I just got off the ring... I just decided to see what common side effects are, since I have my own reasons for discontinuing it.

Everyone is complaining on how it causes hairloss, but what about after you stop using the ring? Does your hair grow back? I didn't have this problem happen - I already lose a huge amount of hair every time I shower whether I'm on the ring or not. Nothing noticeable in the scalp.

So, does the hair come back after you stop using the ring? Anyone?

The nuva ring is definitely not for me. I was using the nuva ring for 2 years and it was fine for about a year and a half. Then I started getting these infections. First, it was the UTI, which I used antibiotics for. Then it was vaginal irritation that was very similiar to the symptoms of a UTI infection. Instead of using another antibiotic, I used some chinese herbs just to have a holistic alternative to my body and the side effects were completely gone....for about 1 day because the nuva ring was still in me. The 2nd day that I woke up in the morning, I went to go use the bathroom. I had blood in my urine. After that, I knew it was the nuva ring. I took the nuva ring out immediately and the bleeding went away, but I still had side effects. For 2 weeks, my breasts were really sore until I got my period. I am fine now. My body is still going through side effects, but I am better off. I have noticed that a lot of the plastic birth control methods have very similiar side effects. Stay AWAY from the plastic!!!

I don't really understand waht's going on. I have been on the nuva ring for 3 months now The first month my period was ok, The 2nd it was really short like 3 days, Now I just took it out on Monday, it's Thursday and I have not started my period. I don't think i'm pregnant, didn't have sex until last week since my last period. I am sooo stressed about this. I have to put it back in tomorrow and pregnancy tests keep coming up negative. What should I do?

I have been on the nuva ring for three years and often skip my period... It has never styed on that long. As soon as its time to put the new one in the period immediatly stops that daya if it was not already off. If its on for two weeks that is something that should be checked out... I guess im luck.. no weight gain either.....
The only side effect
i may be experiencing is fatigue.... but it could just be me being lazy.... I do have three biys to chase after

HI! OMG! I am actually very happy that I found this site because things have been going crazy for me lately and now I'm kinda happy I'm not alone in this. I have been using the Nuva Ring for almost 2 years now. I had started taking it after I had my daughter in August 2007. Previously I was on Ortho-Tricylen Lo, but I am so bad with remembering to take the pills that I figured the Nuva Ring was awesome. Well the last couple of months on it I actually started to notice my moods being way out of wack. The last 3-4 days before I would take out the ring on the third week, I have started noticing that I am irritated, angry, any small thing can set me off. I even snapped at one of my co-workers! And thats when it hit me, that it has to be he birth control because I don't remember ever being like this. I know my husband has always said I was moody but didn't realize anything. Well I didnt take it this month to do a little test before I made a doctor appt. And of course I feel SO much better. I'm a lot happier, I havent snapped at anyone or gone off the deep end. After talking with my husband about everything he even said that it seems I started acting this way about 2 years ago, so basically when I started taking the Nuva Ring. So now I am on a mission to find one that won't have me ending in a divorce. My husband is so tired of the moods and I'm afraid its all because of the Nuva Ring. I just wish they would have stated this as a side effect and I may not have started using it.

I started using Nuvaring a couple years ago and initially, I was very satisfied with it. I enjoyed the fact that I didn't have to be concerned with a daily pill. As time progressed though, I became extremely moody and depressed like others have reported on this site. I experienced anxiety, panic attacks, weight gain, depression, hair loss, no libido, moodiness...I was a mess. I was the devil! I ended up with a script for Wellbutrin from my Doc for the depression, however, my side effects were so intense that I stopped taking both drugs and went cold turkey (not recommended, BTW!!). I wish I had discovered this earlier to save myself from the misery. It's been almost a year since I stopped using Nuvaring and most of the major side effects went away, except that my menstrual cycle is still very irregular. I'm so glad to see that people are voicing their opinions and I'm very disappointed in the physicians that are prescribing this without the appropriate warnings. Everyone should do a search on any type of medication they are prescribed so they can be made aware of any potential side effects that are not provided by their doctor or by the pharmaceutical companies.

Wow im so glad i came to this site! I loved the ring at first, the thought of no pill everyday was wonderful. My dr. gave me a sample to try May 2009 then i noticed i was so tired all the time, all i wanted to do was sleep just getting up to shower was a chore! I honestly thought it was because i just had a baby she is 15 weeks but i never felt as tired as i did during this month i even had my Thyroid checked as it runs in my family and being fatigued is one symptom. I also noticed hair loss not just from brushing but saw it around my house, the crib, the kitchen floor! My boyfriend even noticed i seemed alot more moody as i am usually happy and relaxed. ALSO the burning sensation after having sex. We both showered after and i had mentioned that hmmm it kinda burns. So i guess back to the pill i go the fatigue I was feeling is just not worth it!
-B-

I have been on the Nuva Ring for a year now. It is so nice to know that more people out there have been going thru the same emotional struggles that i have. Not really good for us but it's good i'm not alone. My hair has not fallen out at all. I do feel like i have gained weight in my midd section. Its also hard to lose weight even being on a diet. Nuva ring has it's ups and its downs.

Hey guys! I got off the ring a while ago because I was having MASSIVE hair loss. I was on for about 2 months, and it took about 3 months for the hair loss to stop completely- but then EVERYTHING grew back!! I remember how upset I was... so I would say dont worry because when u go off it your hair WILL grow back. Copper iud may be a good alternative for those of us sensitive to hormones...

I have been on nuvaring for two years. I have had headaches, anxiety, moodiness, breast tenderness, decreased sex drive until i take the ring out for my period, dryness, soreness during sex, fatigue, sinus problems, cramps even when i'm not on my period, aching back, and recently chest pain on my left side below my breast and IBS. I wasn't sure if the chest pain and IBS are symptoms of the BC but now I'm not so sure it isn't.

I never thought it could be my BC causing all my problems but now that I am reading this and that other people are going through this I am going to switch!!!!!

ive been on nuvaring for just over a week and right away i already was noticing ridiculous mood swings, wanting to cry all the time, I am more vengeful especially towards my boyfriend, i have a lower sex drive, and i have no motivation to do anything! I a waiting for my next period to take it out so i dont screw up my cycle.....i hate this thing, i dont have time for puesdo-emotional trying to be a full time student syndrome.

i was loosing my hair before the nuva ring when i was on marvelon. my hair is fine now but my mood swings are really bad so im taking the ring out. my boyfriend said it was making me evil. I have also been very thirsty and hungary all the time dont no whether that is to do with it and my stomach bloats out every evening!

To everyone who's posting that the NuvaRing has a lower level of hormones--yes, this is true. An article was published about this in Mother Jones. Please read the full article (link below) but here's an excerpt...

"NuvaRing actually contains a lower hormone dose than most oral contraceptives, a fact its ads emphasize. But while birth control pills lose up to half their hormones in the digestive tract, the ring's dose is absorbed directly into the blood. Its package insert says there are no data on whether this route makes NuvaRing any riskier than taking pills. But that, say lawyers suing the company, is because Organon never studied the question before it marketed the ring. Nor did the FDA demand it--the agency based its approval largely on studies involving pills."

I've been researching the Nuva Ring since going on it a few months ago. I've noticed a change in my mood over the past few months. I thought it was problems with my boyfriend, but I'm increasingly thinking this may be Nuva related. I've decided to go off of it, even though it's so convenient. I never had any problems or mood swings on Alesse for the 6 years I took it.

re:
Avatar
GCalGrl
replied on January 31st, 2009
New User
ATTENTION!! Hair loss
The nuvaring has messed my hormones up and since I stopped taking it a year ago they have not been back to normal. I tell every woman I talk to to never take the nuvaring and to stop taking it right away if they are one it. I have lost over half of my hair and at this point am wearing a hair piece. I wish the company could be sued for this, but it is in tiny print in the side effects. Thanks to the nuvaring myself esteem is pretty much non existant and I do not date anymore. Thanks nuvaring






-OMG I completely agree. I feel like it has ruined my life as well. I took it 2 months and its been 7 months since I stopped. I was moody- from happy to crying in .2 sec. Depressed-actually thought of suicide once.. not my personality at all! Loss of libido- My bf broke up with me eventually. All of that was when I was on it and immediatly after. After time I felt less depressed but my hair has been falling out like crazy. A lot more now, maybe Im stressed b/c I think im going bald.

There needs to be a lawsuit!!

THANK GOD I FOUND THIS WEBSITE!!!

I've been on NuvaRing for 3 years and when I started to lose hair I thought it was either 1) stress, 2) harsh hair coloring, or 3) thyroid. Since then I've learned that stress can be a factor but my thyroid is fine and the hair coloring used at my salon is perfectly safe for my fine hair.

Like many of you have said, I DREAD combing my hair after washing it, and I've had to unclog my drains on more than one occasion.

I've used Rogaine for Women and the special shampoo/conditioner, and I also take a mega-dose biotin supplement. Nothing is stopping this hair loss, and my hair is very fine to begin with!

Over the weekend it occured to me that the Ring could be the cause, so I did a search and ended up here. OMG I am both relieved and anxious about what everyone's said here. On the Nuva Ring = hair loss. Stop the Nuva Ring = hair loss.

I'm going to yank that thing out after I'm done typing this and pray that my hair will stop falling out in the 6-8 month timeframe that some have mentioned.

I'LL PRAY FOR ALL OF YOU TOO, AND FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T YET LEARNED WHAT WE HAVE.

Good luck everyone!

My son's girlfriend used the nuvaring and almost died. She thought she was having severe migraines and increasing depression and those two symptoms turned into an ER visit and ICU for five days along with several other days in the hospital. She had a huge blood clot on her brain on her transverse sinus. That was what was causing the pain. The first time she went to the ER they send her home with migraine meds but things didn't improve and she went back. Since such a clot usually only presents itself in the very young or the elderly, the dr. wasn't looking for it. During the second trip to the ER, a neurologist evaluated her and ordered a CT scan and because of her age (28)the radiologist totally missed the clot. The neurolotist sent it back and said "read it again!". That is when they discovered the clot on her brain and put her in ICU and put her on iv blood thinners to keep it from growing which could have killed her. If that second dr. had not known the dangers of nuvaring and had been looking for this clot, the result could have been tragic. If you are using the nuvaring and are having bad headaches, get to your doctor and for heaven's sake, stop using the nuvaring. That is what her doctors attributed the problem to. They took her off it and off all oral contraceptives as well. When I went to see her, I was able to ask the doctor about her care following her release and the future risks for her. I asked how serious it was and he said, "I don't want to underestimate the seriousness. People die from this." Please spread the word. She recently had a follow up MRI and the clot is totally gone and her blood's clotting level is back in the normal range after 6 weeks of follow up meds. Praise the Lord!

i've been on nuvaring for about 4-5 months now, and haven't had my period that entire time, until yesterday. it was very thick, and brownish (incredibly disgusting) today, when i took out my tampon, a blood clot came with it, probably 5x the normal size of a clot you may get while having your period. after that was out (only way to put it) everything was fairly normal. color was normal, cramps were normal.

i also have noticed a huge change in my mood since taking it out. and until reading this forum, the extra hair in the bottom of the tub never crossed my mind, but after reading all of your stories, pretty sure i'm going to set up the next available appointment, and switch birth controls.

This is birth control from hell. I lost my sex drive which kinda defeats the purpose of birth control in the first place. I lost so much hair....I had to cut it short because it was so thin it looked gross. I also experienced discharge at random times during the day. Nuvaring did not help with cramps, and made my period heavier. I wish I never tried this, the convience is SO not worth it.

I started using the Nuva Ring back in Aug. 2008 well I thought I had found the perfect bc. Couldn't have been more wrong!! In May of this year I noticed my hair coming out while I was in the shower then everyday I took a shower more and more of my hair started comming out in hand fulls. I went to my normal doctor and he said I had twirled it out. yea well that was when my bald spot was the size of a fifty cent piece. So I waited until my bald spot got to the size of a softball on the right side of my head before I went to another doctor who told me I have alopecia and refered me to a derm doc. Well since then I have found this site and have no doubt in my mind it was the Nuva Ring and have had 25 injections of steriods to help it grow back. I am getting married on Sept. 19th and will now have to find a wig to wear on my wedding day. Alopecia does not run in my family nor do I have any reason to believe that is what has caused me to lose over 70% of my hair. I have lost so much before finding this site that by the time I'm off the ring for 3 months to stop the hair from falling out I more than likey will be bald all the way from ear to ear and just have hair in the very back of my head. I am going for blood work Aug. 4th and more shots but I want to know if anyone else lost this much hair?? It wouldn't be so bad if I wasn't engaged and just fixing to get married. Anything anyone can tell would be greatly appreciated!

RE: Nuva ring

Irritable, weight-gain and no sex drive!!

I've been using the ring for the past 8 months and have seen a huge difference in my boob size and overall weight. Unfortunately, I have gained about 10 pounds since being on the ring and my doctor said it is due to my body reacting to a foreign hormone and that there is nothing I can do differently, other than stopping birth control all together. Another, side effect for me thus far has been lack of sex drive. I'm not interested in sex and my husband has seen a huge change since using the ring.
I feel like I'm pmsing almost everyday and get extremely irritated for no reason and feel down sometimes randomly. I definately have seen a huge difference not only in my weight but overall mental state and think it's time for me to stop using the Nuvaring.