Yes, you could still become pregnant. To be protected from the first day of taking contraceptive pills, you need to start taking the pills within the first five days of your menstrual cycle. The first day of your menstrual cycle is the first day of your period. This method works best if you have at least a 24 day cycle.
If you start on any other day, you may not be fully protected for another week, if you take a combined oral contraceptive pill, so you would need to use alternative methods of contraception during this time. If you started the progestogen only pill outside the first 5 days of your menstrual cycle, you would not be protected from pregnancy for 2 days after taking your first pill, so you should abstain from sex or use alternative methods i.e. condoms for the first couple of days.
What can I take?
If you have unprotected sex, you should use emergency contraception to protect against pregnancy. The morning after pill, ellaOne is effective up to 5 days after having unprotected sex, although it is more effective the earlier your take it. Levonelle, is another type of morning after pill, but is only effective within 3 days of unprotected sex. Alternatively, you could get the emergency IUD (copper IUD) fitted within 5 days of unprotected sex. The emergency IUD is the most effective method to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex.
More information
Take a look at our articles about how effective the moning after pill is and how it works. These will give you background information about the morning after pill and what you can expect. You can also read about it’s side effects, to be prepared for you might notice after taking the morning after pill.
Sources
References
Further reading on this topic from official health guidance and published research.
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