Questionmy boyfriend and i had unprotected sex on Friday 7/13/07 and he ejaculated in me,i was on my period, and it looked like i was towards the end of my period.i was concerned because i was reading that women can get pregnant while having a period.Can i be pregnant? Is it too late if i take the "morning after"pill on monday?
AnswerDear Gracie,
OK, yes, it has happened that women have conceived after having unprotected sex during their period. BUT typically these are women with short cycles of about 24-25 days. Here is why:
We generally expect women to ovulate about 14 days before the beginning of the next period. The five days prior to, the day of, and the day after ovulation is the most high risk time for conception during your cycle. Now, if you have a woman who has a 24 day cycle and ovulates on CD10, she will be at risk for pregnancy for the 5 days leading up to that day. One or two of those days may still have been period days!
However, most women have 28 day cycles or longer. For those women, a period day is generally a safe day. Very, very rarely a woman has been known to ovulate twice in a cycle, which can really throw a wrench in the mix. This is why it is safest to simply always have protected sex if you don't want to conceive a pregnancy.
As for the "morning after" pill or Plan B emergency contraception, Plan B should be taken within 3 days (72 hours) of unprotected sex and can reduce the risk of pregnancy by up to 89%. But the sooner you take it the more effective it will be.
I hope this information has helped you and answered your question. I wish you well.
Brenda
