NuvaRing and Anxiety: What Users Say

• Per...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 4, 2019

For Birth Control "Personally, I have had extremely heavy and bad cramps on my period. I’ve been on birth control since I was 14. I started with the pill but forgot to take it all the time, then I went to the IUD but had extreme weight gain and headaches. My anxiety also worsened with the IUD. I switched to the NuvaRing around 5 months ago, and it has been the best decision I’ve made for my reproductive health. My periods are a light spotting, my cramps are tolerable, and I haven’t gained any weight. Plus, my boyfriend can’t feel it during sex. Don’t be afraid of the negative reviews, everyone’s body is different, and you just need to find what works for you!"

• A O...
• November 12, 2019

For Birth Control "I was recommended the NuvaRing by a friend, and I have been on it since the beginning of August (so 4 months). At first, it felt fine, no noticeable side effects. My skin looked really good, which was a huge plus for me. But then I started noticing a general malaise. A deep sadness and anxiety that would wake me up every single morning around 4/5 a.m., and a sadness that would linger throughout the day. I attributed this again to stress (job change, applying to grad school, long-distance relationship). But I felt really different. I started to feel like my personality was shifting, like all my happiness and joy completely disappeared and I was becoming a shell of a former self. I've been extremely stressed and depressed before, but this is a whole new level of feeling anxious. Crying at the smallest things, feeling so sensitive to anything. Of course, it could just be stress, but how can you differentiate between what is real and what is hormonal? You start to go crazy!"

• Anonymous
• February 9, 2010

For Birth Control "I hate to be one of the many negative commenters on here, but I want others to know my side effects that were related to the ring that I didn't at first think was related to it. Severe anxiety and racing heart, back pain. Zero sex drive! My alcohol tolerance down to zero with severe vomiting, shivering, and hangovers. VERY moody especially week before the period. I have been off all birth control for about 2-3 weeks...ALL symptoms have disappeared...amazingly...and now I know it's related to the birth control, not me going insane."

• Gra...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• September 6, 2020

For Birth Control "I had a horrible experience with NuvaRing. I’ll admit it was nice not having to worry about taking a pill every day, but I experienced awful side effects. It caused me to become extremely depressed and anxious and lowered my libido. My doctor told me I wouldn’t be able to feel it during intercourse, but I could, and it was so uncomfortable-sometimes even painful. If needed, you can take it out for up to 3 hours, but it’s inconvenient to have to do that. I also had severe period cramps while using this. I personally do not recommend NuvaRing."

• Sop...
• June 8, 2019

For Birth Control "NuvaRing caused anxiety and depression for me. After 3 years of the ring, I was experiencing severe anxiety and feelings of loneliness, restlessness, irritability, fatigue, sadness, and I could not understand where it was coming from. After putting two and two together, I removed the ring and within 24 hours that awful fog lifted, and I'm back to myself again. I think NuvaRing is a super alternative to the conventional pill, but please watch out for signs of anxiety and/or depression. The difference after I took it out was shocking, and I really wish that I had been told this could happen. I hate to think how many women are suffering from this debilitating mental health issue without realizing that it is their contraception. In terms of application, wear, and comfort, the NuvaRing is easy, convenient, and overall great. It is easy to apply and causes no problems whatsoever, it has never dislodged or caused discomfort."

• Jaw...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• November 2, 2019

For Birth Control "I’m 29, and I’ve been on NuvaRing for about 4 years, with a short break where I experimented with the pill again while I was between doctors, but the pill made me a psychopath. I chose NuvaRing because it was near impossible to get an IUD without having given birth because of the way my cervix is tilted. I have nothing but positive things to say. I have bipolar disorder with adrenalized anxiety and noticed no increase in anxiety as a result of NuvaRing, which seems to be a major issue for many women on this forum. However, the change in hormones during the off week has a drastic effect on my anxiety. Another complaint someone had was 'the worst yeast infection' of their life; I have had a yeast infection with the ring that felt like it would never go away. Turned out I just needed to take the ring out and rinse it more frequently in addition to the normal treatment. Overall, I was very satisfied with my experience."

• Sal...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 21, 2019

For Birth Control "I am an 18-year-old who was relatively healthy before starting the NuvaRing. (I had the Nexplanon before I started the ring.) I kept the ring in literally for 2 weeks, and I will have to say that this experience has changed my whole view of birth control. I immediately experienced depression and anxiety, both of which I’ve never had a history with. My legs would swell up, I felt dizzy, and I had pains in my chest. I had been to the doctors three times in the past two weeks because of these things, and I could quite put my finger on why it was happening until recently. I also never thought that vaginal dryness would ever be an issue with me, but it was. My sex drive completely disappeared. My body immediately hated this birth control, and I am still suffering from the effects of it a week later. Please look at all possible risks and side effects for this birth control before taking it, because if I had known, I would have steered clear of it."

• Mea...
• July 11, 2019

For Birth Control "I was on hormonal pills that caused anxiety and OCD tendencies. My now husband was a saint through that. After becoming pregnant due to a faulty IUD (arm did not fully deploy, and luckily I did not need a surgery), NuvaRing was recommended. I almost made it through my 2nd ring. Over the last few weeks, I noticed an increase in anxiety, being quick to anger, and intense depression. After having days of panic attacks (exacerbated by reviews and thinking I had blood clots) and feelings of complete misery, I decided I needed to remove it. It’s been over 12 hours, and overall I feel better, just exhausted. Everyone reacts to medications differently, and maybe I was more sensitive to it, but I thought it was important to share my experience because I wonder how many people feel that way and think it’s them when it’s not. Even this time, it took my husband to point out there was something altering my system and snap me out of it because I was convinced my feelings were all my fault."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 14, 2014

For Birth Control "I started NuvaRing 3 weeks and 2 days ago. I loved it because I didn't have to remember to take a pill. That was the extent of my happiness. Within 1 week, I started to get complaints about my attitude, and people were genuinely concerned about what was wrong with me. Within 2 weeks, I had severe anxiety and depression with suicidal thoughts. I know people say it takes time to get used to, but I would've been dead by then. Prior to the 3-week mark, I had stabbing pain near/in my heart. That occurred for 2 days, on the second day, I said goodbye to my NuvaRing. I did research 2 days after I removed it and found out that it isn't recommended if you have ever had depression, and I had PPD very badly (psych ward for 3 days, yeah, bad)."

• Mar...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 16, 2019

For Birth Control "I was prescribed the NuvaRing after talking with my doctor about different options. It was pretty easy to insert, and I feel that was the only good thing about this birth control. You could feel the ring during sex and it even caused bleeding afterwards (which had never happened before on any kind of pill). Then came the emotional part. On day 5 of having the NuvaRing in, I became so emotional I cried for an entire day about nothing and had no interest in eating or wanting to get out of bed. I took the ring out the following morning, and within 30 minutes, I felt so much better. I am normally a very outgoing and happy person, but this birth control really affected my emotions. While everyone is different and many probably will have better luck with the birth control than I did, I am just sharing my experience. I only used this birth control for 5 days, so maybe I would have had better success if I had tried it a bit longer, but I just couldn’t take the emotions it made me have."

• MeS...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 18, 2014

For Birth Control "I switched over to the NuvaRing from Gildess FE 1/20 simply for the convenience. Gildess worked great for me, no side effects, so I figured I would try NuvaRing. I had to stop it after two months. The second month on the ring, I experienced off-and-on anxiety, depression at times, feeling unmotivated, and just not like myself. I attributed it to it being finals week in college... but when I didn't feel at peace at all during break, I knew something was wrong. I even flipped out on my boyfriend for no reason and ignored him. The final straw was the random crying outbursts I experienced. Nothing was bothering me, but I found myself fighting back random tears. Back to Gildess for me! Thank God! I can't sacrifice emotional stability for convenience."

• Ean...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 27, 2019

For Birth Control "Lord... where do I start. I’ll preface by saying this is my 2nd month of being on the NuvaRing. The anxiety; the insomnia; the stomach bloating and added love handles. The damn constipation and gas—OMG!!!! Emotions through the roof; paranoia and the cramping and leg pain. WHAT IN THE WORLD????"

• Bri...
• April 24, 2015

For Birth Control "I've been using NuvaRing for about 3 months now, and I thought that the extremely bad anxiety was caused by other problems and that it'd go away, but it hasn't and has only gotten worse. My face has been breaking out more than when I was in high school. My sex drive has decreased tremendously! I've never had depression until I started NuvaRing, and it's probably become the worst part of all of this. I started getting leg cramps, which usually never happen and are supposed to be a sign of blood clots, as stated in the side effects. I WOULD NOT recommend this to anyone. I could go on and on about other side effects from this, but I wanted to point out the ones that have affected me the most."

• Ada...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• June 13, 2019

For Birth Control "I was on the NuvaRing for 6 years. I loved the convenience of it and had minimal symptoms up until maybe a year ago. I did have mood swings on it, but not much worse than the typical PMS ones. The last year or so, I kept getting UTIs. My partner gets scraped by the ring every time, and the pain during sex brought me almost to tears every time. We decided it needed to go. Talked to my doctor who explained that as we get older, our bodies can react differently to hormones. So a birth control you start at 25 may have horrible side effects at 30. Weird, I thought, but oh well. I switched over to the pill, and although I'll miss the ring, the anxiety I didn't have before, the pain during sex, the UTIs-those I won't miss. Also, it randomly made my legs go numb and had some other issues the doctors swear the NuvaRing didn't cause. My advice: try it, it could be great for you. It was great for many years, but as our bodies change, so does our tolerance of hormones and such."

• KMP...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 12, 2021

For Birth Control "I thought at first that this medication would be the holy grail... no problems the first week and the second week a few changes, some anxiety and increased discharge. The third week is when it all drastically changed for me. I started going from being ruthless and uncaring to crying and being overly emotional the next. I was getting horrible migraines and did not feel like eating. I got severely depressed and anxious very quickly over the smallest things. I was numb, almost like how an antidepressant would make you feel. I have since taken it out, but it says it can take up to 2 menstrual cycles to get the hormones cleansed from your system... so be cautious about if you are experiencing signs and symptoms now that they do not just go away when you take it out. It was very scary and upsetting... I would not recommend."

• Eri...
• September 1, 2019

For Birth Control "I am 33 and have been on NuvaRing for 3-4 years. There are some positives and negatives which I will list: Positives: - Clear skin: I have always struggled with acne, and my skin became very clear. - Light periods and no cramping. - Convenience, and you don't have to remember to take a pill every day. - Easy to use. - Effective in prevention of pregnancy. Negatives: - Highly increased appetite: I have gained 30 lbs in 3 years (start weight was 140, now 170). - No sex drive: Sex became miserable to endure because I had no interest in it. - Increase in mood swings, aggravation, depression, anxiety, and laziness. - Headaches: Occur very frequently and sometimes lasted for 2-4 days. - Sharp random pains in cervix. - Increase in discharge. I have been off the NuvaRing now for a little over a month, and I feel like my personality is back to normal. I feel like myself again. I have lost weight (6 lbs in one month, and I notice I’m not as hungry and don’t have severe cravings anymore)."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 3, 2013

For Birth Control "I started using this product when I became serious with my boyfriend. I'm very scatterbrained, so using it has been amazing in regards to never worrying about missing a pill. I can just leave it in and not worry. After being on it for only 3 months, I noticed an extreme weight gain, loss of sex drive, virtually no vaginal fluid, breast tenderness, anxiety, and severe mood swings. But I stayed on it, hoping it would pass. It hasn't. 2 years later, I'm only on it for convenience. I'm switching this week."

• Mar...
• April 8, 2016

For Birth Control "I am still on NuvaRing, but am ready for a change. I don't feel like myself anymore. I feel lost, confused, and it's very hard for me to feel happy without feelings of anxiety and panic overcoming me. I have recurring negative thoughts that give me anxiety that I cannot stop. I feel like I'm spinning out of control and unable to control my thoughts. I have 'crazy' outbursts and am extremely sensitive. I have noticed that in the past few months that I go through one week where I feel like I should completely change my life-pack up and move away, usually the week before I take the ring out. I'm ready to be done with NuvaRing forever!"

• Sam...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• February 24, 2019

For Birth Control "I started NuvaRing 8 months ago after being on 3 different IUDs the past 17 years. At first, I loved it. It did make my vagina swell the first week, but it wasn’t irritating or a problem. Periods are kind of all over the place, and cramping is worse than ever before. Had me laying with a heating pad 3 out of the 5 days. After 8 months, I have gained 16 pounds, and my anxiety and depression are through the roof. I had 3 panic attacks in the past 2 weeks, and it is definitely from this birth control. On a positive note, my cystic acne completely went away, and my skin is, for the most part, really clear. Also, I have not gotten pregnant. I would recommend this product but to pay close attention to your mental health. If you feel anxiety and depression coming on, you need to stop using it and contact your doctor. I’ve also had brief suicidal thoughts. I stopped taking this and am trying the mini pill. Wish me luck. I am writing my review because I feel birth control side effects are extremely underreported."

• Nik...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 2, 2019

For Birth Control "I had a horrible experience with the NuvaRing. I developed debilitating anxiety and OCD while on it. It took a mental breakdown for me to evaluate what could possibly be the cause of my mental instability. Once I took the ring out, I was my old self again in 2 weeks. I still struggle with OCD, just not as severely. Unfortunately, however, I believe the NuvaRing did some permanent damage. What I hope for all of you reading is to remember to listen to your body! You know when something is wrong. Don't ignore it like I did until you go into crisis."

• Ano...
• November 4, 2016

For Birth Control "I love that I only have to think about my birth control twice a month. It's easy to use. That being said, after about six months of use, I realized that I was noticeably more anxious, depressed, and emotional. Where I've had problems with anxiety before, I more frequently have panic attacks, a rapid heartbeat, and a tight chest. I find it hard to fall asleep at night and hard to get out of bed in the morning. Maybe the worst part is that I have a very low libido. There will be times when I do have a desire to have sex with my SO, but my body doesn't respond or tenses up quickly. Otherwise, I don't think about intercourse nearly as much as I used to."

• Gab...
• July 16, 2019

For Birth Control "I used to use NuvaRing years ago and never had an issue with it. I loved that I didn't have to take a daily pill. Unlike other birth control, NuvaRing didn't make me nauseous or break out. I recently started using it again after about a 4-year break. Huge mistake. I have been on it for 2 months, and I had to take it out. I am normally just a happy person in general, I became so short-tempered and irritable. My fiancé saw me so emotional and anxious. I couldn't figure out what was wrong with my head and would snap at my son and fiancé over nothing. I gained 5 lbs in less than 2 months, am always hungry and super tired. I also started getting short of breath and had leg cramps that were absolutely crippling. I would wake up screaming from the cramps, and the next day my calves would feel bruised. I don't know if it's changed since I last used it, but I can't handle it. The effects were noticeable after just 2 days, so if you notice anything abnormal after you start taking it, don't ignore it."

• kik...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 14, 2019

For Birth Control "I had NuvaRing inserted for maybe 48 hours when I started noticing some extra side effects my doctor did NOT tell me about. I was only told my sex drive would be lower and I might gain weight, which I was okay with. But I woke up one morning feeling extremely nauseous, which isn’t new, but it usually goes away after a half hour of being up. Not this time. I couldn’t leave my bed because my stomach cramps were so awful, I couldn’t hold anything down, not water, crackers, broth. I had two awful anxiety attacks, thank goodness my roommate was home because if you know anything about anxiety attacks, you know how scary they can be. I finally realized after 11 pm that day, “OH maybe it’s the NuvaRing!” I took that thing out so fast, and less than two hours later, the cramping, vomiting, and extreme anxiety attacks stopped. Obviously, birth control affects women in different ways, but after that awful experience, I would never look back to the ring again."

• Mis...
• May 27, 2015

For Birth Control "I was on the pill for 4 years, and I had extreme anxiety and headaches. I switched to NuvaRing and feel great. A lot less headaches, no anxiety. I haven't gained any weight that I've noticed, my sex drive is still very high. I might be a little more snippy, and I have had issues with yeast infections. It's only been two months, so I'm gonna keep watching my weight and will update shortly."

• Abc...
• November 9, 2019

For Birth Control "I have been on many different pills, two different IUDs, the Depo shot, and then the ring. The ring, by far, was the worst. I had side effects with all forms of birth control, usually to do with unusual bleeding or inconsistent periods. The NuvaRing was the only birth control I could find that controlled my periods. Unfortunately, it also caused acne, weight gain, despite feeling nauseous all the time and having no appetite. No sex drive, and I was so anxious and emotional that I thought I was going crazy. I was on the ring for almost two years, with all of these side effects, which I did not realize were being caused by it. When I finally realized this may be why this is happening, I took it out, and I feel so much better now."