Scarleteen

Hi there,

Some things I wanna clarify about condoms.

I use condoms religiously and correctly every time I have sex so I can safely say I am part of the "perfect use" group. However, what still bothers me is the 2% failure rate. However, reading your past articles and posts can I be certain that:

1. The 2% failure is if the condoms fail big time. Like. Break open or slip off the penis and not some sneaky failure like "microscopic holes" and "sperm seeping through them" etc?

2. So if that's true, does that mean if I ever get a failure after using condoms correctly, I can still prevent pregnancy by having my girlfriend take EC afterwards?

3. Online forums like yahoo answers have so many claims of people getting pregnant using condoms abd other BC methods perfectly and not having failures and it scares me. Are they just urban myths? Can a condom fail without any of us knowing?

Thank you very much

Hi gkc24,

The 2% failure rate is for use over a year's time, not each time a person uses a condom. So in a year's use there is a 2% chance of there being some type of failure that includes the condom tearing, slipping off, or it not being used at all. All of those things would be very obvious. Taking EC after condom failure does decrease the chance of pregnancy but, you should know, that is a decision for your girlfriend to make and not you. It is something you both can discuss, but since she is the one that is taking the medication and the one who can become pregnant, she can not me made to take it and is the one who decides.

It's best to stay away from sites like yahoo messenger where anyone can post and the information is not moderated. We can't speak to why people say what they say, but just because they say it does not make it true. You do not have to worrry about microscopic holes in condoms, that is a myth used to scare folks.

If you want more information on condoms you can check that out here: http://www.scarleteen.com/birth_control_bingo_condoms

And if needed, you can get condoms through our condom shop here: http://www.scarleteen.com/condom_shop

Thank you so much. I apologise if I worded it a bit too strongly. I respect my girlfriend very much and would not force her to do anything she is not comfortable with .

oh no problem, I figured you didn't mean anything by it but it is just important to note (and just something I'm admittedly extra about)! I'm glad the information was helpful let us know if you need anything else