NuvaRing and bloated

Just resently I have noticed that I am picking up pregnacy symptomes. I feel light headed, nausea, and dizziness. My breast have began leaking when I cleaning them, and they are very sore all the time. I did notice last week, I was crying uncontrollably for a long period of time for no reason at all. My body always seems bloated, and I feel like I'm gaining weight. I can say that because I have exercised and at healthier than I ever have. Oh my gosh, the night sweats are out of control not to mention gross. I have not had headaches, but have been feeling like I'm coming down with something. I also have not been able to get "in the mood". Which I am a newlywed, and that is just not working for me or my husband. Also, the discharge is almsot like it just gushes out. I think after this month I'm going to take it out. I want to feel like my normal self again.

I have been on NuvaRing for 4 months. I was previously on DepoProvera for 10 years, but due to bone loss, osteopenia, had to get off it. I had no side effects with Depo, no periods, no PMS, no problems.
I gained 12 pounds the first 2 months on NR. My weight continues to climb, even though I exercise and eat well. My breasts are swollen and sore constantly. I have excessive discharge, itchiness, and burning. I have also noticed I have gas more often.
I do not take the ring out for a week for a period, I just insert a new ring after 3 weeks and have experienced no bleeding. I have NOT experienced any of the other symptoms, such as depression, anxiety, mood swings, headaches, which is surprising since I have been estrogen-deficient for 10years and am suddenly on it.
Overall, my symptoms seem minimal compared to others' experiences, so maybe everyone is different. But it does scare me that these symptoms are possible in the future.

PROS:
easy to use, convenient
only have to take it once/3 weeks
big boobs!
no period

CONS:
weight gain
breast soreness
yeast infections, itchiness
excessive discharge
gas
cost $35 every 3 weeks (my Depo was free)

I found this site while searching for "tired, achy, bloated, weight gain" on Google. I'm wondering if this is what is going on with me. I have been on NR for about 8 months now and lately I have been so tired that I fall asleep when I get home from work, and I can't do more than a couple of hours of errands, etc, before I am worn out. I am a photographer and after I do a wedding I ache so bad and am so exhausted that I can barely move the next day. I have also experienced increased discharge. My first few periods on NR were heavy, but just last month it was barely enough to use anything. I have no idea what is going on but would like some consistency.

I'm glad there is this site!
I started NuvaRing a month ago after having an abortion and feel like i've been going crazy.
All the side effects the ladies have mentioned i've experienced.
Dizziness, nausea, no sex drive, severe fluid retention in my legs, bloated, angry, really depressed, vagueness and really tired. I'm only 22 and apart from those symptoms i'm healthy. Its hard to concentrate at work and especially hard to exercise because of the pain in my legs.
I'd like to be on contraception.
Can anyone recommend a type of the pill that doesn't aggravate fluid retention especially? That's been the most unbearable out of all the symptoms. I feel like i'm pregnant again!
Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

OMG! I am so relived that I found this website with everyones BAD comments about NuvaRing! I have been really wondering lately if all the things that have been happening to me were effects of this ring!I And after reading everyones comments, all of us with identical adverse effects! I have been on it since January and literally, I haven't been myself since! I go through these unbelieveable crazy mood states, complete anxiety and panick attacks over nothing...totally on edge, nervous, and it all seems to be a blur like I can't remember what I was anxious about days later. Usually this happens close to getting my period.. Oh and my complete LOSS of my sex drive. 0%, which is nothing like I used to be. Now its like I am indifferent to having sex, more so I prefer to go without it. Horrible! I have no desire. Also, definitely have the HEADACHES also, which I never in my life had headaches before and now I carry ibuprofene with me always. Other very relevant effects, IMy breasts are huge, too big, and Im constantly bloated. Also, I have a weird dull churning pain in my lower abdomen for the 2 weeks right before I have my period, only have it in the morning when I laying still in bed. Anyone else have that?? And always have an inconveniente excess clearish liquid/discharge all of the month...very annoying and yet in bed before sex i have complete dryness.
Anyone have any recommendations of better BC methods??

Well, I have been off B/C for about 8 months now. I was on B/C for about 7 years before that. I always had crazy mood swings and felt depressed certain times of the month. Ever since I went off B/C, I have not had one single anxiety attack and have felt wonderful. My friend told me about NuvaRing and how she really liked it. I decided to give it a shot. I just put it in on Saturday. Today, Monday, I felt horrible. I went to bed with a headache and could not sleep. I woke up this morning and I was extremely bloated. I could not understand why I was bloated because I didn't eat much yesterday. I had/have the worst headache I have had in a very long time and my breast are extremely sore. I thought I might be coming down with something, so I took 1/2 day off work and came home. It just popped in my head that there may be some side effects w/ the ring. I found this website and now I know what is wrong with me. I just took the ring out.... I may not have given it a fair chance, but I cannot live my life like this every day. It's not worth it!

I just started taking the NR 3 days ago. Today is day three and I have a fever and my stomach is bloated and I can't seem to get enough sleep and I just don't feel good. I have increased sex drive and I'm still spotting a little bit after my period. Why does taking birth control always make me feel bad? With the pill I had vision problems, upset stomach, etc. I used the shot and it made me have pains in the spot where the injection was and I didn't have a period for over a couple of years, and then when I finally got my period after that, it was all messed up and I have extreme fatigue and I might as well not exist while I have a period. I'm done with birth control. I'll just use condoms until they can make safer products.

I RECENTLY WROTE A REVIEW AFTER BEING ON NUVARING FOR 9 MONTHS. IM COMING BACK TO UPDATE. I HAVE BEEN OFF OF IT FOR 3 WEEKS NOW. I FEEL GREAT NOW!! IM NOT TIRED ANYMORE! IM NOT AS MEAN AND GROUCHY AS I WAS! I LOST ALL MY WEIGHT FROM BEING SO BLOATED! & FOR THE 1ST TIME IN 9 MONTHS IM ACTUALLY ENJOYING SEX AGAIN!! I'D ADVISE ANYONE WITH PROBLEMS TO TAKE IT OUT IF YOU WANT YOU LIFE BACK, I DID & IM SOO HAPPY NOW!

I have been on NR for 3 weeks now. My first thought was..."hey this is great, I don't have to remember to take a pill at the same time every day". But just after the first couple of days on NR I noticed that I was VERY moody. I feel constantly depressed and I am always tired. I also feel bloated and I have no drive to have sex with my husband. It sucks because now that I am a stay at home mom, I feel like I am not enjoying the time with my kids like I could be because I am so emotional and unmotivated. I think when it's time to take it out... it's not going back in. It's not worth feeling this way.

I have been using the NuvaRing for anout 6 months now also and I feel sick to my stomach A LOT! I have little faint-dizzy spells and I feel bloated one day and the next I don't. I have some sharp paind in my stomach every now and then, but it is about 5 times a day. I have had MANY mixed feelings about the birth control method and think that I am about to switch.

2 DAYS!!! That's it ladies. I had the dang on thing in for two days. I'd found this website on Day1(Monday)...cause only after 30mins of having it in, I was having weird tighten cramping like crazy. Later in the day they subsided...some! On Day2 (Tuesday), it was like a dark cloud was coming over me (depression?). It was no positive thinking going on ladies. To know me, people come to me when their down. I was also bloated beyond belief... Mind you, I'd just inserted this thing after my regular period (following the directions). So, on the 3rd Day Wednesday), experiencing more cramping, more depression, more bloating... I'd had enough. After reading blogs I knew the best thing to do was to REMOVE the ring. When I pulled out the ring it had a thick white substance on it. WTF!!! Then on Saturday, I started having cramps, and would you know that on Sunday, I started my PERIOD, again!!!! WTF, Really! And, this was no ordinary period... it was everything these women have talked about. It had a smell, it was bloody red/brown mixed, and still today (Thursday) I gotta odor and only brown discharge...GRRRRR!!! Messed up 1pair of panties. I'm mad. Ladies, listen up DO NOT USE THE NUVA RING!! 2days = 2weeks of Bull-----. Bottom-line, it ain't worth it. Sadly, NuvaRing was my 3rd and last BC option. I'm off to find those women condoms. Eureka!!!

not really sure if 1 of my symptoms were from nr, i had been on it for 3 months and started breaking in hives for 3 weeks now. my husband thinks it is from nr, but the derm and pharm told me that it is not a side effect. if i am allergic to it i should have had the rash the moment i put it in. i had definitely gained 6 lbs. i thought it was from prednisone(derm put me on prednisone) thought it was allergic reaction from antibiotic. i cant stop eating, bloated and gassy all the time it is annoying and frustrating !!!!!!!

Been on NR for 10 months. I had been off the pill for a few years after being on it for 15 years straight. The 1st few months on NR I noticed the mood swings from the insertion and removal of the ring, otherwise it was ok. I also lost about 9 pounds. But it has stated to creep up on me that over the last 6 months I felt like I had to really work hard to focus on anything. Very spacy and possibly depressed, critical of myself and others and a bit obsessive about certain things. This was nothing like the laid back person my friends knew before. Then I got a urniary tract infection and a few months later, after very painful sex, I got a yeast infection. Since the yeast infection a week ago I have gained 5 lbs. I hope it is bloating and will go away after this period. It feels is like my body is completly out of synch. I have felt extreamly tired over the past 6 months. It wasent a constant tiredness, but when it came on it was very difficult to stay awake, at work, in meetings etc. I also could not get out of bed sometimes, I had the achy bones and sorness that others have experenced. I kept looking at my nutrition intake to make sure I was getting what I needed and I should have been fine. I keept wondering what is wrong with me...... Then one day I wonderd if the extreme need to sleep, and the general feeling of not beeing fully conected to my surroundings could be this ring and the hormones. I am thinking of going off it to see if my life, sleep, etc. improves. I also wanted to mention that the NR website does not address if there are any issues with using a yeast medication over the counter or the pill. I have seen on other websites that both can cause issues. When I called NR they could only comment on the Monistat, Miconazole-That it will increase the level of hormones-and it is safe to use. Now scientifically if the levels go high enough it can cause spontanious ovulation......but they could not comment on that. They had no information on Diflucan- the pill for yeast infections or its possible affect. How is it possible they do not know if common medications can cause you to potentially become pregenant or have other side affects. I now truly question if this company has did the research in shlud to be on the market.

i've been on nuva for about 6 months... the first 2 weeks, i felt a little irritable, but nothing serious. within the past month, ive started noticing more serious symptoms. i went to the emergency room because i was having sharp pains when i breathe in. (this actually started months ago but it wasnt really that bad until a couple weeks ago) they did an x-ray and said i had "pleurisy"...ive also been having heart palpitations...both of these have been freaking me out but i never thought they had anything to do with nuva (and neither did the doctors apparently)...ive been flipping out lately...im usually pretty easy going and happy, but lately, i have been having severe mood swings...i get sad, angry, anxious and i cant figure out why...when i snap out of it im like "wow that isnt like me"...it was horrible and i thought i was going crazy. i have been exhausted during the day and i fall asleep soon after work (which i didnt think much of because i work with children all day) and i have had headaches daily...i was eating nonstop, none of my clothes fit me because i have gained weight and i am bloated every day. oh yea, and once i had pain so bad during sex i had to stop and i was in tears...right after, i felt like i had a UTI. the pain lasted 2 days and went away.

i took it out yesterday and i WILL NEVER use it again. i felt so good today. i am happier, not hungry and i have more energy. seriously, im mad that no doctors have mentioned any of these symptoms to me and when i went in for a check up at the gyno they didnt say that my symptoms could be caused by nuva.

I was on the ring for about two years and after about one year I started getting little panic attacks but then they started getting really bad. i just to be a super happy girl who was always nice etc. I startd being bitchy to my friends and family for no reason...the panic attacks woudl come out of nowhere and they really scared me. so i took out the ring 5 months ago and since then my acne is out of control, i have gained weight that i cannot seem to lose and i have yeast infections (which i also had on the ring)...however i have not had a panic attack. my body just feels really weird...i feel gross all the time and i am constantly bloated. i thought going off the ring would help me...has anyone else gained weight or had weird problems after stopping the ring?

I have been taking NR for 6 months now. It was great at first. I didn't realize some of the symptoms I was having were even related to the ring:
severe headaches
nausea
swelling of hands and face to the point of severe pain
breakthrough bleeding
severe mood swings

I took the ring out last night and don't expect to feel better for awhile. I seriously thought I had something wrong with me I didn't put it all together until I didn't have a period this time and then last month I had a really bad one a week before I was supposed to. My family thinks i am insane. I have really depressing thoughts. Before I took it out yesterday I was crying one minute then in a rage the next. My husband said to take it out right now because he couldn't take dealing with me anymore. I woke up this morning bloated and tired but a little better.

I am so glad that I looked up this site. I am not crazy or dying of some uncurable disease. It was just my hormones and whatever else is in that stupid ring.

They told me I had to refrigerate the ring because it releases the hormones by the heat in your body, well what if it doesn't work right. How do they know that it releases the same amount daily like it is supposed to?. I truly feel poisoned and imbalanced.

I started using the Nuvaring on a Sunday around 11:00 am. By 3:00 pm the same day I had the most unbearable stomach cramps I have ever experienced while not on my period. The pain was so intense I had to take 6 ibuprofens and use the heating pad and it still hurt. I am taking it out today after reading the other posts.

It's been over 5 years since I was on hormonal birth control, and I'm excited about the ring... The first month I was very ANGRY - not like me at all; also sleepy all the time and taking naps (also out of character).

Now in month 2, I'm bloated all the time, gaining weight, and have acne BUT I'm not as angry as last month (thank God!). I'm still tired, but maybe I just need to get more sleep!

I'm going to give it one more month and see if things even out. I will NOT be hapy with weight gain. I've had no discharge, no slippage, but have had pain during sex. I've also experienced several days where I wondered if I was getting an infection - both months now, I was swollen / inflammed and slightly itchy for about 3 days. I only get yeast infections when I take antibiotics, so this is not like me either. We'll see.

I have been on Nuvaring for 2.5 months... thank god i read this. I'm not someone who usually gets side effects to drugs but Nuva Ring is a whole different story. I'm tired all the time! I used to be able to stay up all night but since I started the ring I need to sleep all the time. I'm in college my roommate convinced me to get tested for mono beacuse I was always sleeping and couldn't even stay up to study for finals! I also have been getting horrible mood swings. I have always been the nicest most easy going person until I started the ring. I have also been having back and stomach pain (like acid stomach) as well as numbness in my hand, I'm not sure if this has anything to do with the ring but it started right when I started the ring.. has anyone else had these sideeffects.. Thanks!!!

well, i put the nuva ring in a few days ago,first day, i didn't notice much. but then i got bloated, and maybe even constipated. i also was told that i tasted different. has this happened to anyone else?

wow i was starting to think that i had something wrong with me cuz of the depression! i have been on the nuva ring for 6 months, every month i get worse...im soooo irriatable i cry over everything...my sex drive has not decreased but i have absoultly noooo confidence...i feel fat...i get bloated for no reason...im so tired so i have dark circles under my eyes everyday, all of that makes me not want to have sex...i have convinced myself that im ugly and hes only touching me because he feels he has too! my boyfriend and i have 2 kids together, and he has recently told me that he doesnt know who i am and he doesnt want to be with me anymore cuz he cant take my mood swings. i have no sense of humor, i snap at everyone. i also always have a discharge! its sooo annoying. and i spot almost everyday during the month, and i still have a full blown period that to me has become more painful then ever, my doc said all this would stop but it hasnt!
im to the point where i have thought about sucide and i dont want to take care of my kids, i barely eat anything and when i do, i get bloated and i work out (with 2 babies under 3 im pretty active!) and i have only lost 35 pounds since i gave birth in oct. i only gained 27 my whole pregnancy! my pants are tight today, but in 2 days they might be loose and then a few days after that they are really tight again...i hate the niva ring!

This is my 3rd time around on the ring. The first time in college for almost 2 years, the second time for 5 months and this is my 2nd week for round three. However, this is the first time I have had side effects. I'm always hungry, I pee every hour on the hour, I have breast tenderness, and no matter how hard I work out through the week, my stomach is still bloated!! I'm hoping that it will pass after I take it out next week!

I was on the ring for about 5 months, recently removed it and won't ever use it again. I started getting really bad chest pain and everytime I ate a meal my stomach would get bloated and I would have lots of gas, people would think I was pregnant. I never had a 'roll' on my stomach but this gave me one and now that I am off of it, it's not there anymore. I was also tired all the time, could sleep half the day away. My headaches were bad!!!!! I get pain in my breasts that I have never felt before, I get scared at times because I don't know what to do. When I asked my Dr. she told me to try it for 1 more month and if I still feel the same to discontinue, but I couldn't take it anymore I had to remove it. Now I am just awaiting the aftermath of the BC.

Been on it for only 2 wks and feel very BLOATED. Think i gained about 3 lbs. already. Prob water retention. I hate it!! I have more headaches and my vision seems blurry.. but could be due to my contacts being drier. I also have dry mouth. Feel like it's dehydrating me cause I'm prob retaining more water. Also have headaches, cramps and GAS!! Losing more hair than usual... feel pregnant with cravings for sweets.. but I'm not experiencing crazy mood swings... maybe not yet. Debating whether i should get off of it. No crazy discharge either.

Wow. After reading about everyone else's experience, I feel much better. I love the convenience of the Nuvaring, and in the two months I have used it, I have experienced no vaginal discharge or pain. However, the mood swings and bouts of depression have been positively debilitating. I don't know if it's a direct result of the ring or a side effect of the depression, but I am so tired all the time. I have fallen asleep three times over the course of the past two weeks in my car at work in the middle of the day. My sex drive is non-existent and I feel like a bloated cow. In September, I was running 11-minute miles in 5K races. Last week, I could barely walk on the treadmill for 35 minutes. I just feel like my body is betraying me. Will it get better????

Well I have to say I have plenty of side effects! Most are bad though the good one is that it doesn't make my acne worse! I am 23 years old. I was on the NR back in 2005 after having been on the patch and ended up getting pregnant while on the ring. I never noticed any real side effects of the ring the first time I was on it. I started the NR again Aug. 2006 and have since had a steady weight gain (going from a size 12 being baggy to a size 14). I am now weight 155lbs and am 4'11.5" which is very overweight for my height. Also my family believes that the ring is causing me to have mood swings. I have headaches at least every day. My family thinks my face is bloated as well as my neck. Vaginal discharge is worse as well as having more infections and irritation. Loss of appetite, depression, and also my period is even more out of whack with severe cramping the first day of my period. Hope this helps other women on the ring.