Tal asked
I accidentally lost a week 1 pill. So I am short a pill for this month. Do I need to use back up or am I okay?
At a glance
- Continue taking your birth control as normal, do not skip any doses. Your cycle this month will be 27 days instead of 28 days (assuming you are using a 28 day product).
- As long as you have taken your birth control consistently you are still protected from unwanted pregnancy like normal.
Answer
Hi Tal and thanks for your great question.
I can certainly understand your anxiety when it comes to a mistake with any sort of birth control as slip ups can have pretty big consequences.
If you truly lost a week 1 tablet of your birth control, it shouldn’t be too big of a deal as long as you continue to take one tablet, every day, at around the same time. I think that is the easiest way to take care of your problem is just to continue to take one tablet daily until you are out. Your cycle this month would be 27 days as opposed to the normal 28 day course (assuming that you are on a traditional 28 day course of birth control). Take your placebo tablets like normal, and when those finish, start a new pack the next day, just like normal.
Since you never missed a day you should be at no higher risk of pregnancy. You might begin to menstruate a day earlier than normal, but things will return to normal shortly after. The most important thing is not to miss, or skip, a dose. Missing doses altogether is what increases the risk of pregnancy.
Feel free to write to us again in the future.
References
- 1. Recommended Actions After Late or Missed Combined Oral Contraceptives, CDC
