Birth Control - General Discussion

briskstag13 said:You’re missing my point. I started using the ring on December 30th. That puts me in my third week, which means it expires on January 20th. That makes it a 22-day cycle instead of 21.🙄

The instructions say you have to pull it out and put it back in on the same day. Well, that’s exactly what I’m planning to do today—first time around. 😉 I tried using Flaster and even gave Diana a shot, hoping my skin would finally clear up. But I’m too lazy and irresponsible to stay on top of a pill schedule, so naturally, nothing worked—except for the side effects on my ovaries. 😁 Anyone used NuvaRing before? What’s the actual sensation like? Can you even feel it being there? I'm also wondering about how it holds up during sex or when you're swimming in a pool. Their website is pretty useless on those details, so I'm assuming it doesn't interfere with anything.

Did you get the pure stuff from Diana?

It isn’t the birth control itself causing the cysts; it’s the inconsistency. It’s basic biology. If you don't take three or four pills in a row like I do, your ovaries get triggered, things get backed up, and boom—you've got a cyst. It’s common sense, really. 😁I actually had high hopes that my acne would clear up on this medication. Honestly, I definitely would have stuck with it if I hadn't stopped; I was only on my third pack, and let's be real, these are hands down the best pills out there for clearing up skin.

briskstag13 said:I have two questions and I really need an answer from someone who actually knows what they're talking about, not just people guessing:
I started using the NuvaRing contraceptive ring:
1. It says you shouldn't take Procter & Gamble with estrogen. Does that mean I shouldn't take it if I'm using the NuvaRing, since that contains ethonogestrel and ethinylestradiol hormones?
2. The instructions for the NuvaRing say to take it out after three weeks. Does that mean 21 days (like birth control pills)—which seems logical to me—or does it mean exactly three weeks (since not all months have the same number of days)?
Thanks so much

It doesn't actually say in the Procter & Gamble instructions that you can't [/B]take it with estrogen. Instead, it says: "tell your doctor if you are taking estrogen..."
The reason they phrase it that way—and it’s honestly a bit clumsy, which makes it sound like you *shouldn't* take them together—is because women on estrogen therapy often have an INCREASED need for vitamin C, so it's actually recommended to supplement it. That was probably their thought process... it's like saying, "If you tell your doctor you're on estrogen, then you should probably take some Procter & Gamble."🤣

briskstag13 said:I don't think you quite get what I'm saying. I started using the ring on December 30th, so by the third week, it should expire on January 20th. That makes it a 22-day cycle instead of 21.🙄

Day 1 / 24 hours: Dec 30–31
If you start on Wednesday, Dec 30th, one full week is up on Tuesday, Jan 5th. Following that math, the 21st day of the patch would be Tuesday, Jan 19th. So, on Wednesday, Jan 20th, you’d take it off at roughly the same time you put it on. It looks like you'll always be starting and ending on a Wednesday. Just a heads-up: make sure you apply the new one within that 3-hour window, otherwise the effectiveness might drop.
Did that clear things up for you?😕👍

swiftbear86 said:It doesn't say anything about that in the Procter & Gamble manuals—honestly, who knows. Not happening. It’s already clearly stated—if you're on estrogen, you need to tell your doctor. Just common sense, really.
And that’s exactly what they mean—it’s just worded poorly, which makes it sound like you shouldn't take it at all. What they're actually saying is that women on estrogen therapy have an increased need for Vitamin C, so it's recommended as a supplement. It seems obvious enough—you tell the doctor you're taking estrogen, and they respond, "Well, you should probably add some Procter & Gamble to your routine then."🤣

Oh great, thanks for the comfort—really helpful. 🙂It’s honestly just poorly written. From what I gathered through the interaction, it sounds like you shouldn't be taking it at all—thx.🙂

Maria Doyle said:briskstag13, where on earth did you read that you shouldn't take Procter & Gamble alongside estrogen? That's news to me. 😲😲

I saw it right there in the Procter & Gamble instructions—honestly, I was pretty shocked when I first read it myself.

Kenneth Peterson6 said:The instructions say you have to take it out and put it back in on the exact same day every time. I'm actually planning to try it for the first time today 😉 I've been using Plan B and a little bit of Diana hoping my skin would clear up—but honestly, I'm too lazy and irresponsible with pills, so naturally, there was zero effect except for some pain in my ovary 😁 I'm wondering what it feels like to use NuvaRing? Can you feel it? Like, during sex or when swimming in a pool? Their website doesn't say anything about it, so I'm assuming everything is fine and you can just live your life normally.

As far as I'm concerned, it's great. Way better than pills since you don't have to remember to take them—plus it doesn't go through your stomach, so there's no risk of it failing if you have diarrhea or vomit.🙂 If you put it in right (which the manual explains), you shouldn't feel it at all. Seriously, I don't feel it—not during sex (neither do my partner nor I), and not in any other situation. So far, so good.🙂

swiftbear86 said:Day 1 / 24-hour cycle Dec 30-31
30.12 Wednesday—one week equals 7 days, so it expires on Tuesday, Jan 5th. That means the 21-day patch ends on Tuesday, Jan 19th... then on Wednesday, Jan 20th, you take it off at roughly the same time you put it on... so it looks like you're always putting it on and taking it off on Wednesdays... just remember you have to apply the new one within a 3-hour window (don't wait any longer) or it might lose its effectiveness...
did that help?😕 👍

Basically, I'm totally messing this up. The whole "weeks" thing trips me up because I learned to track everything by days—so I was confused why the 21st day falls on a Tuesday (I thought that meant I should pull it off then). I figured I’d just take my pill on day 21 and skip day 22. I really need a "clueless" emoji right about now.🤣

briskstag13 said:Basically, I think I'm getting myself all mixed up. The whole "weeks" thing is tripping me up because I learned to track everything by days. Since the 21st falls on a Tuesday, I was confused about when to take it off. I figured I'd just take the pill on the 21st day and then skip the 22nd. Honestly, I feel like a total ditz right now.🤣

And here I am, typing "patch" instead of "ring"... I am just exhausted😳
I totally get why you're feeling stressed about this... If you take a pill on Tuesday, it stays in your system for 24 hours, right? So with the ring, you'd technically need to keep it on until Wednesday to finish that full 21-day cycle of 24-hour increments. Or is that overthinking it? At the end of the day, 21 days is 21 days. If your pack has 21 pills, you just take them all.
With the pill, you usually have a 7-day break... and then start the new pack on day 8.
But with the ring, you'd put the new one in on the 7th day of the break, not the 8th.
Either way, if you're feeling unsure, there's no harm in checking with the doctor who prescribed it for you...
And honestly, if the instructions say to always change it on the same day of the week, just stick to that—it’s much easier to remember.

For those using the rings or patches—is there still a risk of spiking liver enzymes? Or is that risk gone since you aren't swallowing pills?

My enzyme levels seem to jump at every little thing, whether it’s stress or just eating something a bit fatty, so I guess I really should avoid oral medication. Does the ring require a prescription? I read that the patch might need one. Also, how much do these things actually cost🙂?

I’ve been using the ring for three months now. I usually get mine shipped from Germany, but you can order it at a local pharmacy with a prescription—I’m not sure about the exact price. I actually just saw my doctor recently, and he explained that the ring works completely differently than patches or pills. I can't recall the specific medical term he used, but he mentioned the ring might even be recommended for women prone to blood clots, whereas they have to avoid pills entirely. So, you could probably use it too, but you’ll need to talk to a specialist first. As for me, I haven't had any side effects. No breast tenderness either (sadly), which is what usually happens when people go crazy on patches or pills. He also told me it shouldn't cause weight gain, which would actually be a plus for me, thanks to how it functions. All he said was that some people find it uncomfortable during sex or notice increased discharge; I've only noticed the latter, and it just started in my third week. My main reason for switching was to clear up my skin. My doctor said this could help with that, similar to how Diana worked for me in the past. The patch was just too weak to handle skin issues like that.

Great, thanks a ton! I guess I'll just head over to the local Whole Foods and see if they have the recipe posted somewhere.😁

EDIT: oh, right, forgot to ask—is that the specific Nuva Ring, or are there a few different versions out there?

Does missing a few pills actually cause cysts to pop up?
I was on my birth control for about six months straight, but when I went in for my checkup, the OBGYN asked if I was being consistent with them. Then she tells me she sees a cyst on the ultrasound...
The thing is, I haven't missed a single dose. Now I’m low-key spiraling thinking maybe my body just wasn't absorbing them right, and honestly, I might have been unprotected during that whole time too...
So now I'm taking a break from them until she prescribes something else, since she thinks these ones just aren't working for my system.

Has anyone ever been laid off like this?? What are the actual odds of something like this even happening?

Olivia Cruz8 said:Has anyone ever dealt with this before?? What are the actual odds of something like this happening?

If a condom breaks, there's definitely a chance—pre-ejaculate can cause pregnancy if she's in her fertile window!

Anyone know what the current price for NuvaRing is? Has it dropped at all lately?