# Replacements for Plan B? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 20, 2013, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253 "2013-04-20T20:04:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2013, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/1 "2013-04-20T20:04:11Z")
I’m curious if anyone knows of any household replacements for plan B that can be taken after intercourse (say, the condom broke and you can’t access plan B for the next 2-3 days). Birth control pills aren’t an option at the moment. (Also, you guys can save the snark or the quips about stealth bragging. -.-) ---
**Author:** ![Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2013, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/2 "2013-04-20T20:30:07Z")
None. But Plan B it it’s cousins can be used up to 72 hours post coitus. ---
**Author:** ![Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2013, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/3 "2013-04-20T20:31:07Z")
Wait, I misspoke. If your partner is on an OCP, then it can be used. I assumed she wasn’t or this wouldn’t be an issue. And don’t worry about the stealth bragging accusations. I’d rather castigate you for relying on only condoms :p. Aaaand if you can find a doctor who inserts IUDs within a week, that’s also an option. And then you have excellent birth control for 5 years! ---
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2013, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/4 "2013-04-20T20:53:31Z")
> [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](#): > > Wait, I misspoke. If your partner is on an OCP, then it can be used. I assumed she wasn’t or this wouldn’t be an issue. Oral birth control? Well, she was taking it… And then she ran out, and was a problem getting new ones involving her doctor. She’s been off about 2 days longer than the normal pause for her period… I saw that in various places while googling around, but that was all we found, and it’s not really an option right now. > [@](#): > > Aaaand if you can find a doctor who inserts IUDs within a week, that’s also an option. And then you have excellent birth control for 5 years! That… probably isn’t an option. We’d have to see if her insurance covers it (german insurance is good, but maybe not that good), and if she _wants_ it, and of course if her mother wants in). Let’s just assume this isn’t possible. ---
**Author:** ![Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2013, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/5 "2013-04-20T21:14:24Z")
Unfortunately, those are really your only options. There are tons of urban legends out there (up to and including douching with bleach!), but none are true. Hormones, IUD, and luck are the only real emergency contraceptives. Right now, the latter isn’t _so_ bad, since the chance of pregnancy after a single episode is only about 1 in 20. I wish I could be of more help! ---
**Author:** ![Cub\_Mistress](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea666f/32.png) [@Cub\_Mistress](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cub_Mistress)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2013, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/6 "2013-04-21T13:54:26Z")
[This chart](http://ec.princeton.edu/questions/dose.html) (scroll down) may be what you are searching for. It list many brands of oral contraceptives and how many of each you need to take for emergency contraception. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2013, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/7 "2013-04-22T03:05:48Z")
Two days past the typical “period” week on hormonal birth control makes it incredibly unlikely that she would have ovulated, so the odds are in your favour, though of course there’s no guarantee. Even 72 hours post-coitus, go get Plan B and use it; it can still be effective, though much less than in the first 24 hours. ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2013, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/8 "2013-04-22T15:01:18Z")
I would call a medical professional, like, you know, a doctor or something, and ASK them what would be the best Plan B in the absence of Plan B™. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2013, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/9 "2013-04-22T15:54:40Z")
Since this is basically medical advice, let’s move it to IMHO. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![Blackberry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blackberry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackberry)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2013, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/10 "2013-04-22T16:04:41Z")
If there were safe and effective household items that could be used as post-coital contraception then, I mean…I shouldn’t even have to finish this sentence. ---
**Author:** ![Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2013, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/11 "2013-04-22T18:30:51Z")
> [@Dogzilla](#): > > I would call a medical professional, like, you know, a doctor or something, and ASK them what would be the best Plan B in the absence of Plan B™. I assumed his inability to access Plan B = inability to access a doctor. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2013, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/12 "2013-04-22T18:35:20Z")
At this point if she hasnt got her period and an at-home preg test is positive, the OPs lady friend _should_ see a doctor… in order to schedule a confirmatory pregnancy test and/or nonsurgical abortion. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2013, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/13 "2013-04-22T18:38:33Z")
> [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](#): > > I assumed his inability to access Plan B = inability to access a doctor. I Interpret it as “I don’t want to see a doctor because they will tell my parents.” (which itself may or may not be true). Either that or the op lives in a socially restrictive nation, and can look forward to being a daddy. ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2013, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/14 "2013-04-22T18:53:31Z")
> [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](#): > > I assumed his inability to access Plan B = inability to access a doctor. Maybe, but a phone call to Planned Parenthood is free and can be anonymous. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2013, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/15 "2013-04-22T19:05:03Z")
He mentions “German insurance” in post #4 so any US-centric assumptions/suggestions may not be useful. ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/16 "2013-04-24T14:26:02Z")
Could be a German national visiting or living here in the US; he only has German insurance and does not know how to access healthcare in the US with it. ---
**Author:** ![Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/17 "2013-04-24T16:35:37Z")
I want an update! ---
**Author:** ![Girl\_From\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3da27b/32.png) [@Girl\_From\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Girl_From_Mars)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/18 "2013-04-24T23:57:06Z")
I’m pretty sure he’s mentioned in the past that he lives in Germany, and has little access to transport. But I suspect it’s the young girlfriend and the disapproving mother which is more of a factor here the reluctance to see a doctor. Put it this way, she’ll disapprove far more if her daughter ends up pregnant, so do what you can to deal with this. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2013, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/19 "2013-04-25T00:22:45Z")
In case you hadn’t figured it out already, for the love of all that’s good, do **not** resort to some kind of household remedy. Get condoms, get female condoms, get her a sponge or some spermicide or something, but do not half-ass this just because she’s having problems getting a prescription refilled. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2013, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253/20 "2013-04-25T00:47:23Z")
RU-486 is good for the first 7 weeks of pregnancy. Plan B is 89% effective within 72 hours, but it supposedly works for 120 hours after intercourse. I have no idea how effective they are after 5 days, but they still work. [http://ec.princeton.edu/questions/ectime.html](http://ec.princeton.edu/questions/ectime.html) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacements-for-plan-b/656253.md?page=2)