I came across an eye-opening article recently about "third-generation" birth control, which includes products like the NuvaRing (approved by the FDA in 2001) and the birth control patch. According to the piece, new forms of birth control most likely come with a higher risk of blood clots and strokes, risks that the FDA has somehow not given much weight to.
The Mother Jones article told the scary story of 32-year-old mother of two, Jackie Bozicev. In 2007, while using the NuvaRing, a blood clot that migrated from her pelvic area to her lungs caused her to drop dead in front of her two-year-old son. Her husband is now suing the drug company Organon, claiming that it never studied how the NuvaRing's new route for hormone delivery may be more dangerous than taking pills. Because the NuvaRing's dose goes directly into the blood stream (pills lose up to half of the hormones in the digestive tract), it could be as much as two-times more likely to cause blood clots.
Even if the risk of fatality with the ring is higher than the pill, it's still relatively low. Stories like Jackie's, however, demonstrate that there is more to learn about new forms of birth control.
Would you wait for more time to pass before using a newer and more convenient form of birth control, or have you broken free from the pack?
Fontanelli
Canada Goose
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I tried the shot and the patch, but I ended up going back to the Pill... it's really not THAT hard to take a teeny pill once a day! Does anyone say, Oh, I cannot remember to brush my teeth/ shower/ eat?
1I used to be on the patch, but I've since stopped using that due to the cost, and I'm currently on the shot.
Speaking of which, thanks for reminding me! I need to make an appointment to get the shot again.
2I was on third generation for a bit with the patch but bellydancing in a troupe at the time with the patch peeking through every so often. Not cool.
I have recently moved back to first generation in a sense. After years on the pill I have stopped that and am doing fertility awareness method (FAM). Good choice for me at this stage in my life.
3runningesq - good point!
4i almost NEVER forget to take my pill, and in the odd instances i do, it's always because something very random happened that day to make it different than the rest...like i was on a plane or something
i simply set my cell phone alarm to go off every single day at the time i take it
Ugh. I'm so done with birth control. If I'm not bat sh*t crazy, I'm ravenously hungry... I'm STILL waiting for the shot to wear off and I was supposed to get my last re-up in March.
5I have used both the patch and the ring and I am now back on the pills. I got off of the patch because I was worried about the clots (the FDA was re-reviewing them at the time) and the ring made my body stop its estrogen production and made me go into early menopause... at 23. Scary stuff and I couldn't get off it fast enough at that point!
6I am sticking with my pills. At this point, I am not into screwing around and seeing if another form would work just as well. I might give it a shot if they used the same hormones in my current BC Yasmin, because I think it may be more convenient, but taking a pill really is not that hard to do.
7I've been on both the ring and the patch. I had to stop them both because of side effects. The patch caused my periods to be 10x worse and it kept falling off. The ring turned me into a mega b*tch with no sex drive. I'm on the pill now. And I disagree its really easy to forget to take the pill. Comparing it to showering or eating is ridiculous.
8It's amazing how many people i know who have had negative effects from the Nuva Ring. I was on it for 6 months and watched my sex drive completely dissappear. The same thing happened to three others that i know. All of us were in long-term relationships and could not believe how intense the effects were . Literally-- we were revolted by sex. I would 100% never reccommend this to anyone i know. That being said-- its a great birth control for parents to give their underage girls for acne, or pms..... it will cut down on teen pregnancy for sure if no one desires to have sex!!!!!!
9I've been on the pill for many years and I still forget to take it and I never forget to brush my teeth or eat. I've only taken the pill. I'm not a big fan of changing something that is working fine for me so I'll stick with my Yaz.
10i don't mess with stuff like this, i found pills i liked years ago and i've stuck with them ever since... a couple of my friends use the nuva ring and they love it, but i doubt they've heard these scary stories! i just think it's a disgusting idea, leaving something inside your body for an entire month... yuck!
11and i know so many girls that have had nightmare experiences with the shot... SO many... that got their periods for literally months on end when they stopped taking it... grosssss
12I tried the patch at first and got soooo sick from it, now i've been on the pill for years and its all good
13I was told years ago that I couldn't be on estrogen because of my migraines...before that I had no problem with normal pills, but most of the new wave bc haven't been options for me. Since then I've tried the shot (horrible side effects and it took 9 months to leave my system, at which point I lost 15 lbs in two weeks and bled so heavily I went to the ER) and the mini-pills. Now I use FAM too.
14I used the ring for a few years and also watched my sex drive disappear. I was never told this was a side effect and am concerned because my sex drive really hasn't come back! I'd love to know what others did to remedy the situation...
15The pill works for me and I honestly don't find it that inconvenient. If it ain't broke... or knocked up.
16I'm sterilized and it's wonderful. I had bleeding problems on the shot. I was on pills but it made me nauseated and eventually made my blood pressure high. That was before the lower dose ones were an option.
17All forms of hormone contraception are pretty much the same to me. They all make me insane.
18Thanks for posting this. I recently started using the ring, but I'm having the same problems with it I had with the pill. honestly, hormonal birth control just makes me nervous and rarely seems worth it.
19I wish more doctors recommended non-hormone/IUD birth control. I asked my doctor about it since I was going nuts with hormones, and they said I am not a candidate because I'm not married.
20I am on the patch and absolutely love it. I was really sick when I first started taking it, but it wasn't anything I didn't experience with the pill. All birth controls I have tried have made me nauseous at first.
I started taking the patch when the pills (three kinds) I kept trying weren't working for me. Since then, my period is pain free and like clockwork. I don't plan on staying on it for much longer, though. I really believe that hormonal BC works best with younger people less prone to these problems. I talked with my doctor about the potential health issues, and she made me feel comfortable enough to use it. After all, people on the pill get clots too (Hell, people not on the pill get clots..). It's just a matter of what one specific person is prone to. It's a risk, as there is with all medication - espeically ones taken over a long time. Whether or not it'll exacerbate or create a condition is usually unknown before trying.
I think that if someone is on this type of BC, they should watch their weight, eat right and remain healthy because having these extra problems probably puts someone more at risk...
Wow, this was longer than I originally planned... haha.
21Mamasita -- why did they say you neede to be married to have hormone free bc??
22I use the ring and i love it! i don't take it because im too stupid to remember to take a pill every morning . . but i tried a lot of pills and nothing ever felt right, i need a really low-dose of estrogen and that's what the ring has and it's been great for me. i've never had a single side-effect and my periods are light and it's fabulous for me!
my sis got me on it bc she loves it too and i got two girl friends on it and they love it as well. i think every woman's body is so unique that it's hard to say what works for one person will/not work for another. it's what works for u that matter most.
and i won't stop taking it bc of this clotting story, ppl on the pill get clots too.
23I was on the pill for two years and had trouble remembering to take. So it tried the patch for 3 months.
24You know how when you have a bandaid on for too long and the edges get all dirty and bent up. Thats what wearing the patch was like. I hated it. It was gross
I love the nuvaring and have been on it for two years now
I use the ring as well and don't have a problem with it either. I have used it 2 different times and the first time everything went smoothly. The second time, which was years later, my body took a month to get used to it and I spotted the entire time. However, once that was done it was back to normal.
25i use third generation pill. old generation should be illegal as it is more damaging. the hormon amounts. especially the first generation, but i doubt that still exists.
26I tried them, but went back to the pill. The patch was annoying and way too visible, and the shot totally effed me up for quite a while. I don't have a problem doing the daily thing though, so the pill is fine for me.
27I use the ring and I love it! I never remembered to take my pill and I don't think that it's fair to compare it to showering/brushing your teeth because you can physically feel when you need to do it--like you shower because you are dirty or tired. And it's not the end of the world if you forget to brush your teeth one night--it's not like you're going to get pregnant from it.
28Running- I'm guessing Mamasita wasn't allowed an IUD, not necessarily non-hormonal birth control. They tend to avoid giving IUDs to younger/unmarried women because if you are exposed to an STI, you would be at a greater risk of serious infection (since you have that little implant making a path right up into you). Also, some IUDs are hormonal (e.g. Mirena) but just have lower levels of hormones than pills.
29i agree with cmd0610,
i'm on the ring-and i think it's awesome! i don't feel it. ever.
and the pills made me nauseous, so i wouldn't take them right..i was fighting myself everyday to the point i just stopped taking them.
and everyone is COMPLETELY different, you should know your body well enough to know what's right for you.
30I've been on the ring for about a year, and its the only bc I've ever been on. I've never had any of those side effects like low sex drive or anything normal for a bc (not even when starting it). Actually its almost like I have a all the time sex drive, but I don't know if it's because I'm only 18 or if my body thinks its in estrus all the time, but I'm pretty sure its increased. I want a IUD because it's so long term but I really don't think my doctor will want to give one to me--online it says that they mainly give them out to women that have already had one child because their uterus is bigger and less chance of perforation or expelling it?
31I'm on a newer form of the pill, Seasonique, and I adore it. I will shout praise for my extended-regimen BC from the rooftops if allowed to. I have a bleeding disorder, so my periods (when they finally showed up at 16) have always been utterly miserable. Severe bleeding for sometimes 18 or 19 days, no exaggeration at all ... I was so unhappy.
When I got to college I tried the regular monthly-cycle pills, and it definitely helped. My periods were lighter but I would still often have 12-13 day periods, so the RN at my school suggested I try Seasonique. My hematologist said it would be a good idea, and HOLYCOW they were right. Every three months I have a light period which lasts exactly 3 days, like clockwork.
I'm not messing with such a beautiful system to try anything new!!
32You know, there are 10 or so other potential risk factors that increase your chance of blood clots, right Tres? Being on the Nuvaring or any hormonal birth control (for that manner) is only one of them and not nearly sufficient to cause the blood clot alone without other risk factors involved such as inactivity, being overweight, family history, smoking, being pregnant or previously pregnant, etc. What happened to Bozicev is indeed tragic but I have observed that while one birth control may work for one woman, it may not work for another. Nuvaring has worked for me for a few years now and I've suffered no side affects what so ever. However, it seems it does not work for a few of my friends. I also know two women who were suffering the same problems with blood clots in their legs while being on a pill form of birth control. So, really, it's a bit of a hit or miss. Women just need to find what works for them. Unfortunately, there will always be risk involved when you switch medications.
33I was on the pill for 2 years and i loved it!! The hubby and I have been trying to get pregnant for 3 years, so no more BC for me! Clearly BC is a waste of time with me. If I needed it, I would definitely be mindful of the health effects as well as the increases in breast and ovarian cancer related to these different hormonal BC methods. Whenever you mess with hormones, these risks go up!
34If I needed it, I would definitely be mindful of the health effects as well as the increases in breast and ovarian cancer related to these different hormonal BC methods. I've never seen solid scientific evidence of this.
35I have run into many of the same problems as others using the run- reduced sex drive, etc. On top of that, I just foudn out I'm pregnant! So be weary of these new types of birth control, I was so satisfied with the ring as it didn't give me mood swings or othe crankiness that the pill did. So be very careful and learn your options!
36what i don't understand is why women have to go through all this sh*t with birth control. why don't more men get vasectomies? aren't they alot more simple and less invasive and cumbersome then what women have to go through
37"what i don't understand is why women have to go through all this sh*t with birth control. why don't more men get vasectomies? aren't they alot more simple and less invasive and cumbersome then what women have to go through"
Vasectomies are permanent (yes, I know it's possible to reverse, but there are no guarantees and it's a more invasive procedure) and these hormonal methods are temporary and a lot less invasive. Hormonal BC for men is on the horizon, and Tres just posted about it a few days ago.
I'd also like to note that most couples I know who want permanent BC opt for the man getting a vasectomy instead of the woman getting a tubal.
38what i don't understand is why women have to go through all this sh*t with birth control. why don't more men get vasectomies?
Because many couples want children - eventually. Short of condoms - which many couples in monogamas relaltionships don't want ot use - hormonal b.c. is basically the only option.
39Mamasita, try Planned Parenthood. I got my IUD there and I'm not married nor have I ever had a child. I am in a long term monogamous relationship, but they didn't make that seem like a criteria either. If you're having sex with someone new you should be using a condom anyway! The extra hormones from the pill/ring were adding a lot to my pelvic pain, not fun. So I probably won't use them again. It's been cut back significantly, but not totally
with the Mirena (still
has some hormones though).
40Condoms are my favorite form of birth control. I don't like the way the hormones make me feel (out of control, sad, and fat), and I don't like the risk of ovarian/cervix cancer that can be had with IUDs and hormonal birth control.
My husband doesn't mind condoms, and we spice it up by getting textured condoms and switching it up a lot. I've been sexually active for 7 years and never been pregnant-- condoms work.
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