Pill & being ill

Hi,

I was wondering what happens if you get sick and happen to be on the Pill, like you have a bad stomach bug and are sick, as that affects it and stops it working. But if you've had sex a few days before / the day before is that likely to effect it / become pregnant? because sperm live for up to a week and obviously, you can't predict the future and say "No, I can't because I'm getting flu on Friday..."? and thus when it stops working due to illness, wham you're pregnant? Forgive me if I appear a bit daft!

i learnt in biology that the pill is 99% effective, thus 1 in every 100 ppl taking it properly get pregnant!! slightly worrying

read the pamphlet that came with the pill for advice on what to do, and as somenoe else suggested ring NHS direct. I can't remember how long it takes for the pill to be absorbed into your bloodstream, a few hours. check that, and if you're sick after that time you should be ok.

i'm on yasmin, and i know my booklet advises that if you miss a pill for whatever reason in the first week after the break, and had sex without using barrier contraception in the week off, you should see a doctor and take emergency contraception, just in case you manage to ovulate in that time. if you miss it in the last week, run both packs together. at any time if you are more than 12 hours late or are sick before it is absorbed use contraception for 7 days.

remember the pill works in 3 ways - it prevents you ovulating; thins your womb lining so an egg can't stick there; and thickens the mucus around the cervix. if you miss one pill, it is very unlikely your body will "notice" the drop in hormones quick enough to ovulate, and even if it does, there are 2 other "back up" methods to prevent pregnancy. if you continue taking the pills normally and use a barrier method for 7 days you should be fine.

but check how long it takes for the pill to be absorbed and always go and see a doctor if you're worried

i learnt in biology that the pill is 99% effective, thus 1 in every 100 ppl taking it properly get pregnant!! slightly worrying

I learnt from Desperate Housewives that it was 99.9%...

could just be my bio teacher making a number up

mind you, as brilliant as desperate housewives is, is it really the most reliable source of info for this stuff...?

it also depends what type of pill it is, there is one without (or maybe with, I get confused) progesterone which makes it even less reliable, but there are less health risks...

Would it be OK to take another Pill from a new pack if you were ill a few hours after taking it and rendering it ineffective? I would abstain/use barriers etc after it but I was wondering if sperm that was still alive (from night before or something?) would take advantage of the drop in hormones. Seems that if it does happen seek emergency contraception??

i learnt in biology that the pill is 99% effective, thus 1 in every 100 ppl taking it properly get pregnant!! slightly worrying

As for vomitting, if it's less than three hours after taking your last pill, take another one straight away. If that one comes back up, you need to start thinking about using barrier methods for the next few days until 7 days after you're better.

I've just got this mental image of these sperm hiding now * lets hide here lads until the pills taken effect and then we'll make a run for it*
Sorry for lowering the tone.

But what about if you had sex in the morning and then were sick and couldnt keep pills down? there might be some sperm lurking about.

And again...

99% effective does not mean 1/100 people will get pregnant every time they have sex using this method. It means over a YEAR 1/100 women will get pregnant

That's quite a small number really, especially when you consider the actual figure is nearer about 99.8% with perfect use (so 2/1000 women per year).