If sperm went inside (vaginally), your next steps depend on if you want to prevent pregnancy and/or STIs; use emergency contraception (like Plan B or Ella) ASAP within 3-5 days if pregnancy is a concern, and consider getting tested for STIs by a doctor or clinic like Planned Parenthood, as pregnancy and infections are the main risks, says the University of Colorado Boulder, KidsHealth, and Planned Parenthood. Don't rely on douching to prevent pregnancy; focus on EC or IUDs if needed, and see a healthcare provider for STI concerns.
If you don't want to get pregnant, it's a good idea to use some emergency contraception. The emergency contraceptive pill (ECP) can be used anytime in the 72 hours — three days — after you have unprotected sex. For many people, even four days after sex is okay. It's best to use the ECP as soon as possible.
What Is Emergency Contraception? Emergency contraception is a way to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex. Often called the morning-after pill, emergency contraceptive pills (ECPs) are pills that can be taken up to 120 hours (5 days) after having unprotected sex.
That means your partner has to always pull out before any semen comes out, and make sure to ejaculate (cum) away from your genitals. This is because pregnancy can happen if any semen gets in your vagina or on your vulva.
A spermicide is a substance that kills sperm or stops sperm from moving. You can buy it as a foam, gel, cream, film, and suppository. Most spermicides come with an applicator. This is filled and put in the vagina about 15 minutes before vaginal sex.
Early Pregnancy Symptoms
12 Things That Could Be Messing With Your Guy's Sperm
For withdrawal to work as well as possible, you must do it right every single time. Always. So always pull out BEFORE ejaculation, and always make sure to ejaculate (cum) away from your partner's genitals. This is important because pregnancy can happen if even a little bit of semen gets in the vagina.
Outercourse activities are 100% effective at preventing pregnancy: kissing, massage, masturbation, dry humping with clothes on, anal sex, and oral sex can't cause pregnancy. That said, pregnancy can happen, rarely, even if you don't actually have vaginal sex.
Change in cervical mucus: Some women notice a change in their cervical mucus after ovulation, which could be a sign that sperm went inside the body. Mild cramping or spotting: Some women experience mild cramping (Mittelschmerz) or light spotting after ovulation, which could be a sign of implantation.
You are least likely to get pregnant right before and during your period, and in the days after ovulation, as fertility is lowest when you are not ovulating or your egg has already passed. However, due to cycle variability, no time is 100% "safe," and pregnancy is always possible, so barrier methods (like condoms) are crucial if you want to avoid pregnancy, says Flo app and Kids Health.
What are my options if I have an unplanned pregnancy?
Abstinence: Sexual abstinence is defined as refraining from all forms of sexual activity and genital contact, such as vaginal, oral, or anal sex. This method is the only 100 percent effective way to protect against pregnancy, ensuring there is no exchange of bodily fluids (such as vaginal secretions and semen).
If someone prefers to clean their vagina and vulva after sex, the safest way to do so is with unscented soap and warm water. Some people claim that urinating, showering, bathing, or using vinegar may help remove semen. However, once semen passes through the cervix, there is no scientifically proven way to remove it.
'Morning After' Pill
This pill contains hormones designed to prevent pregnancy up to 5 days after unprotected sex, but is most effective if taken in the first 24 hours. It's a good idea to do a pregnancy test a few weeks later to make sure you're not pregnant.
Key takeaways
Technically, it only takes one sperm to get pregnant. But the chances are higher when your partner's ejaculate contains at least 15 million sperm per milliliter. Only a fraction of the sperm in semen is healthy enough to make it all the way to the egg for fertilization.
Classic signs and symptoms of pregnancy
Key takeaways. Sperm can live up to 5 days inside the female reproductive tract, especially around ovulation, when cervical mucus and cervical crypts help preserve and store sperm. Sperm die quickly outside the body, typically within minutes in hot environments and within an hour on dry surfaces.
No particular sexual positions have been proven to improve your chances of becoming pregnant. But any position that allows your partner's penis to penetrate more deeply into your vagina may help. Penetrating more deeply helps ensure that sperm enters the vagina.
The time to wait for "round two" varies greatly, typically ranging from a few minutes to several hours or even days, depending on age, health, and individual factors, with men generally needing a longer refractory period than women, though women can experience sensitivity or psychological downtime. Younger individuals often recover faster, while older individuals usually need more time (sometimes 12-24 hours) to become aroused again.
The last motile spermatozoa could be found after 4.5h. It seems that remaining sperm in the urethra are washed out with the first micturition in the majority of fertile men, however, the conclusion as to whether sperm findings >5h after ejaculation are improbable needs to be confirmed by further investigations.
With the pull-out method, the penis needs to be completely removed from the vagina before ejaculation. If no semen touches the vagina or vulva, sperm cannot get inside the body and lead to pregnancy.
Keep Clean-up Simple
Just stick to a gentle rinse with warm water after sex. And avoid scented tampons, pads, powders, and sprays, especially if you tend to get infections.
Just remember that there are no guarantees and the odds of conceiving a boy or a girl are almost exactly the same for each and every pregnancy.