NuvaRing and Pregnancy Risk: What to Do If You Missed Your Pill

Question
my boyfriend and i had decided to have a baby, so i didnt use my nuvaring on time... the day before or of ovulation i got a lil freaked out i didnt think i was ready so i put my ring in, we had unprotected sex (except the ring) fri sat and sun i know i ovulated fri or sat because of an ovulation kit. Could i still be pregnant? After i took it out i still had a normal period but im still a lil bit uneasy about the whole thing...

Answer
Dear Crystal,

As a general rule, Nuvaring cannot be considered to be effective as birth control without a back-up method until it has been in place for seven continuous days.

If the Nuvaring has been out of the vagina for more than three continuous hours during the 1st or 2nd week of use, contraceptive effectiveness may be reduced. In this situation, the ring should be reinserted as soon as possible and use an extra method of birth control, such as male condoms and/or spermicide, until the ring has been used continuously for seven days. If you did not use a back up method, you may have been susceptible to pregnancy.

If NuvaRing has been out of the vagina for more than three continuous hours during the 3rd week of the three-week use period, the woman should discard that ring. One of the following two options should be chosen:
1. Insert a new ring immediately. Inserting a new ring will start the next three-week use period. The woman may not experience a withdrawal bleed from her previous cycle. However, breakthrough spotting or bleeding may occur.
2. Have a withdrawal bleeding and insert a new ring no later than seven days (7x24 hours) from the time the previous ring was removed or expelled. This option should only be chosen if the ring was used continuously for the preceding seven days. A barrier method such as condoms or spermicides must be used until the new ring has been used continuously for seven days.

I would suggest that if you do not have a regular period during the next cycle, you make sure to test for pregnancy.

I hope this has helped you and answered your question. I wish you well.

Brenda