A Guide on How to Take Contraceptive Pills?

Contraceptive pills for women are one of the most reliable and best methods of birth control. Even if you are not on the pill and are using other forms of contraception, you can also use the emergency contraceptive pill if you have an incident where you think you may have had unprotected sex. Emergency contraception is available from many high street chemists like Boots or you can contact Pearl Chemist Group for information about our emergency contraception service.

The combined oral contraceptive pill is often just called ‘the pill’. It contains an artificial version of the female hormones oestrogen and progesterone which are also naturally produced in the ovaries.

The usual way to take the pill is to take one tablet every day for 21 days then stop for 7 days during which time you will bleed which constitutes your period. After 7 days, you resume the pill again and repeat the cycle every month. Each packet has 21 tablets which are stored by day so they are easy to take as you simply follow the days around until the packet is finished. It is important to take the pill at roundabout the same time every day, most women do this first thing in the morning or last thing at night. If you forget then you could have a gap of almost 24 hours before you take the next one and this can alter the pills’ effectiveness.

Some pills are described as phasic 21- day pills and each packet will contain sections of different coloured pills which need to be taken in a particular order. There are other pills which are taken continuously for 28 days. The way the pills are taken depends on their hormone content and which pill your GP prescribes for you. The combined pill is not recommended for women over 35 who smoke and for some women with certain medical conditions. The pill also does not protect against STIs – Sexually Transmitted Diseases - so it is also necessary to use condoms.

The pill is without a doubt one of the best birth control methods with an effectiveness and protection rate of 99% if it is taken properly. If you are looking for the emergency contraceptive pill then visit PCG’s emergency contraception service, our website explains more https://www.pearlchemistgroup.co.uk/