Implanon is a brand name for the birth control implant. It’s also available under the brand name Nexplanon. The birth control implant is the most effective method of birth control — except for abstinence. Only five out of 10,000 women who use the implant for a year get pregnant. And it works for three years!

The implant works by releasing the hormone progestin into your body. Progestin prevents pregnancy by keeping your ovaries from releasing eggs  — ovulation. Pregnancy can’t happen if there’s no egg to join with sperm. Progestin also thickens the mucus in your cervix, which blocks sperm.

For most women who use the implant, periods become fewer and lighter. Some women worry that they’re pregnant if they don’t have a regular period, but this is a common and normal side effect of the implant. The implant is probably not a good birth control method for women who would worry about missing their periods.

Learn more about the birth control implant, Implanon or Nexplanon.

Okay, so we think there are a couple of different things this could mean, and we’re going to try to answer all of them.

If you’re talking about the possibility of the guy’s semen leaking out from around the base of the condom:

If you’re using a condom correctly, semen shouldn’t be leaking out from the base. A guy should pull out after ejaculating — while he’s still erect – to keep this from happening. Not sure if you’re using a condom correctly? Here’s a little refresher course:

If you’re talking about about skin-to-skin contact that happens even when you’re using a condom:

Condoms work by covering the penis during sex to prevent semen from entering the vagina. But even when you’re using a condom, there can be some skin-to-skin contact during sex. And that means there’s a chance that certain STDs — STDs that are spread through skin-to-skin contact — can still be transmitted during sex with a condom. This isn’t because any stuff — like semen or other bodily fluids — are leaking out from around the sides of the condom. It’s just because the condom only covers the penis, not the whole area around the penis or vulva.

But before you get really freaked out about giving or getting an STD even when you’re using a condom, keep in mind that you have some additional ways to protect yourself and your partner. Here are some STDs that can be spread through skin-to-skin contact (i.e., during sex, even with a condom) and some extra precautions you can take to stay safe.

• Human Papillomavirus (HPV): Getting the HPV vaccine is one way to prevent HPV infection. The vaccine can protect women against two of the HPV types that cause 70 percent of all cases of cervical cancer.  The HPV vaccine can also help prevent genital warts, another STD that can be spread through skin-to-skin contact. And even though condoms aren’t as effective against HPV or genital warts as they are against other infections, they can still greatly reduce your risk.
• Herpes: If you or your partner have genital herpes, use a condom between outbreaks to reduce the risk of transmission. You should also stop having any sexual contact (even sex with a condom) as soon as you feel warning signs of an outbreak (like burning or itching). Herpes treatments can also help reduce the risk of transmission.
• Pubic lice (crabs): Pubic lice are really easily spread and they like to hang out in pubic hair, so condoms won’t offer protection against them. If you or your partner has pubic lice, don’t have sex until treatment is complete.

Some people worry about HIV spreading through skin-to-skin contact. HIV is transmitted in blood, semen, vaginal fluids, and breast milk. HIV can be spread if HIV-infected blood, semen, or vaginal secretions get into an open wound or sore, but it’s not transmitted through simple skin-to-skin contact. When used correctly, condoms are really effective at preventing HIV. You can learn more about HIV and how it’s spread here.

So condoms aren’t perfect, and they can’t protect against everything all the time. But don’t throw your condoms away! Using a condom drastically reduces your risk of many different kinds of infections — not to mention your risk of pregnancy, too.

The chances of getting an STD from unprotected sex that only lasts for one second are really low … but it may be possible. Certain infections are passed by skin-to-skin contact. We always warn people that brief contact is all that’s needed — but one second is really VERY brief! The risk of getting an infection would be higher if ejaculation happened or pre-cum or vaginal secretions were passed between partners during that one second of contact.

If you’re worried you might have an STD, the best thing you can do is get yourself tested. Contact your local Planned Parenthood health center to set up an appointment. When you get tested, you’ll be able to talk to a health care provider about exactly what happened — like, for example, if you had sex without a condom for one second — and they can help figure out what tests are right for you.

It sounds like you and your boyfriend are using the pull out method — also known as withdrawal. Withdrawal can prevent pregnancy by keeping semen out of the vagina. Like all birth control methods, withdrawal is most effective at preventing pregnancy when you use it correctly. But withdrawal can be a lot harder to use correctly than some other birth control methods, especially for teenagers.

There’s nothing wrong with being sexually inexperienced — everybody is sexually experienced at one point — but it can make it hard to totally understand how your body works during sex. And for guys, that can mean it’s hard to know exactly when they’ve reached the point where ejaculation can’t be stopped or postponed. This is one reason why so many girls get pregnant from guys not pulling out in time.

Condomsmight be a good alternative for you and your boyfriend. Condoms are widely available and inexpensive — some health centers even give them away for free. And, unlike withdrawal, they can also help prevent STDs.

Tracking ovulation  — the release of an egg — in order to prevent pregnancy is also known as a fertility awareness-based method (FAM) of birth control. FAMs are one of the oldest methods of birth control in the world. They work by keeping sperm out of the vagina in the days near ovulation, when a woman is most likely to become pregnant. To prevent pregnancy, women can abstain from vaginal sex or use an alternative method of birth control — like a condom or a sponge — on these days.

Twenty-four out of 100 couples who use FAMs each year will become pregnant if they don’t always use this method correctly or consistently. Like all birth control methods, FAMs are more effective when you use them correctly. But unlike many other birth control methods, FAMs can be tricky to always use correctly, especially for teens. That’s because teens’ menstrual cycles are more likely to be irregular than those of older women. The effectiveness of FAMs depends on how accurately you can predict ovulation, and this can be really hard to do.

You can learn more about FAMs here. You might also want to check out our MyMethod widget to help find a birth control method that works for you.

Yes, it’s possible to get pregnant. Plan B One Step or Next Choice — the morning-after pill — can help prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex. But it won’t prevent pregnancy for any sex you may have after taking the pills. If you use the morning-after pill and then have unprotected sex, you need to take the morning-after pill again.

Click here to learn more about your birth control options.

If you’re using birth control correctly and consistently, then you’re protected against pregnancy even during the week of your period. So if you’re on the pill, and you’re taking the pill exactly as it’s prescribed, you’re protected all the time. The same is true if you’re using the ring or the patch. When used correctly, hormonal birth control is really effective at preventing pregnancy.  Click here to learn about how effective these (and other) kinds of birth control are at preventing pregnancy.

Using condoms with birth control is still a really good idea, because condoms reduce the risk of giving or getting STDs. IF you think you or your partner might have been exposed to a sexually transmitted infection, you should get tested right away. But if you’ve been using hormonal birth control correctly and consistently for a month, then you’re protected against pregnancy.

Certain brands of birth control can be used as emergency contraception, but without knowing what kind of pills your friend uses, we can’t tell you if you took the right kind or the right amount for emergency contraception. Check out this handy chart on the Emergency Contraception Website to see what kind of brands can be used and how to use them. Nausea and an irregular period are normal side effects of emergency contraception. But if you notice any other symptoms you’re worried about, like severe abdominal pain, you should see a health care provider right away.

(By the way, we hope your friend didn’t skip taking pills in order to give you some. That could put her at risk for unintended pregnancy, too.)

Since you already use NuvaRing, you know how it works: you keep the ring in for three straight weeks, take it out for one week (which is when you’ll usually get your period), put a new one in, and repeat. Even during the break week, you’re protected from pregnancy.

Some people like to use NuvaRing continuously to keep from getting their periods. This is simple: all you have to do is skip your break week, and instead put a new ring in every three weeks. It’s normal to have spotting or bleeding for the first six months.

Some women like getting their periods, and others don’t. Using NuvaRing continuously is completely safe, except for women who shouldn’t use NuvaRing in the first place.

Click here to learn more about using birth control continuously.

Anyone 17 or older can buy  Plan B One Step or Next Choice — the morning-after pill — over the counter at a drug store, Planned Parenthood health center, or another health clinic. If you’re under the age of 17, you can only get the morning-after pill with a prescription from a health care provider, or you can ask a friend or family member 17 or older to buy it for you. Since over-the-counter morning-after pills are more effective the sooner they’re taken, and getting a prescription can be a time consuming process, you might want to have the morning after pill on hand in case of an emergency.

The morning-after pill can cost anywhere from $10 to $70. Health and family planning centers generally charge less than private health care providers and drugstores. Planned Parenthood works to make health care accessible and affordable. Some health centers are able to charge according to income. Contact your local Planned Parenthood health center to get specific information on costs.