Levonelle morning after pill query

[perplexedandbemused]

Not sure if this is the right thread for this...can anyone explain how a Levonelle morning after pill works please?

The pharmacist said it 'prevents ovulation', 'thins the lining of the womb making it inhospitable to an egg' and also does something to make it more difficult for sperm to travel up the cervix. So far I'm following. But then he said that if unprotected sex were to occur again in the same cycle the pill wouldn't protect from pregnancy. I had my toddler with me (not the best for concentration but zero other option) so the obvious follow up question has only just hit me.

I kind of get that some sperm might get through regardless, but if there's no egg, and/or the lining isn't hospitable to any eggs which may already be out there then why does it only protect you against the sex you had and not any future sex within the same cycle?

Not going to be putting this to the test fyi, I'm just looking to educate myself.

It depends where you’re at in your cycle. I took it after a broken condom whilst I was ovulating and it didn’t work - I got pregnant. I found out afterwards I should have been offered the coil as the pill was never going to work for me at that stage.

after ovulation you don’t really need it, as you say no egg available.

but prior to ovulation you DO need it, but it only has a short term effect. One pill can’t stop ovulation indefinitely, it’s basically a massive hormone dose which you metabolise and your body sorts itself out again within a couple of days.

bottom line is use contraception and the MAP is a back up in the event of failure only. And even then it’s only 75% effective.

Thanks for this. When the pharmacist said it prevented ovulation I thought it basically stopped the egg for that cycle, rather than delaying it which is suggested by it not being stopped indefinitely. I was about 3 days before ovulation, so fingers crossed. Feels like we just got our ducks in a row. Though if I do get pregnant it might finally get DH to book the vasectomy he's been talking about for at least 2 years.

I also took it mid cycle (after a contraception fail) and got pregnant. It was bang on day 14 for me so I guess it wasn't clear if I'd ovulated or not. Like the poster above I probably should have been offered the copper coil.