If you are 15 minutes late in taking your pill, you may experience break-through bleeding. If you are 3 hours late, you need to use a back-up method of birth control for two days after taking that missed pill.
But you have a 3 hour window, meaning it's only working less well if you take it more than 3 hours late. If this happens, use a backup method of birth control, like a condom, for the next 2 days.
Yes! It is ok to take your birth control early, but aim to not take it late. Taking your birth control late can decrease its effectiveness.
A pill is late when you have forgotten to take it at the usual time. A pill has been missed when it is more than 24 hours since the time you should have taken it.
You miss a pill—or take it too late
If you're on the combined pill, taking a pill late—by a few hours or even by a day— isn't quite such a big deal. As long as you take your missed one right away, your risk of pregnancy is still low. Also, you don't need to use a backup method of birth control, such as condoms.
If you're taking a combined-hormone pill, which contains estrogen and progestin, you're protected against pregnancy as long as you take your pill each day. If you're taking progestin-only pills, the pill may be less effective if you take it more than three hours later than usual.
As long as you take 1 pill every day, you'll be protected from pregnancy. You don't have to take your combination pill at the exact same time every day. But taking it at the same time is a good idea because it helps keep you in the habit of remembering your pill.
Take the late or missed pill as soon as possible. Continue taking the remaining pills at the usual time (even if it means taking two pills on the same day). No additional contraceptive protection needed.
What you should do: take a pill as soon as you remember – only take 1, even if you've missed more than 1 pill. take the next pill at the usual time – this may mean taking 2 pills on the same day (1 when you remember and 1 at the usual time), this is not harmful.
If you're taking a combination pill — which contains the hormones estrogen and progestin — you're protected against pregnancy as long as you take your pill each day. It doesn't matter what time you take it (although taking it at the same time every day can help you remember your pill).
You have a two-to-three-hour window for taking your birth control pill without risking it being less effective. If you take it an hour earlier or an hour later than usual, it should still provide protection.
It is safe to change the time you take your birth control pill without risking pregnancy. If you are on a combination pill, the easiest way to adjust the time you take it is between packs. If you are on a progestin-only pill, you should adjust the time by two-hour increments each day.
If you miss one pill, it's ok to take two pills the following day–ovulation is not likely to happen that quickly. But if you miss two or more days of pills, it will take a week for the pill to get your hormones back into a steady state.
First, the short answer: If you miss a pill, you should take the pill you missed as soon as you can. If you take the pill less than 24 hours after you were supposed to and it's not the first week of a new pack, you don't need a back-up method—just take the pill you missed and relax.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the pill is 99.7% effective with perfect use. This means that fewer than 1 in 100 people who take the pill may become pregnant in 1 year.
You need to take the pill at around the same time every day. You could get pregnant if you do not do this, or if you miss a pill, or vomit or have severe diarrhoea. Some medicines may make the pill less effective.
When you use the birth control pill correctly, it gives you really great protection against pregnancy — even if semen (cum) gets into the vagina. If you use it perfectly, the pill is 99% effective.
Most blood tests will not show if you are taking the contraceptive pill. The contraceptive pill contains hormones which prevent you from getting pregnant. If you are taking the combined pill the hormones it contains are oestrogen and progesterone. If you are taking the mini pill, it contains only progesterone.
How effective is the pull-out method? The pull-out method is about 80% effective. About one in five people who rely on the pull-out method for birth control become pregnant.
Most oral contraceptive pills maintain their full effect for at least 24 hours, and changing the timing by one hour one way or another won't make a difference in effectiveness. The most important reason to take the pill at the same time every day is to make it part of your routine and not skip any days.
What is the best time of day to take your pill? Although you can take birth control at any time of day, it is best not to take it on an empty stomach. Dr. Yen recommends taking it before you go to bed or around dinner time (assuming that is when you have your largest meal) in order to avoid nausea.
For most pills, the change causes no problems except for possible breakthrough bleeding. So keep taking the pills but check in with your health care provider to make sure.
At a glance: the combined pill
You need to take the pill every day for 21 days, then stop for 7 days, and during this week you have a period-type bleed. You'll still be protected against pregnancy during these 7 days. You start taking the pill again after 7 days.
It's very important that you take your progestin-only pills at the exact same time every day. If you don't take them at the same time each day, your risk of pregnancy increases.