Should I Take Plan B?

[JuliaGallo]

Hi! I really need to know this as fast as possible, please.
So, I was having sex with my boyfriend but we weren’t using a condom (I’m on the pill and we always use one but had recently ran out) at one point he took out his penis and we noticed that there was something white on it that could either be my cum or his, he did say he hadn’t finished yet but we stopped just in case.
Later on (about seven hours) I got home and peed (I totally forgot to pee after sex and this was the first time that I did after). It felt like a burning sensation and blood came out with the urine.
My question is, is this a UTI or is this bleeding a sign that the pill somehow lost its effect (even though I took it perfectly)? Should I take plan B (I still have about 10 hours to do so)?

[Mirchi K]

Hey JuliaGallo,

Thanks so much for reaching out! I'm sure it's not easy to be in a time-sensitive situation like this.

If you're taking the pill correctly (on time, at the same time everyday), then Plan B will not do anything that your pill already doesn't do more effectively, so you don't need to take it. Is there any chance you may have forgotten or missed a pill recently?

It was definitely a good decision to stop just in case when you saw the white substance. One of the reasons people recommend using condoms and not relying on the pull-out method is because there's a substance called precum or pre-ejaculate that penises can create during sexual arousal (while erect, before the orgasm) which can contain trace amounts of sperm. Condoms can protect you from that!

Even when you're on the pill, sex without a condom can be risky from an STI-transmission perspective. You may want to consider using a condom in order to prevent STI transmission even when you're in a relationship. If that's something you want, how do you feel about having a conversation with your boyfriend about it?

I know it can be awkward to step out while you're starting to have sex and you realize you've run out of condoms, but it's totally okay to stop and quickly run out and go buy one from the nearest corner store!

Hope this helps!

[JuliaGallo]

Thank you so much for the response!
I’m really 100% sure I’ve taken the pill correctly, so the bleeding most probably could be from a UTI? Or can the pill still suddenly become less effective and make me bleed?

[Sam W]

We can't say for certain what the bleeding is from, though if you noticed a burning sensation when you pee and you have unexplained bleeding, that's something to see a healthcare provider about, since those two things combined can indicate an infection of some kind. Do you know how to access that kind of care?

As long as you've been taking your pills according to the directions and have not taken anything that could decrease it's effectiveness (you can read which things do an do not do that here: Something You Can Worry About Less: Interference and Hormonal Birth Control), there's no reason to assume your pill just suddenly became less effective.