Beat the System – Plan B on a Budget

Written by Jenna Lee Dillon on October 30, 2012

“There is a certain formula of birth control that you can use as a morning after pill…you know, if the condom breaks or you forget a pill,” she practically whispered to me.

It was 2003, and my college roommate’s father – a pharmacist – had told her a special combination of common birth control pills would effectively prevent pregnancy just like emergency contraceptive pills (ECP).

At the time, emergency contraceptives were available for roughly $60 a pop to adults by prescription – meaning only those who had an up-to-date annual exam from a doctor willing to write the prescription could get them. She told me the formula was common pharmacist knowledge, but ECP manufacturers obviously discouraged the spread of such information.  The pharmacist known for teaching women of any age how to obtain the effects of an ECP with less expensive birth control would likely be…unpopular.

Indeed, the idea of skirting that economical barrier seemed almost magical to me. So magical that I thought it too good to be true, and I never pressed her for the “secret formula.”

In the years since, access to ECP has changed dramatically and emergency contraceptives are now available over the counter to anyone over the age of 17. Brand name “Plan B” has become synonymous with ECP and the “morning after pill” is common jargon. From politicians to teenagers, debates to commercials, everybody is talking about emergency contraception and nobody is whispering anymore.

But with all this discussion, what surprises me most is how few people still know that there are cheaper alternatives to buying designated Plan B One-Step, ella, Next Choice or other ECP.

The Secret Formula

So, you want the secret formula for using inexpensive birth control as a morning after pill? Ask and you shall receive! The formula for each brand is listed below, but first read about why only certain birth control can be used as emergency contraception.

All hormonal birth control methods contain progestin (of which there are many forms) and most contain estrogen as well. There are a myriad of combinations of these female hormones comprising hormonal birth control, but the most frequently prescribed of them all contain either the progestin levonorgestrel or norgestrel. *Cue the applause*

These are second generation progestins, meaning they’re not the first progestins ever used in birth control but they’ve been around a lot longer than the fourth-generation progestins recently linked to blood clots and other serious health risks.

Levonorgestrel is a component of most ECP, including Plan B One-Step and Next Choice (ella’s active ingredient is ulipristal acetate). Levonorgestrel and norgestrel (in smaller quantity) are also used in birth control pills. This is important for two reasons: One, most monthly packs of such pills cost less than ECP currently on the market and two, birth control pills are available to girls younger than 17, whereas emergency contraceptives are not.

No Hocus Pocus or Cauldron Needed…

Specific combinations of birth control pills containing levonorgestrel or norgestrel can be taken to act as an emergency contraceptive. The dosage to use each brand below as an emergency contraceptive is as follows:

• Alesse – Take five pink pills and another five pink pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Aviane – Take five orange pills and another five orange pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Cryselle 28 – Take four white pills and take another four white pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Enpresse – Take four orange pills and take another four orange pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Jolessa – Take four pink pills and take another four pink pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Lessina – Take five pink pills and another five pink pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Levlen – Take four light orange pills and another four light orange pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Levlite – Take five pink pills and another five pink pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Levora – Take four white pills and another four white pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Lo/Ovral - Take four white pills and another four white pills exactly 12 hours later.
• LoSeasonique – Take five orange pills and another five orange pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Low-Ogestrel - Take four white pills and another four white pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Lutera – Take five white pills and another five white pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Lybrel – Take five white pills and another five white pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Nordette – Take four light orange pills and another four light orange pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Ogestrel - Take two white pills and another two white pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Ovral - Take two white pills and another two white pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Portia – Take four pink pills and another four pink pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Quasense – Take four white pills and take another four while pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Seasonale – Take four pink pills and take another four pink pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Seasonique – Take four light blue-green pills and take another four light blue-green pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Sronyx – Take five white pills and another five white pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Tri-Levlen – Take four yellow pills and take another four pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Triphasil – Take four yellow pills and take another four pills exactly 12 hours later.
• Trivora – Take four pink pills and take another four pink pills exactly 12 hours later.

What to Expect

You may experience symptoms similar to those of emergency contraceptives, including:

• Nausea
• Spotting
• Cramping

This combination of levonorgestrel pills must be taken as soon as possible after unprotected sex occurs, as we discussed in our blog about the morning after pill. Emergency contraception is not meant for regular use. If you are repeatedly having unprotected sex and relying on emergency contraceptives to prevent pregnancy, you should choose from your options for birth control so that you can be continuously protected. And remember, unprotected sex puts you at risk for sexually transmitted diseases, as well as pregnancy.

Be the Bearer of Good News

Now you can tell your friends how to turn their birth control into an emergency contraceptive for their oopsie moments. Share this blog to spread the word!