According to the literature, how and when you should start completely depends on the method of birth control you were on before starting the ring. Every previous method has a different recommendation: http://www.nuvaring.com/Consumer/howDoIStart/index.asp

Hey, I have another question - is anyone else noticing major emotional swings right before they're due to take out the ring? I don't know if it's different for me because I just keep using the ring straight through... but the first time I changed my ring, two-three days before I was an emotional wreck. Totally illogical, crying at the drop of a hat. Only lasts a day or two, but still!
and then, last night, I was again a little off my rocker, and I'm supposed to change on Thursday.
Anyone??

Oh boy, Jess... I sure hope this is not a general thing, since that's one of the main reasons I want to change from the patch to the ring. :( I could really use a few less mood swings in my life, and so could my bf. Let us know what happens.

I really think hormone = hormone when it comes to this, but there seems to be a difference in the way certain women react to the different types of BC. I think it will be all about the way your body decides to react to the change, abaya, and it might be a change for the better. There's only one way to tell.

Abaya - since no one else is complaining and it IS an even distribution, it's likely just me. I just wanted to check and make sure it's just me!

I've just had normal PMS symptoms...the same ones I've had since I was 12...

I have not had an problems with it at all.

based on this, I think I'm going to stick with my pills. I've never had problems with the. I don't bleed on weekends, I don't get moody, and after two and a half years of sex without condoms, I'm still not pregnant!

Out of curiosity, how long has the ring been on the market?

Depends on where you live. I believe it's been out in the US for around 4 years.

The ingredients of the ring are the same as most monophasic birth control pills--that is to say they are the same levels of synthetic estrogen and progesterone. Because of the way they are released into the body, they are a more steady dosage of hormone which allows for a lower level of hormone to be released. That could be causing some mood swings.

yay my bleeding stopped :)

nikki, like my gyno said to either start it the first day i get my period or like the sunday after..like while i'm still bleeding..so if i get it friday to put it in either that day or that coming sunday. she said that for optimal protection she liked it in the first day. i havent had any mood changes since i started it..thank god...and my gyno said that the reason i was probably spotting was because i'm so sensitive to any form of hormone..or anything really. and that as soon as my body got used to being on it the spotting would stop. the first few months i waas on the pill i was having teh same problem..hopefully my spotting is over :)

Help me out, ladies!!

This is my first month on the Ring, and I've loved it so far.

BUT! I took it out one day too early (Sat night). Don't ask me why, but I thought it was Sunday night. Jetlag and stuff. :rolleyes:

Soooo my period started today (Monday), when usually it starts on Wednesdays (when I've been on the patch). Should I be worried? When should I put it back in... Sunday night as usual, or a day early?

Thing is, I'm leaving for 2.5 months on Sunday, so no real need for contraception after Sunday (unfortunately!) :( ... so I'm not as worried about pregnancy as I am about just keeping my cycle regular.

Suggestions?? Thanks! :)

You wear the ring for three whole weeks, then take it out for a whole week. Doesn't matter what happens in between, that's the schedule you stick to. So, you take it out three weeks after you put it in, and you put a new one in a week after that. If I were you, I'd call my doctor just to make sure, since you took it out a day early. However, my instinct says to act like you took it out on the right day, and put a new one in Sunday night as usual.

i did the same thing abaya...what my gyno said when i called her was to just go seven days and just go on a day earlier each month.

Thanks Sage and Kiwi... I guess I should call my campus nurse, but I am feeling lazy. I'll probably just put it in on Saturday this week, but since I'm wearing it for 2 months straight basically (to avoid my period while traveling in Africa), I'll remove it on a Sunday night when the time comes to have a period, and be back on the usual Sunday schedule after that.

My nurse told me that the Ring actually comes with enough hormones to last for 4 weeks, though of course you should take it out after 3 (in usual circumstances). So I think this will work out okay in the long run. We always use condoms anyway, so we should be fine. Thanks again!!

Abaya--

Just got my new ring pack yesterday and read the prescription info that comes with it. It says to put it in 7 days after you took it out, regardless of your Sunday start schedule. So put it in Saturday and you'll be fine :)

Thanks Owl, I'm planning to do that this week... just didn't know what to do in the following months. I want to get back to a Sunday schedule, so I'm going to switch back to that the following month, hope that doesn't make any babies. :D