Is NuvaRing giving me an unstoppable period?

June 8, 2007 9:16 AM

Is my NuvaRing making my period wonky, and will it eventually stop? Has anyone had similar side-effects from starting on the Ring? Womanly cycle details inside.

I was on Ortho TriCyclin Lo until the end of April. I stopped because it was making me crazy and crave chocolate all the damn time. I used no hormonal birth control during May. This month I began NuvaRing. A week-and-a-half ago my period started (though three days late). On the second day of flow I inserted the Ring, as per its official instructions booklet. Now my period has yet to stop, though for the past week the flow has been very light.

Previous to OrthoLo I usually menstruated six to seven days. I had no initial side-effects switching to OrthoLo, and when I was on it my periods lasted about five days or less, and were much lighter than previously. This whole ten-day period thing is an entirely new and unwelcome development.

Has anyone experienced similar side-effects from switching to the Ring or birth control in general? Do I need to wait it out or see a doctor? It is going to stop some time, right? God, I hope it will stop.

posted by anonymous to Health & Fitness (12 answers total)

Just a guess:

I have no specific info about NuvaRing, but "breakthrough bleeding" is often given as a possible side effect when starting birth control/starting new birth control, and often manifests itself as just a really long period. Especially since you took that month off, your body may just be adjusting to the new hormones. Breakthrough bleeding normally stops within 1-3 months.

As always, if you're really concerned, see a doctor. Definitely see a doctor if it doesn't go away in 3 months.
posted by doift at 9:26 AM on June 8, 2007

I'm willing to bet that your body is just adjusting to the new birth control. As long as this period stops within the next few days, I'd give your NuvaRing another month at least to get used to it before you decide whether or not it's a problem. IANAD.

Ooh, but make sure you're taking vitamins. I became anemic once after an extra-long period, and I don't recommend it.
posted by bluishorange at 9:28 AM on June 8, 2007

I was on the ring for a few years and all the sudden had the same issue. Like, three months of it. So I went off, and had NOTHING for two months.
Now things seem to have normalized, and I'm going to give the ring another shot because I loved it before that.

Although, in my case, I think it was because I had been stacking and had let it go too long without getting a period.
posted by Kellydamnit at 9:37 AM on June 8, 2007

I have first hand experience with this exact issue. I used the ring when it first hit the market with no adverse side effects. I then had no need of consistent BC, so I went off. 2 years (?) pass, and I go back on and you described exactly what happened to me. I asked my Dr., and she told me Nuvaring had since changed the chemical make up and the ring secretes a much lower dose hormone, and it simply wasn't strong enough for me.

The best story was when my BF asked me - "is it supposed to do this"? I looked over and there was the ring around his penis, like the ring toss at a carnival game! Or the time he found one in the washing machine. I really disliked then having to check and make sure it was still there all the time after those 2 experiences.
posted by goml at 9:42 AM on June 8, 2007

I experienced something similar when I first started using Nuvaring. My body was just adjusting to a different type of birth control (previously I'd used Yasmin for three years). After the first month, things became normal. I actually have a much lighter period now than I've ever had. It lasts three to four days, and I experience no side effects. (Tho for the first three months, the Nuvaring also made me nauseated.)

Things will most likely even out for you after the first month or three.
posted by smich at 9:45 AM on June 8, 2007

Happened to me the first time I took any hormonal birth control. It's just your body getting a handle on a brand-spankin'-new hormonal cocktail, I think. I called the doctor and they said if it was still happening after a month on the pill it was worth their time to see me and otherwise they weren't going to bother.
posted by crinklebat at 10:00 AM on June 8, 2007

Everyone is right. This is an extremely common side effect during the first 3 months of hormonal birth control use.

This is going to sound terrible, but didn't you read the pamphlet?! What kind of doctor wouldn't tell you about that!?
posted by sunshinesky at 10:13 AM on June 8, 2007

Response by poster: I definitely read that pamphlet before sticking that thing inside me, but periods that never end were not listed as one of the side-effects. I thought breakthrough bleeding only happened mid-cycle--now I know!
posted by Anonymous at 10:27 AM on June 8, 2007

Okay, I'm going to use a disclaimer: I've been on NuvaRing for a little over six years now and I absolutely love it. That said, I experienced a few burps in my period regulation for the first three months. Judging from your post, I think a lot of it is your body getting used to the hormones jumping all over the place from being on BC, off, and back on within three months, that is a lot of chemicals for your body to process. My OB/GYN always advised to give BC at least two months to settle down and get into a pattern.

Also: goml - my boyfriend loves that game.
posted by banannafish at 10:28 AM on June 8, 2007 [1 favorite]

ok, phew.. sorry if I came off as a bit rude.

Periods that never end? ack... but yes, it's possible.
posted by sunshinesky at 10:40 AM on June 8, 2007

I had the same thing happen to me when I got on the Nuvaring the 2nd time. The first time I was on it, everything was working normally. Then I quit hormonal bc for a year or two. Then I started Nuvaring again. The first month in, I had light spotting for the whole month. Took it out during the "bleed week" to start bleeding again, and put it in 7 days later and all was fine. I just use it to skip periods completely now.

The only hiccup I've had lately was when I drank way too much alcohol one night and started to get breakthrough bleeding the next day. IANAD but I think it was because my body was so busy trying to metabolize the alcohol, it couldn't metabolize the hormones from the ring so I started bleeding. I took the ring out, bled for 7 days, inserted a new one, and now everything has been fine.
posted by nakedsushi at 4:24 PM on June 8, 2007

I had the unstoppable period my first month of using the NuvaRing. Things did calm down for month 2.
posted by mylittlehipster at 1:44 PM on June 11, 2007