When Do You Ovulate...Or Do You??

Okay, all... I would like to share part of an email that I received from one of my Contraception Newsletter subscribers. Mandy asks a question that I hear all too often and reflects a MAJOR misconception that many women who use the pill apparently seem to have. Mandy writes,

"Please help me because I'm sorta freaking out here. I just realized that I missed my day 14 pill. I took my next 2 pills like the instructions said, but my boyfriend and I had sex last night. Am I at a higher risk of birth control failure because I forgot to take my pill on the day that I ovulate? Should I use emergency contraception?"

Ovulation is a tricky subject for many women. It can be very difficult to know exactly when you ovulate since some women, even those with very regular cycles, may not always ovulate at the same time each month. That being said, let me address Mandy's question...

Ladies, if you are use hormonal contraception (especially a method that has both progestin and estrogen), forget everything you think you know about ovulation. You know why? Because you all don't ovulate!! These methods suppress ovulation which is why you don't usually get pregnant when using them. Going back to Mandy, this means that it doesn't matter that you forgot your pill on the day that many women tend to be most fertile... you don't fall under that population!

• When Do You Ovulate?

And here are some other resources that can be helpful in figuring out ovulation:

• Understanding the Female Body and Your Fertile Period
• How Does The Pill Prevent Ovulation?
• Book Review: Taking Charge of Your Fertility

_{Photo Reprinted with Permission from DELC}