Vaginal Ring Safety & Effectiveness | Birth Control

Learn about the safety and effectiveness of the vaginal ring, aka the Nuva ring, in this Howcast video about birth control.

The vaginal ring is a ring that has estrogen and progesterone. It is placed into your vagina. The hormones get absorbed by your vagina for 21 days. After 21 days, you remove the NuvaRing, and during that interval you should get your period.

It is a safe and effective form of birth control, equally as effective as using the birth control pills, and as far as the safety profile, it is the same, if not better, than using the birth control pills.

The NuvaRing is a form of birth control where the hormones are absorbed by your vagina. It doesn't require the daily motivation of using the birth control pills. However, it is up to you to remember when you placed the ring and when you have to remove the ring, and then to replace the ring month after month. That is an easy thing for you to control. You can write it down on your calendar. Everybody has a smartphone. You can set an alarm. You can tell your partner to help you keep track of when to replace it and when to remove it. Using these reminders to help you change and replace this NuvaRing will help improve the contraceptive effectiveness.

If you are interested in the vaginal ring as a form of birth control, you should contact your doctor or nurse practitioner so that you can talk to them in more detail and figure out if this is the best birth control option for you. You will need a prescription for this form of birth control. It is not available without a prescription, and you can fill it at the pharmacy just like you fill other birth control options.