If you have any medical questions or concerns, please talk to your healthcare provider. The articles on Health Guide are underpinned by peer-reviewed research and information drawn from medical societies and governmental agencies. However, they are not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Show
Find the right birth control for you Birth control based on your health, preferences, and goals—delivered to your door Learn moreWhy does birth control take time to work?Hormonal birth control methods work in a few different ways. One includes changing the mucus in your cervix so it better blocks sperm and tweaking your menstrual cycle. It takes several days for these hormones to start affecting your cycle. Menstruation begins when bleeding starts—the first day of your period. It lasts about a week, but your actual menstrual cycle continues until you begin bleeding again next month. In the middle of this cycle, there’s a window of fertility when you’re more likely to become pregnant if you have unprotected sex (Reed, 2018). If you start taking hormonal birth control well before this fertile window begins (when you’re still having menstrual bleeding or very soon after), you’re less likely to need to use backup contraception. How does birth control work?Most hormonal birth control methods work by making the mucus in your cervix thicker, so sperm has difficulty reaching eggs to fertilize them. Many methods also prevent the ovaries from releasing an egg each month, a process called ovulation. These changes aren’t immediate and can take up to a week to take effect (Bansode, 2020). For any non-barrier birth control, you’ll need to use a backup method to prevent pregnancy, like a condom, for up to seven days after starting birth control. How long does it take each type of birth control to work?Some types of birth control start working almost immediately, like the copper IUD. Others can take up to a week to take effect. If you have irregular periods, have recently been pregnant, or have switched from one birth control method to another, talk to a healthcare provider. These are a few factors that may affect how fast birth control starts workin (CDC, 2016). Apri birth control: uses, side effects, and moreBirth control Last updated: Jun 15, 2021 4 min read Birth control pillsThere are two types of birth control pills: progestin-only pills, which contain a synthetic version of the reproductive hormone progesterone, and pills with a combination of progestin and the hormone estrogen.
Long-acting reversible contraceptivesKnown as LARCs for short, long-acting reversible contraceptives are among the most effective forms of birth control. Because LARCs don’t require any daily action, like taking a pill, they can’t be beat in terms of ease of use.
Camila birth control uses, side effects, and moreBirth control Last updated: Apr 30, 2021 4 min read Other hormonal birth control options
What about birth control for other uses?Besides pregnancy prevention, birth control is also used to treat acne, heavy periods, and reproductive conditions like endometriosis and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) (Bansode, 2020). If you’re taking birth control for any other conditions, talk to a healthcare provider about when you can expect it to start working for those indications. How long does birth control stay in your system if you stop taking it?There may come a time when you want to go off birth control. The good news is that all the types of birth control we covered are reversible and won’t affect your ability to get pregnant in the future. When it stops working depends on the type of birth control you were using. Most people trying to get pregnant after stopping birth control can get pregnant within one year (Girum, 2018). The hormonal IUD is still being studied to see if it has an effect on fertility that lasts a year or more (Dinehart, 2019). Junel birth control: uses, side effects, and interactionsBirth control Last updated: Jul 13, 2021 6 min read Do I need to use a backup while taking birth control?Backup contraception means using a form of non-hormonal contraception like condoms even after starting hormonal birth control. This extra step can protect you from getting pregnant until hormonal birth control is fully effective. It’s one more thing to think about, but using a backup method has the added benefit of protecting against sexually transmitted infections (STIs), which hormonal birth control doesn’t (Workowski, 2015). Even after your birth control is fully effective, you may have to reach for backup. For example, if you’ve experienced vomiting or diarrhea, it can affect your body’s ability to absorb the medication (CDC, 2016). How long your birth control takes to work depends on what kind you’re using. Some hormonal birth control methods can take up to seven days to start working—like hormonal IUDs, combination pills, and the arm implant—depending on when in your cycle you start them. Others start working faster—within two days, like the copper IUD and progestin-only pills. |