Presented by Plan B One Step
Is there anything millennials fear more than emotional intimacy? *Does an audit of my entire life thus far* Definitely not. There’s nothing more grave than the pit you get in your stomach the moment you send someone a “we need to talk” text. Except, I guess, the pit you get in your stomach when you have a birth control slip-up, like a condom breaking. As someone who used to agonize for days over what to wear for a casual night at the bar I knew I would only spend two hours at, making the decision to take Plan B after a night of failed birth control was…nerve-wracking, to say the least, when I did it the first time. I’d heard all the misconceptions, like that it has a bunch of side effects, and that it would f*ck up my ability to get pregnant later on—which is not something I want to do (even if I don’t want to get pregnant right now). But we live in the age of the internet, which means that instead of anxiety-texting an itemized list of those worries, I just went online to learn more and realized how misguided I was. Plan B’s main ingredient has been used in birth control pills for decades, and taking it won’t mess with your fertility. I also learned that Plan B won’t hurt my chances of becoming pregnant later on; it temporarily delays the release of an egg from the ovary after taking the pill so I don’t get pregnant right now.
So, the process of taking Plan B was not intimidating for me at all, since I knew the facts. I took it right away (by the way, you have 72 hours to take it, but the sooner you take it the better it works) and then I went about my normal life—without getting pregnant. Thank goodness. Which got me thinking: of all the things to be nervous about, taking Plan B after the condom breaks or accidentally skipping a pill or another kind of birth control slip-up shouldn’t be one of them. Not when there are plenty of other more anxiety-inducing issues that pop up in life, like…
1. Having A “What Are We?” Talk
I would so much rather walk up to a checkout counter, hand them a credit card, and take one pill than actually have to do the whole “what are we doing?” song and dance with whoever I’ve been seeing (in a fantasy world in which I am actually dating). What’s the worst that can happen, you ask? Uhm, crushing rejection? An ambiguous answer that will keep you on the same cycle of non-commitment that you’ve been in for the last six months? No, thanks.
2. Meeting The Parents
You could be a doctor who won the Nobel Prize and moonlights as a supermodel, and meeting the parents would still be stressful af. There are the obvious what-ifs: they don’t like you, you accidentally offend them somehow and because of that, they don’t like you, you have something stuck in your teeth so they think you have poor dental hygiene and don’t like you…Sensing a theme here?
3. Actually Cooking For Myself
“It’s easy!” they say. “Just follow the recipe!”As someone who regularly f*cks up hard boiled eggs because I get absorbed in another task while waiting for the water to boil, cooking for myself is easier said than done. There’s a lot that can go wrong when attempting to cook, and that’s not even counting the very real probability that the food can come out bad. Like, I could burn myself. Burn down my apartment. Chop off a finger. Chop off a limb—you get the idea. Better to leave it to the professionals (I say as I hit “check out” on Seamless for the third time today).
4. Doing An Exercise Video…
…and I mean actually doing it, not just laying on the floor. I know, the horror! Workout classes are supposed to reduce stress (and sure, I feel better afterwards), but the actual process of doing the class is often anything but stress-free. I never know what’s going on, and I feel like everyone else in the class had a meeting beforehand to nail down all the movements and flow and I missed it. What comes after burpees again? Plus, while everyone else looks like they’re going on a leisurely stroll through the park, I am huffing and puffing and pouring sweat from the face. I don’t think I’ve ever completed a workout class not wondering WTF was wrong with me… and that’s why I’d rather just lay on my mat, pretending to do the work.
5. Trying On Your Jeans For The First Time In Six Months
If you’ve been wearing pants with an actual button or fly during this period where nobody has anywhere to go, I’m not sure if I should be scared or impressed. Actually, I’m going to go with terrified, because nobody with that much discipline can be trusted, as far as I’m concerned. For the rest of us who have spent the past five or so months sitting on the couch in leggings, convincing ourselves that chips are a balanced meal, the time when we’ll have to put on jeans again is definitely not something any of us are looking forward to. Better to just throw the jeans away than deal with that stress, IMO.
As you can see, there are plenty of other potential issues you can encounter that are way more stressful than taking Plan B when you don’t have the facts. If you have birth control failure or unprotected sex and need to take emergency contraception, you can rest assured knowing that Plan B is the #1 ob/gyn recommended emergency contraception brand, and that it helps prevent pregnancy when taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex or birth control failure. It’s not an abortion pill, but it does help prevent pregnancy before it starts by delaying ovulation (no egg + no fertilization = no pregnancy). You can get Plan B at all major retail stores (like Target, Walgreens, CVS, or Rite Aid), without a prescription—just look in the family planning aisle. No prescription, ID, or age requirement. You got this!
Image: jeshoots.com / Unsplash
Okay, it’s finally Friday and I am way overdue for six a gin and tonic since I haven’t had a drink in 5ever (Okay, since like, last Saturday but, who’s counting?). Here’s my struggle to which every slutty drunk can relate: Every time I go out and I know I’m not coming home (because it happens more often than not tbh), I feel like I look like Lindsay Lohan circa early 2000’s or a wannabe Damian Leigh in the morning. Amy Poehler, I’m pointing at you.
^With shitty sunglasses and makeup running down my face like psycho Taylor Swift and all. There is no in-between.
So, I’ve decided I need to ~fluff off the excess to find my center~ by wearing things that are both acceptable in a nightclub and for a V hungover Sunday morning walk back home.
Here is some outfit inspo for your next outing that says you’re totally DTF by night, but you’re a calm, cool, and collected woman by day. Your roommate, mother, and priest can thank me later!
1. Shirt Dress
It’s a shirt! It’s a dress! Nope, it’s a shirt dress which happens to be the most comfortable and sexiest thing your closet should contain by now.
Shirt and Sweet Blue Chambray Shirt Dress
Nothing says “I’m ready for you” like a round of tequila shots and a button-down dress that can easily be taken off later just as fast as it can be put on in the AM.
Pair it with strappy heels or wedges, a trendy crossbody, and throw on some sunglasses in there while you’re at it, because that’s going to be your disguise the next morning. Are you going to brunch? For a walk in the park? Coming back from your 3am booty call’s house? No one will ever know.
2. Basic Black Jumpsuit
Here’s the thing with jumpsuits: You can wear them to work, you can wear them to dinner, you can wear them to the bar, you can wear them to church if you wanted to. Basically, they’re fucking perfect because you can literally do anything with them. And wait, it gets better. You don’t even have to wear heels with it if you’re like me and can only last, like, two minutes without complaining.
Throw a denim or leather jacket over this for an edgy flair, slip on your flats, grab a choker, and call the girls because you are ready to par-taaaay and STILL look good decent when you wake up.
3. The Cutest Effing Shirt Anyone Has Ever Seen
Grab the most showstopping shirt you own and wear it with those jeans your butt looks good in (yes, jeggings will work). Accessorize the shit out of it with those Y-Necklaces everyone is wearing nowadays and some Valentino Rockstud pump lookalikes.
Endless Rose Cold Shoulder Top
Not only do you look hot AF to drop it low, but you’re even dressed remotely appropriate to GTFO when you wake up the next morning in someone else’s bed. What if you bump into someone you know when you shadily dip? Just tell them you’re going to church or synagogue or Pizza Hut or whatever your house of worship is. They won’t even ask you twice.
4. Semi-Slutty Maxi Dress
You can wear a maxi dress out to a bar without looking like Vanessa Hudgens at Coachella, but only if the dress is kind of bodycon without being in-your-face about it. Opt for a ribbed maxi dress in a casual material like jersey (in black, duh) for a going out look that says “sophisticated, with a hint of slutty” and a morning after look that says “I just like to dress cute for brunch because I don’t even eat that much.”
Enza Costa Ribbed Tank Maxi Dress
5. Small Wedges
Let’s get real. All the outfit planning in the world won’t help you if you’re walking down the street at 10am like Bambi in some 6-inch stilettos. Footwear is an often overlooked, but nonetheless essential, aspect of the hoe life. Opt for a small wedge, that way you won’t feel like a child—or worse, a nicegirl—at the bar, and you’ll still avoid the aforementioned Baby Deer Learning To Walk Syndrome.
Style these with your best “Do Not Approach Me” glare and you have my blessings. Go forth and thot.
