vaginapagina | [Anonymous Post] Should I be taking EC? Am I abusing EC?

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[Anonymous Post] Should I be taking EC? Am I abusing EC?

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What constitutes the abuse of emergency contraception?

The reason I ask this is because I am currently not on bc. I have not had unprotected sex either. However, my SO frequently has "wet dreams" and tends to ejaculate on me at night. I'm very paranoid about becoming pregnant and I have taken emergency contraception twice (in one month) as a result of waking up wet down there from one of his nocturnal emissions. Should I be taking emergency contraception for this at all?

I am planning to start bc this soon, but in the meantime, what should I do? I know this is such an odd question!

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It's highly, HIGHLY unlikely that you'll get pregnant this way. Sperm just doesn't survive outside the human body for very long, so unless his penis is actually inside your vagina when he has these wet dreams you're probably taking the EC unnecessarily. I wouldn't say you're abusing it, however, as it's not your only/intentional form of birth control. Sleeping with underwear or pants on is probably a cheaper way to reassure yourself you aren't going to get pregnant, though!

I'm pretty sure you're mostly going to be dealing with a messed up menstrual cycle and an irregular period. Not sure for how long it would be until it resets itself...

I was going to suggest that you seek out bc but I see you already mentioned that :)

I don't know about abusing EC but for future nights, I'd recommend you both wearing underwear AND pajama pants to bed just so there's more layers between the both of you. Also, maybe your boyfriend could wear something like a pad in the front of his underwear at night to help absorb the ejaculate.

*laughs* I'm sorry, I know it wasn't supposed to be funny, but I don't know a single man in the WORLD who would wear a pad to bed. None.

Yea, I figured it was worth a shot. It sounds better than wearing Depends though.

It's true - it does sound better than that.

I'd actually question why this is happening every night. It's not really normal. If the guy's getting milked every day, this shouldn't really be happening. I don't know that it's something WRONG with him - or if he's actually JACKING OFF on her at night (I've heard cases of guys jacking off into things around the house - blankets, pillows, sweaters, etc, just to see the girl's reaction to it later, and her reaction was sort of his fetish). Sorry - my mind just went there.

I am kind of concerned about if he's doing this consciously, too. Mainly because of the pregnancy issue and because it's causing you (the OP) mental distress and physical stress from the EC.

I would recommend him seeing a doctor though, too. Just because I'm assuming the best of him and I'm worried there is something physically wrong with him. I don't know if frequent night emissions have the same risk as parapism(sp?) but it definitely wouldn't hurt to have him checked out.

Yeah - agreed. I was going to mention that taking the EC all the time probably isn't great (but I really don't know if it is or isn't).

Having frequent night ejaculations is not itself going to pose a risk to his health, no. Priapism is dangerous because it can lead to clotting and, in a worst-case scenario, gangrene. By contast, virtually all adult males have several erections a night during sleep; and while noctural emissions are most common from teenagerhood through the mid-20s, it is normal for some males through adulthood, and no harm has ever been linked to it (other than, Wikipedia points out, the inconvenience of cleaning up semen).

That said, more frequent noctural emissions can be linked to testosterone usage -- I wonder if the OP's partner is using any sort of testosterone supplement, or has an imbalance on that end.

this is what i was thinking. but who knows, anything could be possible, i'm sure. :)

Ok well at least I'm not the only one thinking it.

That was actually my first reaction, too. I've been with a number of guys and this has never, ever come close to happening.

I actually had the same thought as you, and I really hope this is not the case. I've slept with quite a few guys who developed erections during the night, but never did they actually ejaculate. I am well aware that nocturnal emissions do occur, and this guy could still be young, but perhaps the OP should talk to him about this.

"If the guy's getting milked every day, this shouldn't really be happening."

I don't know that there's any reason to think that he IS ejaculating during the day though.

i second the idea of you just wearing more layers, i would go with undies and shorts (i haaaate sleeping in anything more than undies, so pants would be out of the question for me).

OP, in the meantime, I think that taking EC only when the ejaculate is actually on your vulva would be a very conservative way to go. The truth is that you probably don't even need it then. You DEFINITELY don't need it if he's ejaculating elsewhere.

Or yeah, make him wear pants. Its hard on your body to be taking EC very often...he should be shouldering some of the burden here!

I'd recommend that you STOP taking EC without a reasonable cause. It really isn't good for your body.

Your response seems a little less than helpful given what the OP is asking. She wants to know whether her usage *is* reasonable, first of all. She also seems to acknowledge that frequent EC use is less than optimal, but wants to know a) what her pregnancy risk is given the situation, b) what she can do about that risk until she gets on regular HBC (which is notes that she intends to do).

I can see your point. However, I think using it that frequently is a serious issue, as in seriously horrible for your body. It doesn't seem as though she understands that or she probly wouldn't be doing it.

I also think I commented a bit up the page as to what I thought her actual chances of pregnancy are (0%) so I didn't repeat.

I really agree with the posters that said she should possibly seek mental health help about her sex related anxiety. It can't feel nice to be that worried/concerned/freaked out all the the time.

However, I think using it that frequently is a serious issue, as in seriously horrible for your body.

Can you provide any authoritative medical sources to support this? Princeton University's (http://ec.princeton.edu/questions/ecsafe.htm) EC page says, "Emergency contraceptive pills ("morning after pills") have no long term or serious side effects, although you might experience some minor side effects.... The only time emergency contraception is “contraindicated” – meaning you should not use it – is when you know you are pregnant."

Using EC more than once isn't as effective as using a different regular contraceptive method. But in terms of safety (http://ec.princeton.edu/questions/ecrepeated.html), "There are no safety concerns about using emergency contraceptive pills (also known as "morning after pills" or "day after pills") more than once."

If you have sources showing that using Plan B frequently is "seriously horrible for your body," I'd be interested in seeing them.

You think that someone should be taking EC frequently for a situation where there is no risk? I'd love to see a survey that encourages people to take EC for their health.

It's not about personal opinions.

I did provide you with authoritative sources stating that taking EC repeatedly is not a safety issue. Do you or do you not have sources showing the opposite?

You didn't demonstrate that EC poses no risk.

No risk? Nothing comes with no risk, not taking an ibuprofen, not drinking a glass of water from my kitchen sink. However, here's yet another source (http://www.managingcontraception.com/index.php?go=choices&cpage=13), this time from Managing Contraception, that says, "ECPs should not be used as your regular contraceptive. However, if you do use ECPs several times, they are not dangerous." Additionally, one from the Guttmacher Institute (http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/tgr/05/5/gr050510.html): "Emergency contraception poses no serious risks. It is nontoxic; there is no danger from overdose or potential for addiction; and dosage is the same for all women."

I've asked you for sources a couple of times, and I've looked on my own for support for the idea that emergency contraceptive pills cause harm to the body. In the absence of finding credible medical sources that back up this claim, I'm going to have to conclude that it's not one in line with the facts about EC.

Whatever, then take EC the first Sunday of every month. Since it poses no risk at all, why not? Just arbitrarily pump a ton of hormones into your body.

No one is suggesting that EC should be taken regularly for no reason, simply that there is no *serious risk* to taking it several times. [Bad username or site: @ livejournal.com] is merely demonstrating that your statement that EC is "seriously horrible for your body" is inaccurate.

If you really want to argue this, it would behoove you to provide some sources. Otherwise, your insistence on arguing this point seems meaningless, inaccurate, and not particularly useful to the OP.

Alright, I'll get back to you in 24 hours or so when I have time (which I'll take out of my real life) to provide you with some resources.

Being as there is a huge lobby against the negative effects of hormonal BC, which isn't even taken in concentrated doses, I don't think it'll be that difficult.

If you're really trying to tell people that abusing EC isn't dangerous you need to get a clue.

It's probably not ideal - but there is no evidence that it's "seriously horrible for your body". The idea is, yes, EC is intended for emergencies and not for frequent use. It's not as effective as HBC and it is a higher, though not dangerously high, dosage of hormones. But there is no need to be alarmist about using EC multiple times, because there is no enormous safety risk.

Just so you know, we have a wiki on this subject over at vaginapagina.com, and it's here:

http://www.vaginapagina.com/index.php?title=Emergency_Contraception_FAQ

I don't think that it answers your question specifically, but it might be worthwhile for you to read through it just for more information. :)

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[Anonymous Post] Should I be taking EC? Am I abusing EC?

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