A Letter To: You, from ellaOne's My Morning After

Dear Reader,

Not so long ago, nobody wanted to talk about emergency contraception. Then, the #MyMorningAfter campaign came along and started to change all that for the better. 

ellaOne, the UK’s no. 1 emergency contraceptive pill brand*, launched the My Morning After campaign in 2018 to empower people to speak openly about emergency contraception.

It began with your Morning After Stories, where we appealed for people to come forward with their experiences – the good, the bad and the awkward. These gave us such an insight into how much shame and stigma continues to define this type of contraception for those who choose to use it, if they need to.

So many people have described the feeling of isolation that came with buying the morning after pill, but the 200 stories we’ve received (so far) demonstrate the opposite. This community coming together has, hopefully, shown that no one should feel alone or ashamed in making this purchase.

We’ve taken to the streets and spoken to YOU about your thoughts on emergency contraception, sex education and asked questions including whether you feel comfortable talking about sex with your parents for our ellaOne Question series.

 As part of our #AskElla series, we’ve collaborated with sex educators to answer your questions about sexual health and contraception. It’s been a privilege to speak to people from Brook, Sexplain, Sexpression and other incredible charities which provide resources and information to people all over the UK. 

Our research told us that people didn’t like talking about emergency contraception. In fact, in 2018, 1 in 7 people (Golin – Q22, p.44) said they would rather give up sex for a month than talk about emergency contraception? So naturally, we decided to launch a podcast series full of amazing women who wanted to have this conversation.

Hosted by Alix Fox, the podcast had guests including activist Gina Martin, Tolani Shoneye from The Receipts podcast and founder of Decolonising Contraception, Dr Annabel Sowemimo*. 

We are now excited to introduce a new moment in our My Morning After campaign. Welcome to our A Letter To series. We’ve collaborated with a cast of people we admire, who have penned letters to their younger selves, friends, ex-partners, to say what they wished they had the courage or knowledge to say back then. No one gets everything right 100% of the time, but we can all learn from our – and each other’s – experiences.

As the editors of this campaign, we’ve been humbled and inspired by the stories that have been shared with us. We would like to thank everyone who has contributed to the My Morning After campaign in the last year, from those who have written in with their Morning After Stories, the guests on our podcast series, the contributors to the ellaOne question and the authors of the A Letter To series. None of this would have been possible without you.

This all started because ellaOne wanted to change the conversation around emergency contraception. We’ve made strides in the last year, but the journey is far from over, and we need your help to keep going.

If you like what you read, please tell your friends – or give us a shout out on social media, we always like to hear from you. If you have a story to share, use the hashtag #MyMorningAfter or submit your story below.

*Dr Annabel Sowemimo does not endorse any medicine brand or products.

Love from,
ellaOne’s My Morning After team

ellaOne® 30mg film-coated tablet contains ulipristal acetate and is indicated for emergency contraception within 120 hours (5 days) of unprotected sex or contraceptive failure. Always read the label. *Based on sales data. Verify at ellaone.co.uk/verify