Levonelle Morning After Pill

As it is Christmas and everyone is in the festive spirit here is some advice before you all go and have one!!

Levonelle is best known for being the morning after pill. The morning after pill can be taken up to 72 after sex to protect against an unwanted pregnancy, should anything happen, such as a condom ripping, forgetting to the pill etc.

The morning can now be bought over the counter at your local pharmacy after much consultation and controversy, or you can simply go to your local family planning clinic or go and see your GP.

I have to admit that I have taken Levonelle a few years ago and I went straight down to my GP and yes I was deeply embarrassed to have to explain to him what had happened, especially when he is my mates Dad! Thank god for patient confidentiality. Thankfully my doctor was very sympathetic and although id been on the pill since I was 13 (for medical reasons) he explained to me what the morning after pill was.

He then asked me the following questions; I remember these questions because the redness of my cheeks could have been used as warning beacons:

1) When did the unprotective intercourse actually occur - this is to ensure you are within the 72 hour time limit and if you did have unprotected sex you will be given advice on protection and even some free condoms. Mine wasn’t actually unprotected, so I had to explain what happened.

2) When was your last period – this will help the doctor to ensure there is no chance you could already be pregnant. If he does think you are, he will ask your permission to do a pregnancy test (as a friend of mine recently found out – fortunately it was negative)

3) Your medical history. I wasn’t totally sure what this had to do with anything, but he told me it was to see if anyone in the family had any kind of disease such as heart disease, diabetes. This is to make sure you are not put at any further risk if you are to be prescribed Levonelle.

4) He may also ask what other medications you have taken recently. This is to make sure Levonelle doesn’t react with anything you may have taken.

My doctor then took my blood pressure, as there is a history of it in my family, and gave me the once over just to check that I was okay and he also told me to carry on taking my usual contraceptive pill as normal before explaining to me all about Levonelle and the side affects.

(“,) How does it work? (“,)

Levonelle works by stopping, or delaying the ovaries from releasing an egg, thus preventing an unwanted pregnancy. It also prevents sperm from fertilising any egg you may have already released and/ or stopping a fertilised egg from attaching itself to your womb lining.

Levonelle is 2 pills, which are to be taken 12 hours apart. It is crucially important that you take it 12 hours apart for it to work. The one word of advice I would give is – look at your watch when you take your first tablet and then make sure you take the second one exactly 12 hours later.

One note of advice – IT WILL NOT WORK IF YOU ARE ALREADY PREGNANT. So the sooner you get yourself to the pharmacy or to you GP the better.

(“,) Who shouldn’t take it (“,)

I did a little of research on this one, by looking on a website about Levonelle and found the following out;

· You are under 16 years old;
· It is more than 3 days (72 hours) since you had unprotected sex;
· Your period is late;
· You also had unprotected sex earlier on in your menstrual cycle (since your last period);
· You have severe liver disease;
· You are taking an interacting medicine, such as anti-epileptics or tuberculosis treatments (your pharmacist will be able to tell you if a medicine you are taking interacts);
· You are taking a herbal medicine such as St John’s Wort;
· You suffer from a disease of your bowel (gut) which causes malabsorption, such as Crohn’s disease; or
· You have experienced an allergic reaction to the progestogen-levonorgestrel (contained in some oral contraceptives).

If you have or have suffered any of the above, you should NOT take Levonelle.

(“,) How well does it work (“,)

As with all forms of contraception, none of them are 100% and accidents do happen.

Levonelle is said to be 95% effective when it is taken within 24 hours and the reliability diminishes as the time moves on so it is then 85% between 25-48 hours and only 58% if used between 49-72 hours. (Taken from an old Levonelle leaflet)

(“,) What are the side affects (“,)

Okay here we go: Feeling sick was the main side affect I was told about. Although I wasn’t actually sick, I was told that if I was I needed to seek medical advice as soon as possible because it obviously won’t work. I did feel a bit queasy after about 2 hours of taking one of the tablets, but as I wasn’t sick I didn’t need anymore help.

Changes to your periods can occur, for example, like me you may experience some irregular bleeding when your period isn’t due. I sought advice from my doctor who told me this was quite normal and if my period didn’t arrive I was to go back to him.

Other side affects are - tender breasts, headaches, tummy pain, diarrhoea, feel dizzy or feel tired after taking this medicine. These symptoms should disappear after a few days; if they are ongoing after this period of time then you are advised to seek medical attention.

(“,) Where can I get it? (“,)

Like any form of contraception, Levonelle is available free on prescription from your GP or Family planning clinic. It is also available over the counter at chemists for a fee of between £20 and £24.

**However if you are under 16 years of age you are not allowed to buy the morning after pill over the chemist counter.**

At the pharmacy they will, as some probing question's (my best friend works in one), like the ones I experienced at the doctors, this is to ensure that they are safe to give you the morning after pill. So if you don’t want to be stood in the middle of Boots answering questions about your sex life – go to your GP!

One final thing whilst I look up the help line number for Levonelle – Don’t be embarrassed to be caught out. It happens to most people. Remember – Levonelle should only be taken as an emergency contraception and not as a regular form of contraception.

Now if you have been in the same situation as me and where embarrassed, here are some little reminders before you hope into bed with someone Over Christmas, this is for both MEN and women;

1. COVER YOUR STUMP BEFORE U HUMP
2. BEFORE U ATTACK HER, WRAP YOUR WHACKER
3. DON'T BE SILLY, PROTECT YOUR WILLY
4. WHEN IN DOUBT, SHROUD YOUR SPOUT
5. DON'T BE A LONER, COVER YOUR BONER
6. YOU CANT GO WRONG, IF U SHIELD YOUR DONG
7. IF YOU'RE NOT GOIN TO SACK IT, GO HOME AND WHACK IT.
8. IF U THINK SHE'S SPUNKY, COVER YOUR MONKEY
9. IF U SLIP BETWEEN HER THIGHS, BE SURE TO CONDOMIZE
10. IT WILL BE SWEETER IF U WRAP YOUR PETER
11. SHE WONT GET SICK IF U WRAP YOUR DICK
12. IF U GO IN TO HEAT, PACKAGE YOUR MEAT
13. WHILE YR UNDRESSING VENUS, DRESS UP YOUR PENIS
14. WHEN U TAKE OFF HER PANTS AND BLOUSE, SLIP UP YOUR TROUSER MOUSE
15. ESPECIALLY IN DECEMBER, GIFT WRAP YOUR MEMBER
16. NEVER,NEVER DECK HER WITH AN UNWRAPPED PECKER
17. DONT BE A FOOL, VULCANIZE YOUR TOOL
18. THE RIGHT SELECTION WILL PROTECT YOUR ERECTION
19. WRAP IT IN FOIL BEFORE CHECKING HER OIL
20. A CRANK WITH ARMOR WILL NEVER HARM HER
21. NO GLOVE, NO LOVE!
22. If you cant be good, be careful, if you cant be careful buy a pram, if you cant afford a pram, name it Jesus, Mary did and she got away with it!!

(“,) Extra Information (“,)

Levonelle does have an emergency number if you are in need of some advice, call 08456 035 035 or go to http://www.fpa.org.uk for more help and advice.

Please ignore the rating below - I don’t think it is wise for me to go suggesting this to potential buyers! As for the side affects, I answered them on the basis of how I was affected.