Nuva ring symptoms and conditions

I've got the NuvaRing today. I only inserted it a couple of hours ago, but I can't stop itching! I don't have a rash or hives, but I half expect to wake up tomorrow covered. I know none of the doctors have acknowledged itching as a side effect, but this seems to be a common problem. I was on depo for several years and loved it, but recently got married. I want to be able to have kids whenever I'm ready, however; it takes up to a year to get pregnant after the shot. Now I'm on the NuvaRing and the outlook isn't very promising.

I was placed on Birth control pills around 16 because i have elevated hormones, and Birth control helped bring them back to normal, and regular my wacky cycles. Lately i just can never remember to take my pill, i have alarms on my cell phone and i still forget. I started Nuvaring last month and i have 1 more week on it and I've been having pains like needles in my ovaries and random cramps everyday. Also I've noticed my left kidney has been aching. My sex drive has because non existent. I can't believe have had these complications just on the first dose. I've noticed a lot of you are just now having the problems with the nuvaring, i wonder if they changed the formula?

I have used the NuvaRing for about 3.5 years, starting after my 6 week check up when my daughter was born in 2004. In the beginning I felt like it decreased my sex drive but also that maybe post baby body that caused that too. For three years I had no problems. I had noticed breast tenderness throughout but other than that no side effects. About 8 months ago it began with a missed period, then two periods in one month. My OBGYN recommended 'resetting' my body by taking out the ring until my next cycle and starting it up again. I followed his directions but the next cycle came along with a bladder infection followed by a yeast infection. Over the next 4 months I either had one or the other, continually visiting my doctor I didn't make any connection to the two. Stomach pain, chronic fatigue and kidney pain also added to the list. My doctor prescribed a series of medications followed by blood tests and a referral to a specialist. Over the summer my husband asked that I stop using the ring because my sex drive had hit rock bottom. After a few weeks of taking out the ring, the burning sensation during urination has gone away. Stomach cramps and back pain has ceased and no infection to date. I am in my early thirties and after a week off the ring I realized what they mean by 30's sex drive. My husband and I are both happy with the changes. I visit my OBGYN again in a few weeks to revisit non-hormone options for BC

I have experienced most of the side affects that have been posted on here. The burning during and after sex, the depression, the decrease in libido.I am the happiest person right now knowing that there are other people like me out there! I hate having sex at this point, I know that I will feel the vaginal burning during and after. It has taken it's toll on my relationship with my boyfriend, he believes that I am no longer attracted to him which is far from the truth. I cry for anything and everything which is not like me. I have been researching my symptoms thinking about discontinuing the NuvaRing, and now I believe I have made my choice. I'm going A DIFFERENT ROUTE. I am glad that I am not alone and appreciate all the comments that have been posted. I am looking for any responses with advise, possible birth control methods, and just the support. PLEASE HELP!

Wow! I cant believe other women have had these same symptoms, I started the NuvaRing about three months ago after I lost a baby very early in gestation, I swore I would never have to go through that again, so my doctor put me on the NR and I couldn't tell If I was still hormonal from the pregnancy or if it was the ring, But Im a wreck! Im so mean and hateful to my husband pretty much mean to everyone, I feel like this big mean lady walking around, and thats not me not at all I have crazy dreams, horrible anxiety, panic attacks and PMS from HELL. I have never been on birth control before so I have nothing to compare it to. But after reading this.Im really considering taking it out so I can be myself again.

I have been on the nuvaring for about 5 years and I seriously thought it was the best thing ever. I think i just started getting side effects that were bad enough to notice. I kept trying to place them with other reasons like stress. The vaginal dryness,the burning, the itching the spotting and that brown discharge. I have been steadily getting more depressed and anxious, i feel sad constantly and FREAK out on my boyfriend. I also want to sleep, i just feel wore down that could also be contributed to the depression. I did gain about 15 lbs when i first started taking it but have since then lost it. I started when i was 16 and now im 21. My boyfriend thinks i like someone else or im with someone else cause i just don't seem very turned on by him. It sucks. I am very certian switching is a great idea for me, it just sucks cause i can be very unsteady with pills. your not going crazy. ha. i need suggestions on a good pill.

I started using the Ring 2yrs ago, and at age 38 thought it was the best birth control for me, however within 2 to 3 days after putting it in I had extreme low pelvic back pain,and then within the 1st month, mood changes, fatigue, depression, no sex drive at all But somehow 3 months after being on it I got pregnant. Now I am 40yrs and started the Nuvaring again about 4 months ago and have all the horrible side effects as before. I don't know why I let my Gyn talk me into again. I am now experiencing major pains in my left leg, which I have never had such pain in my leg before at all. And I believe it is the symptom of having blood clots. Which is one of the side effects that is listed. I will be going to the Doctor ASAP to check this out. So anyone else that is having any type of pain in the leg, even if it feels like a ingrown hair bothering you or a little pinch feeling or burning sensation here and there, Go have it checked out before its to late and it becomes painful and possibly a blood clot.

I have been on the NUVARing for 2 years and I'm 25. About 5 months ago I started having really really bad DRY EYE PROBLEMS. I have been to the ophthalmologist and I've been on restasis, refresh plus, Lotomax, and other ointment I put on my eyelids at night. The eye problem isn't getting much better. Has anyone else experienced this?

Also, I use to have super thick curly hair. I lose about a handful of hair a week and I don't think this is normal anymore.

I'm wondering if it is time to take out the ring. Any advice?

NuvaRing was great for me for years and then I began experiencing most of the symptoms noted by others. However, when my LYMPH NODES become ENLARGED AND PAINFUL I realized it was time for me to take out the ring and give my body a rest from the foreign substance. Once I removed the ring completely, within two-weeks my HAIR BEGAN TO FALL OUT each time I washed it. After weeks, my JOINTS became so INFLAMED I could not walk even though I had been working out four-days per week for many years prior. I also experienced HAIR AND SKIN TEXTURE CHANGES, and ONGOING FLU-LIKE SYMPTOMS which included: BODY ACHES, SEVERE FATIGUE, NIGHT SWEATS (DRENCHING), HEADACHES AND WEIGHT LOSS. I saw numerous doctors to try to figure out what was happening to my body. After over a year, I was diagnosed with an AUTOIMMUNE condition (SLE). It has been two-years now, since permanently removing NuvaRing, and my condition has improved with time but my IMMUNE SYSTEM is still out of whack and my LYMPH NODES ARE STILL ENLARGED throughout my body. If anyone else has these systems and has been diagnosed with an AUTOIMMUNE DISORDER after using NuvaRing, please respond. CAUTION: please be careful young women as added hormones are not good for our bodies and really should not be pushed so readily by the health care profession. Also, keep in mind that your doctor will not back you when you are experiencing problems from medications that he/she prescribed. You will ultimately be told that the medication did not cause the problem in order for him/her to avoid becoming a party to a lawsuit.

I am 25 years old. A mother of 2, and i have now been on the NuvaRing for 5 years. I got on the NuvaRing the day of my postpartum check up after i had my second child.. I loved the NuvaRing at first thought it was the best thing in the entire world, hell all you had to do was put it in leave it for 21 days days leave it out for 7. Go on your period and other then that everything was great. About 2 months into using the Nuvaring i started having HORRIBLE HEADACHES that would last 3-5 days at a time without letting up. I could not stand to be around noise, light or anything that had a strong smell or it would get my head pounding to where i just could not take it anymore. So i called my doctor and told him about the horrible headaches that i have had. Explained to him that before a bad headache would come on i would have this horrible burning sensation in my head that would make you want to die.. And the doctor told me just hang in there and give the Ring time to work, so i did and then as time went on i started having other side effects along with the headaches.. Such as BAD ACNE that scars after clearing up which has made my completion not so good. Breakouts on arms, back ,chest. So i got some neutrogena soap to help with that and it has worked.. But then i got more side effects such as BREAK THREW BLEEDING right after my period was suppose to be over and after intercourse.. Then i totally HAD NO SEX DRIVE which caused lots of problems in my marriage cause my husband began to think i wasn't sexually attracted to him anymore.. And i began to think that also. Cause i had lost my sex drive didn't want to do it, the thought of it made me cringe. After being on the NuvaRing after so long you began to develop this THICK DISCHARGE that is annoying then as time goes on you get another type of discharge that is thin WATERY DISCHARGE that is aggravating cause it almost feels as if you have peed your pants a bit almost feels like a yeast infection with out the smell. Which brings me to my next awful side effect which is the Yeast INFECTIONS and the number of UTI's i have had while being on the NuvaRing never had a UTI or a yeast infection before the nuvaring. Not having a sex drive because you cant because intercourse is too PAINFUL sex it hurts like FRICTION and STABBING because of the DRYNESS the Nuva Ring causes. So i called the doctor he told me that i would have dryness at first and to just use lube so i tried that. Didn't work still had pain from the dryness so i called the doctor again and told him about the pain so he wrote me a prescription for a numbing jelly that you use right before intercourse and that was suppose to help with the pain.But that didn't work either just made everything numb till where you couldn't feel rather anything was out or in so i quit using that and hoped to god that my body would adjust to the Nuvaring. Still today after intercourse it causes STOMACH CRAMPS similar to the ones when your on your menstrual cycle,and PRESSURE similar to the pressure you have when your 8-9 months pregnant. Going to the bathroom after intercourse is a total NIGHTMARE i have had times it has burned so bad that i have pinched my stomach as i peed to take some of the PAIN AND BURNING away.Dont always work! Another side effect that i have had is DEPRESSION i have noticed that i have been unhappy and just got to where a lot of times i don't care about things that matter to me because i don't feel that i have the energy to do so.. I also have ANXIETY ATTACKS which i have never had until i got on this NuvaRing. CHEST PAINS that i thought the first time i was having a heart attack it hurt so bad. I had to take little breaths to breathe which would then lead into a PANIC ATTACK cause i felt like i was unable to breathe like i am suppose to.. So yet again called the doctor who told me that i need to be on prozac to handle this. Never got on the prozac just delt with it hoping that it was just a little side effect and that my body would adjust to the NuvaRing, but guess what NO never did.. Another side effect that i always hate is getting SICK AND THROWING UP caused by a medication, guess what i still have this after 5 years i get to cramping so bad and headaches tied onto being MISERABLE and BLOATING and DIARRHEA and DRY MOUTH so bad that you cant stand it seems no matter what you drink to get rid of dry mouth nothing can quench your thirst and this is all hours of the day. So i would take Midol which would only help for a few hours and then i was right back to square one with the B.S caused by the NuvaRing. So i call the doctor and get told "well you will have that." the side effects will be less obvious the longer your on the NuvaRing." So stupid me stays on the NuvaRing hoping this is true! Which i have found out is not. The only good thing that i have noticed is the NuvaRing is easy to use and you don't have to remember take a pill everyday! I never had any weight gain or loss while on this dang thing. Pretty well maintained the same weight as i have always been. I have tried to get off the ring several times, but always get back on it, Because while the ring is out for 7 days i am miserable mostly with a headache that last 3-5 days untop of the TERRIBLE MOOD SWINGS that i get. i truly think that my body has been on this hormone so long that i have HORMONAL WITHDRAWALS when i don't have the ring in. Cause i am fine after the ring is inserted again. People can say what they want and say that this is a issue and that they haven't had problems and that is understandable and different people adjust to hormones in different ways but the time that i have my ring out i always get my sex drive back 1-2 days before i start my period. I am not asking anyone to believe me about any of this and if the ring works for you then great, i thought that it was going to work for me also but it didn't. . I have taken the nuvaring out this last past Sunday and have no intentions on putting another ring back in.. Yet again i have had 3 days of a SEVERE HEADACHES some thing that i believe is HOT FLASHES or NIGHT SWEATS,BLOATING,DEPRESSION,CHEST PAINS,ANXIETY ATTACKS,YEAST INFECTIONS, and BAD MOOD SWINGS and i am hoping that all this will pass and my body will go back to the way it was before the NuvaRing came along... I would not suggest anyone to get this as a form of birth control i would actually tell then that the pill is better off to have in the long run.. This has caused me nothing but a miserable life that i have tried to deal with and i am just not going to do it anymore. I hope to see in the near future the NuvaRing go off the markets and not able to sale anymore.. The only reason that i was put on the nuvaring is because my doctor had a hard time finding a birth control method that my body would accept I was on Ortho- Tri- Cyclin and got pregnant and had a girl... My postpartum check up with her i was given the Orthra- Evra patch and i got pregnant with my son. Tried IUD and my body rejected it. So the doctor says" lets try this new birth control"you insert yourself leave in for 21 days leave out for 7 and have your period," the longer your on this NuvaRing the lighter your period will become and the side effects which aren't many will fade also.". "So how bout it." Well i thought this NuvaRing was a dream come true, BUT IT WAS A NIGHTMARE WAITING TO HAPPEN..

I was on the Nuvaring for about a year, never had any problems with it until this last month. I started having spotting 3 weeks before I was supposed to get my period (which i actually wasn't supposed to get because i just switched rings instead of having my period) then that turned into break through bleeding, fairly heavy and I bled for the whole 3 weeks. I was worried that i may have been pregnant but after taking a test and finding out i wasn't, i talked to my gyno and said i wanted to switch to the pill. I have now been taking Loestrin 24Fe for 5 days and haven't had any side effects. But as far as side effects I did experience with NuvaRing, i would get terrible headaches when i did have my period that would last for the entire time i had my period (i'm talking about a constant headache for 5 days straight). I had absolutely NO sex drive what so ever, and sometimes would get slightly depressed. I always just thought that was the way I was but after reading these comments and comments on other birth controls it makes sense as to why I felt the way I did. I realized that I started having depression around the same time that I started taking birth control (15, i am now 20) ((how come the doctors would rather load you up on different medications for anxiety and depression and migraines, rather than link the problems to the birth control? hah)). Basically what I have collected is that, it doesn't matter which birth control you take, you're going to eventually run into some problem with it. Also, EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT. we all react in different ways to different medications. many people forget that birth control IS a medication, sometimes you just have to give your body time to get used to it. if problems still persist after the 3rd month i would suggest switching.

I am on my 3rd NuvaRing, and my last NuvaRing. This thing has cause me more pain and problems than anything I have ever used! The first time around the only problem I had was an increase in UTI's and extreme discomfort in my vagina and urethra, especially during and days after sex. I was told these side effects would go away within the next trial of the NuvaRing. Boy, were they wrong. After Taking out my second NuvaRing my period lasted from JULY 5TH to JULY 18TH! I also had to face the heaviest period of my life. I would go through a super plus absorbency tampon and panty liner in less than an hour. How embarrassing, inconvenient, and uncomfortable! I have had two ultrasounds, and 3 pelvic exams since starting the NuvaRing just 3 months ago. I have also had to face headaches, stomach pains, MOOD SWINGS, IRRITABILITY, and depression. This thing has put a damper on my sex drive and my relationship with everyone around me including my boyfriend of 3 1/2 years. I would not recommend the NuvaRing to anyone!!!!!!!!

I am so relieved to know that I'm not turning into some crazed basket case!
I've been on nuvaring for over 2 years. In the beginning, I couldn't believe the product...it was phenomenal! Put it in, and forget about it! Also, skipping periods was never so easy! I never spotted...just inserted a new ring and went on my merry way!

Well, that all changed about a year ago. I was planning my wedding, so I chalked my moodiness and depression on this huge event (of course! makes sense, right?). Time went on, and the feelings have not dissipated. I have always been a very emotional "in tact" female...a tuff Texas girl! I've had management jobs where my even keel disposition has been key to my success. Now, I'm afraid I'm going to breakdown at work...that would be BAD...really bad.

Also, my weight has been a thorn in my side. Although, I am not a big girl (135#), I'm bigger than I'd like (used to be 125). And, what's up with the belly pooch!? NEVER in my life have I had a belly that pokes out like this! I work out 4-5 x a week and eat healthy (yes healthy, you skeptics). My breasts have blown up like the Macy's day parade which my husband is all for, but I'm, quite frankly, getting a little scared of them:)

I am taking my nuva out on Sunday, and I CANNOT wait!! I want to go back to my fun, happy-go-lucky self.

BTW!! - To you men reading these entries with a girlfriend or wife that has recently turned into a crazy loon...stay strong for your lady. My husband has been an amazing man. I know he's wanted to get in his car and run away a couple times, but he has stuck by me. And I'm about to rock his world with my new and improved sex drive (when it decides to come back).

Best of Luck and I'll see you lovely ladies on the other side!!

I used the NuvaRing for 2 and half years. I developed terrible burning during intercourse making it impossible and on top of that, I had no desire at all. I never knew that it was the NuvaRing doing these things to me because they did not happen right away, it took a yea maybe for me to feel the full blown affects. I had constant headaches and everything. I was diagnosed with vulvar vestibulitis and everything and all I had to do was take the ring out and I felt great. It's been 3 months since I've taken the ring out and I finally have my sex drive back, I have hardly any pain involving intercourse and I overall, generally feel happier with life! NuvaRing has scared me so bad I'm now afraid to try any type of hormonal birth control! I never again want to be the person that I was on the ring.

I have been using the nuvaring for about 2 years now and have LOVED it. Especially not having to worry about taking a pill everyday. It is very convenient. I have however had problems with the nuvaring irritating the inside of my vagina. I was concerned about bleeding during intercourse and after seeing numerous doctors, discovered that the ring has been causing it all along. It is unfortunate because I have found a convenient form of birth control that I love. Has anyone else had this problem?

I had Mirena inserted after the birth of my 2nd daughter - November 07. Things were going ok (at least that was what I thought) until about two months ago. I really did not think about the Mirena much. Maybe that was because my sex drive has been soooo gone that I have only used the benefit of the Mirena about 3 times. The problems I guess really started when my period disappeared. That happened 3 months after I got in inserted. I thought that was going to be great because my periods usually last 7 days from start to fully finished. But with this thing, I did not bleed but I definitely was still having a period. Bach aches, mood swings, headaches, bloating, etc. I started to think something was really wrong when I got a headache that lasted about a week, and I don't normally get headaches that last longer than a few hours. I could not figure out what was wrong with me. I even went to the emergency room to have them tell me that there was nothing wrong and it was probably just stress. I started to think that maybe it is the Mirena. I started doing searches on the adverse side effects of the Mirena and thank God I found you guys. I have most of the symptoms described here and other Mirena side effect pages. I will be having this awful thing removed in about two weeks. I don't know what my husband and I are going to do about birth control. We both do not want anymore kids but I am only 28 and do not want to have my tubes tied.
Headaches
Joint Pains
Low Back Pain
Mood Swings
No Sex Drive
Massive weight Gain (I have not lost any of my baby weight plus i put on a few more pounds)
Breasts Double in Size
Fatigue
Dizziness
Depression (low self-esteem)
My feet have even grown (probably because of the weight gain)

It will be a year next month since I have been on the NuvaRing. Overall I enjoyed the ease of use and not having to worry about taking a pill every day. HOWEVER I have gained almost 20 pounds and I cannot get it off for anything. I was supposed to put another ring in yesterday but I am done with it. I look at myself in the mirror and I cannot stand the weight. I just hope it comes off quick. I have gained it everywhere. I have always been a tall fairly slim girl, until I started using birth control. The depo shot made me gain weight as well...UGH!

I have only been on using the NuvaRing for about 2 weeks now but I am already having mood swings and extreme irritability. I go to school with all men because I am trying to get into the aviation field and the guys I go to school with have informed me that I have become a super bitch. I did not attribute it to the ring until reading the other post's here. I usually ignore all the immature comments that the guys make but lately I have found myself bickering with them on a regular basis.

I have only had sex 3 times since I have been on the ring but each time I had an intense burning sensation on the exterior of my vagina, almost like a yeast infection. The reason that I decided to google the side effects of the ring is because ever since me period has ended I have had a think brownish discharge and cramps every day. I have been wearing panty liners for almost two weeks and this definitely needs to stop. The number one reason I decided to try birth control was because of my severe menstrual cramps, heavy periods and mid month spotting. Now I have all month spotting, what the hell!

By far the worst experience I have had since using the ring happened yesterday. As I mentioned before my irritability has definitely increased. That was very evident yesterday when while at work, of all places, I attacked a girl and beat her up. I was arrested and charged with battery. Granted the girl and I have been having an escalating fued for the last couple of months. My mother was also involved and she was more pissed with my mother than with me. But the fight had in no way been physical until yesterday when she began to curse at my mother. I lost it and swung her into the wall by her hair, she never even saw it coming. I sort of blacked out and cant even remember all the events. This whole thing was definitely out of character for me, especially since I was at work. I am fortunate to work at an office where we are all close enough to be called a family. My boss stood by me and did not fire me. He even bailed me out of jail but that is definitely one hell of a side effect

I have to say I am so happy to have found this web site. I started taking the nuva ring November 2007 when I got pregnant and decided to terminate the pregnancy. My Dr. suggested the nuvaring. 2 months ago I would have totally recommended this to everyone. I love it. Well how times have changed. On June 21st I went to take out the ring and it wasn't there. No where to be found. My period started a few days later so that confirmed that the ring was out. Since then, I have had the worse period. I am still on my period. I went to put in a new ring on July 1st and I felt so sick. I took it out 2 days later. Everyday is hell. I have been extremely tied, sick, nauseous, etc.

After I found this site I started putting everything together. About 3 months ago I was super depressed. I had suicidal thoughts. It was awful. My boyfriend and I fought everyday. I literally lost my mind. I have been suffering awful leg and foot cramps at least once a week. Headaches all the time. I know a lot of people lost their sex drive but I never lost mine.

I am going to the Dr. next week and I really hope that the ring I thought I lost is really lost. I refuse to go back on Nova Ring. I don't want to get blood clots and I would like to get checked just in case I might have one already. Listen...if you are thinking about taking nuvaring, don’t do it. All the people that are saying they love it just haven't experienced the negative side effects...but they will. It's poison. Thanks for reading

Oh my HELL!

Here's my story...

Well, first of all I am SO happy to read all of these posts.

I have been on the NuvaRing for about 8 months now... At first, it was GREAT! I had no side effects, I could maintain my weight, even my skin cleared up... But I don't know what all the sudden triggered it but here goes the list...

Nausea
Heartburn
Diarrhea
Headaches
DIZZINESS - and this is scary people, especially for someone like me who's never experienced anything like it
light sensitivity
ANXIETY - this also freaked me out... I'm a singer, I do all kinds of stuff on stage, but I'm SCARED!? all the sudden??? this makes no sense!!!
loss of sex drive
mood swings
fatigue
dry mouth
sore joints
acne worse than when i was 18

And the thing is, it worked, WELL, for a long time. But now, I'm convinced. The NuvaRing is Satan... even if it seems to work in the beginning... don't be fooled... I won't use hormones ever again. Ever.

I'm going to be fitted for a diaphragm and that's that. I can't wait.

Thanks for all the support!

Thank goodness for this sight. If you are thinking you're crazy and can't figure out what's wrong while you're on Nuva, scroll down, you will feel like you're getting a big hug!

I am 27 and have been on the NuvaRing for coming on 8 months and everything has changed. At first I had severe migraines with nausea, a day after starting, that kept going and still occur. They will last all day long and I can take 8 of my migraine medicine and nothing will help. The headaches ruin days, make work difficult, and ruin weekends.

Second: I gained weight around my middle, so perceptibly, I thought I was pregnant. The bloat and gas is constant, I'm always popping Gas-X extra strength but the gas doesn't quit. It was funny at first (yes, I'm immature) but now I'm so uncomfortable, and my pants are tight around the middle but nowhere else. Boo!

Third: ANXIETY. I've been the most relaxed, calm person until I started on NuvaRing, and now I have a prescription for Valium just to keep me from having nervous butterflies all day. The anxiety goes hand in hand with depression, which sucks because I got engaged literally 2 weeks after starting NuvaRing and am always nervous, anxious and sad, and I'm so in love with my fiance but our home life is strained! I sometimes wonder if it's cold feet, but I know it's not. Which leads me to:

Fourth: NO SEX DRIVE. Gone. Dead. Zilch. Zero. I have been the horniest person I know my whole life. I love sex. But I am almost scared of it now. I have no desire to have sex, recoil when my fiance touches me, and get butterflies when I think he's going to try to have sex with me. I sleep as far away as possible, never masturbate anymore, never feel sexy and the idea of sex just doesn't even pop into my head. So unlike me. This causes anxiety, too.

Fifth: Yeast infections and pain during sex. I've never had either of these before. I'm extremely hygienic, and my underwear are constantly filled with discharge. So gross and painful.

I'm going off of it in 5 days and I cannot wait!

I put in the the Nuvaring and within the first 4 hours I started to have a terrible headache. I called my Doctor who said to keep on with it, it was probably not related to the NuvaRing. I continued to keep the ring in. By the second day, I became very nauseas. By the 4th day, the most horrible pitting acne began. I stuck it out for 2 weeks, then yank it out. It has been out for 4 weeks, and I am still struggling with headaches,nausea,and skin problems. Also, waiting for a period as well. I would not recommend the ring to anyone it was horrible. Now, I keep taking pregnancy tests in fear that I am pregnant, since I have not had a period yet. My breasts are still so sore I can barely touch them. Tests are all negative. I'm still waiting for the hormones to flush out of my system.

i am basically here for some help...i have been on the nuvaring since the 19th of june.things went fine for about two days.then i started bleeding heavy and having awful cramps.it has been like this EVERYDAY now.i am supposed to take is out on the july 3rd.did it do this to anyone else? or does anyone know why it is doing this? my menstrual bleeding has never been this heavy or have i ever had cramping this bad! and it most certainly hasn't lasted for almost three weeks! also i don't know if it has anything to do with the nuvaring or not but my knee's have been killing me! i have never had this problem before and i am a fairly active person and always have been.i also recently had a child.she is two months old now.i weighed 160 the day i went in to be induced,and i lost down to 125 within a matter of a month and a half.i was doing so good with my weight loss.i wasn't exercising or anything.i had just gotten into the groove of only eating one time a day and it was not bothering me or affecting my energy level.since being on the ring i am now up to 130 pounds and i am hungry ALL the time! after reading all of this i am seriously thinking about taking out my ring after i finish this post.i do need some form of birth control though...i am thinking an IUD???

I have only tried the pill a couple of times in my life and the side effects were too much for me to handle. My OB suggested the nuvaring. I've been on it for a year and a half and I'm glad I found this sight. I've experienced the 2 week heavy periods, fatigue, weight gain, the headaches, I had unexplained swelling in my groin area, severe depression and anxiety (which my doctor dismissed as she stated she never heard of anxiety being associated with the ring). I'm glad that I'm not the only one. I'm getting married in November and plan to stop using it then. My general practioner put me on prozac because the anxiety got so bad. I'm lucky that my fiance is a patient and loving person and that this craziness hasn't driven him away.

This is so interesting. I have been taking NuvaRing for over a year now, and for about a year I absolutely loved it. Recently, however, things have changed. In Feb. I accidentally left the ring in for one week too long and then put it in one day late... I didn't think much of it, but then in March my period was really light. In April, my breast began to swell and got very tender and I started having headaches and a lot of nausea and I started gaining weight. At the end of the month, my period was just spotting. I, of course, took a pregnancy test, which came out negative. In May and June things have continued to be bad...spotting periods, extreme fatigue, a lot of weight gain, constipation, bloating and pain in my abdomen during sex. I took two more home pregnancy tests and even went to my doctor for a blood test...all negative. Today, my family doctor suggested that it could be my nuvaring. I had no idea! That's why I googled NuvaRing side effects today and found this sight. I've scheduled an appointment with my OBGYN so I can change my BC method. Looking back, I have noticed that I am much more aggressive than I was 1.5 years ago. I used to have great relationships with my students and used to be such a patient person, but over last 1.5 years I have started to get aggravated really easily...I even honk my horn at people. That is really not who I am! So hopefully after I take the NuvaRing out, I'll go back to being myself and feeling healthy.