Can Rubbing Cause Pregnancy?

[AB79]

My BF has rubbed his penis against my vagina several times before and I never thought of it causing pregnancy. I had my period last month so I know I was fine then, but I recently heard that precum can cause pregnancy. We have never actually had sex, and he never ejaculates on me, it's only ever rubbing in my area. I am on the pill and I was just wondering what the likelihood of me being pregnant is, and what I can do right now to stop stressing about it. The last time we did this was Tuesday Afternoon, and today is Thursday.

[Amanda]

Hi AB79,

Since you are on the pill, and assuming you use it correctly by taking it every day, you are protected from pregnancy, even if you were to engage in unprotected vaginal intercourse. Here's an article that will help you assess risk for different activities: Can I Get Pregnant, or Get or Pass On an STI From That? For a pregnancy risk to be present, there must be a direct exchange of fluids, and almost always actual semen needs to be involved. Pre-cum/pre-ejaculate all on its own doesn't contain any sperm, and may contain only a very small amount if someone with a penis has ejaculated recently, or hasn't peed since they last ejaculated. If you want to be extra-careful, be sure your partner has peed recently before any genital contact. Also, it's always a good idea to use barriers like condoms and dental dams, because even though precum doesn't present much of a pregnancy risk, it and other sexual fluids do pose an STI risk.

[Amanda]

If you find that you are still stressed and worried about pregnancy after reading my response, check out this thread: Pregnancy Scare? Start Here