install it yourself.

You need a doctor's help to insert it into the uterus through the vagina. It's just that, you have to do it immediately. This means that after you have sex, you should go to a hospital or obstetrician's office as soon as possible.

The reason is, this contraceptive method may only be effective if it is inserted into the uterus within five days of unprotected sex. The reason is, if you insert a copper IUD after five days, it is feared that this method will no longer be effective in preventing pregnancy after intercourse.

The copper IUD is a spiral contraceptive made of a T-shaped plastic material that is coated with copper on its body. This contraceptive method works by removing copper which can thicken cervical mucus. When cervical mucus thickens, sperm cells that enter the vagina will have difficulty swimming into the uterus.

That way, the sperm cell will have difficulty meeting the egg. This certainly helps you prevent fertilization, so that the chances of getting pregnant after sex are getting smaller.

Another thing that needs to be done to prevent getting pregnant after sex

In addition to efforts to prevent pregnancy after having sex above, there are several things you also need to do, for example:

1. Check for pregnancy

You may be doing your best by trying to prevent pregnancy after intercourse. However, you still have to be vigilant with pregnancy checks. You can do this about two weeks after having unprotected sex.

Before you do a pregnancy check at home or in the hospital, at least make sure that you don't have your period during that time. Make sure you don't do a pregnancy checkup too soon. The reason is, your body may "have not finished" building the hormone hCG, a hormone that shows signs during pregnancy checks.

2. Plan for contraception immediately

After successfully preventing your pregnancy from having unprotected sex, you may become even more cautious. This means that you may begin to think about whether you need protection at a later date. Especially if you feel it is possible to do the same thing again in the future.

You can start planning long-term contraceptive use, if you really don't want to get pregnant until the time you have specified. If so, instead of trying to prevent pregnancy after intercourse, you may want to start planning regular contraceptive use.

There are many contraceptive options that you can use, starting with the short term, such as condoms. However, there are also long-term contraceptive options such as birth control pills, hormonal IUDs, birth control injections, and various other contraceptive options.

If you want to use contraception, you can ask your doctor which type of contraception is most suitable for your health condition. Of course, you are advised to check your health condition, this is done to ensure that you are in good health and there are no certain health problems.

You should not use any method of contraception, especially long-term, without the supervision of a doctor. If you feel that it is not suitable for the contraception that you have used, you can also change the form of contraception to another method that may be more suitable for you.