#MyMorningAfter stories

My Morning After Stories

Welcome to #MyMorningAfter stories, where people of all ages are sharing their real-life experiences of taking the morning after pill. Through speaking openly and honestly about emergency contraception, we can show everyone that they are not alone. Share your story and help stamp out the stigma around the morning after pill.

I went to a pharmacy and got ellaOne®

I’ve taken ellaOne® a few times!

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I would very much recommend ellaOne®

A pregnancy would be life altering and I’m not in the position to afford a child

Everyone around us could figure why we were there but I wasn’t ashamed

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I was pretty upset because we did everything that we were meant to do

I never thought I would be someone who needed to take the morning after pill

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It helped me a little in the aftermath of an extremely tough time

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I used the morning after pill due to condom breaking

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Normally I’m a condom girl, but I got carried away one evening

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I have taken the morning after pill a few times

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I wish I’d known more about the effectiveness of the morning after pill

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My worst experience was when the lady behind the counter whispered to her father

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I got the morning after pill free from a local pharmacy once

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It feels like everybody in the pharmacy knows what you did

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It was really easy getting the morning after pill; the pharmacist was quick and discreet

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Taking it felt like nothing

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I realised I had missed two pills

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My girlfriend and I were caught in the heat and had unprotected sex

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I said I don’t have unprotected sex. She said “well you obviously do.”

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Why is everybody making a big deal out of it?

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The morning after pill helped me avoid an unwanted pregnancy

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I went to get the morning after pill with my boyfriend

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I’ve used emergency contraception multiple times over the last 16 years

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I experienced fear and anxiety

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I had to take the morning after pill in front of a pharmacist

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My long term partner and I had an accident

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Women get bashed for taking precautions. No Uterus, no opinion

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Access to contraception should be much easier

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I went with my friend to get the morning after pill

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I have taken the morning after pill a handful of times

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Anyone who judges someone for taking the morning after pill is ignorant

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They wouldn’t allow my boyfriend to come with me

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Fear completely overcame me and I started to panic

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He used the ‘it’s all or nothing with me’

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The pharmacist wasn’t really asking my boyfriend any questions about what happened

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It gave me peace of mind before my next period

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I was embarrassed waiting for people to leave the shop

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I was worried about fertility and side effects but I didn’t experience any problems

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One condom split so off we went to get the morning after pill!

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I had read that ellaOne may be more effective

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I took the morning after pill after the birth of my second child

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My husband shares the responsibility of contraception with me

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I don’t think women think about being judged for taking the morning after pill until they’re lining up to get it

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I was very nervous and I felt ashamed and embarrassed

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It was my chance to take back control

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It’s just like other mistakes, but this was easily fixed

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I felt so awkward about other people knowing I had had sex

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Why does the woman always have to be shamed?

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I was being responsible and making an informed choice

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I had forgotten to take my pill the day before

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My partner and I use natural family planning

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I was marched down to the pharmacy by my mum

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We had a few drinks and ended up having sex

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I was in a long term relationship at a festival

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I felt stupid and embarrassed going to get the morning after pill

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She said that I would have to wait an hour to see the pharmacist

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I was really nervous about taking the morning after pill

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My boyfriend came with me to get the morning after pill

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I’ve taken the morning after pill seven times

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I felt judged for not using long term hormonal contraception

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My sister was refused the morning after pill

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I got the morning after pill for the first time yesterday

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We had an awkward conversation about cycles and fertility

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I am 29 years old and have no intention of having children

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The lady asked my age and told me to go elsewhere

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I went into the pharmacy and asked for ellaOne

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The pharmacist was a really lovely guy and made me feel comfortable

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It was uncomfortable to ask but the pharmacist was quite lovely in the end

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It is my choice whether I want the morning after pill

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I’ve felt quite judged every time I’ve used the morning after pill

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I woke up after a drunken mistake and decided it was best for me to get ellaOne

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I’ve used the morning after pill with two different partners

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I only felt awkward at the pharmacy because I was embarrassed

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I didn’t understand how the morning after pill worked

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I was treated like a naughty child when I needed the morning after pill

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I went to the pharmacy and it wasn’t awkward

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We went halves on the morning after pill

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I have safe sex but accidents do happen

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It was nowhere near as scary as people make it out to be

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I felt completely alone going to the pharmacy

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I’ve used emergency contraception twice with my partner

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It was a spur of the moment thing

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You can take emergency contraception up to five days after sex

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He wasn’t prepared to give it to me

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I felt ashamed for using condoms as my main form of contraception

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I’m not sure if I want to have kids anytime soon. I literally work with kids in a Nursery

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I’m not ashamed for doing the right thing for myself

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I sought emergency contraception during freshers week

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It doesn’t mean the woman is sleeping about

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It was my first time ever using a morning after pill

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It felt like they were treating me like an inconvenience

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I’d forgotten to take my pill

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I recently took the morning after pill for the first time

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We got caught up in the heat of the moment and didn’t use a condom

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I asked for ellaOne as I’d seen it is ‘the most effective’ morning after pill

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We all deserve to access emergency contraception free of judgement

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I remember being scared of asking a pharmacist for the pill in front of other people

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The whole purchase process made me feel nervous

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I realised we didn’t use any protection

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I’ve taken the morning after pill twice. I didn’t get pregnant.

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I found her tone to be very judgemental

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Stay away from men that will prioritise their pleasure over your safety

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I live with 3 girls and I found ellaOne packaging in our shared recycling

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I didn’t really have any side effects. I went flying to another place that day

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My boyfriend helped and supported my choice

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The young pharmacist seemed more embarrassed than me

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I’ve always used condoms as my primary form of contraception

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Let’s break this judgement and stigma together!

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The pharmacy was professional. I didn’t feel embarrassed at all

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I decided to go and get the ellaOne morning after pill

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I had been single for 7 years and decided to ‘get back on the horse’

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I lost my virginity two days ago

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I went to the sexual health clinic in a panic

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I used the morning after pill because the condom snapped

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I was refused the morning after pill at two different pharmacies

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It took me 3 days to work up the courage to get the morning after pill

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I had no side effects and felt more relaxed

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I didn’t ask him to use a condom. I felt embarrassed to

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Contraception is a responsibility that women just deal with, often silently

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I got a text to say the condom had split

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I felt like I had let myself down and women down

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The pharmacists were all understanding and didn’t judge

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I often find that people are surprised when I talk candidly about it

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I got the morning after pill after a one night stand in University

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I really would have benefitted from knowing a bit more about it

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I think there’s a certain stigma that you’ve been careless

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I was very insistent that the guy wore a condom, but halfway through he removed it

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I took the morning after pill when I was 36

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I have a child and I’ve used the morning after pill a couple of times

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I didn’t feel judged or threatened

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The pharmacy staff took my mind off it

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My husband and I went to the pharmacy and got the morning-after pill

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I didn’t know about the morning after pill until I was 19

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I will always be thankful for having the opportunity of such a “rescue” at that moment

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I was a student. I was using condoms and it came off

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I had honestly always thought that condoms breaking was an urban myth

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I was relieved, it made me feel much less embarrassed

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I just felt quite judged, like I had been slutty to have had sex with no protection

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Once I took the morning after pill, I felt happy that I had plucked up the courage to get it

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I went to the pharmacy to get the morning after pill

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He told me the condom broke and I should get the morning after pill

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I got the morning after pill after a one night stand

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I learnt my lesson: check the expiry date before using condoms

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I had a one night stand and felt I needed the morning after pill

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I’m happily married and don’t want another baby

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I’m glad I took the morning after pill, it made me feel relieved

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I knew about EllaOne from a TV advert and decided to order it

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He gave me a slap on the wrist for not being more careful

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My boyfriend took me to the pharmacy to get the morning after pill

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I didn’t regret taking the morning after pill

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My boyfriend and I aren’t ready to have a child so I took the morning after pill

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I knew it wasn’t the right time for me to have a baby

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I’ve taken the morning after pill 3 or 4 times in my 20s

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I went to the pharmacy on my lunch break

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I’ve used the morning after pill while travelling abroad

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I initially felt really embarrassed to go and get the morning after pill

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The questions still stick with me to this day

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The condom broke on a Friday night with my long term partner

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I was so drunk that I wasn’t sure if a condom had been used

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I’ve taken the morning after pill four times

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I have taken the morning after pill four times over 15 years

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I had sex with a friend of mine and forgot I wasn’t on the pill anymore

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I’m only in university and it wouldn’t have been a good time to have a child

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I got caught up in the moment and had unprotected sex

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It was my decision to get the morning after pill

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She gave me a sympathetic smile and said ‘don’t worry’

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I wasn’t going to take the morning after pill at first

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He said it was my problem because I should have been on the pill

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The fact that you now have a choice is incredible

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My partner was an idiot and “forgot” to pull out

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The pharmacist wasn’t prepared to give me the morning after pill

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I’ve taken the morning after pill 3 times

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I tried to tell myself not to feel ashamed

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I found this collection of stories incredibly heartening

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They gave me the “use condoms” talk

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I took the morning after pill and it was fine

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I’ve taken the morning after pill three times in my life

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I saw a tv ad for ellaOne in the cinema

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The stigma surrounding the morning after pill gives me anxiety

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I decided the best thing to do was to take ellaOne

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The woman issuing the pill asked me if I’d had a one night stand

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I felt no judgement from the male pharmacist

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I have taken the morning after pill a handful of times

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I’ve taken the morning after pill a few times since I’ve been sexually active

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My GP wasn’t judgemental about me getting emergency contraception

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I bought the morning after pill after my contraceptive patch fell off

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I don’t feel guilty about taking the morning after pill

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We decided we don’t want kids, so we use condoms and the pill

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I took the morning after pill after losing my virginity

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I took ellaOne with no problems. I didn’t have any side effects

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I found myself at the chemist seeking emergency contraception

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My experiences of taking the morning after pill has been largely positive

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I’m glad I had the option to use the morning after pill

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I took emergency contraception when the condom had split without either of us noticing

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My boyfriend went to the store to ask for the morning after pill for me

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I first took the morning after pill when I was 16 and hadn’t even had sex

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I told the pharmacist that the person I had slept with had not worn a condom

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I am 43 years old and I just did not want anymore children

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The next day we realised we hadn’t touched the condoms we brought with us

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The condom broke, so I took the morning after pill

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The first time I used the morning after pill, I was in my late teens

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My husband was waiting for his vasectomy when the condom broke

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Just like many women, I was nervous about how the pharmacists would act

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It had been a really hectic week and I’d forgotten to take my pill

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I have a latex allergy and didn’t have any latex free condoms with me

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I took ellaOne and left the guy I was seeing

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The morning after pill was fine, I feel like the staff were very professional

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The pharmacist gave me two options and I chose ellaOne

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I have never felt ashamed to get or take the morning after pill

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I used an online pharmacy service to buy the morning after pill

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I’ve thankfully never felt judged when getting the morning after pill

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No one but me can make such an important decision about my body

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I was so angry about the male pharmacists reaction

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I left that clinic feeling like a promiscuous harlot

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I went to the chemist to collect the morning after pill

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I never had any issues with the morning after pill

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I started to throw up a few weeks after taking the morning after pill

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They told me to come back the next day

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We have a new baby and my husband and I weren’t willing to risk another pregnancy