Expert: Diane Cheryl - 10/22/2006

Question
I use the nuva ring as continuous cycle birth conrol and me and my boyfrind had sex last sunday night and the next morning we found my ring on the bed and i dont know if it came out before or after intercourse so i dont know if i was unprotected so when i found it on monday morning I cleaned it off but didnt put it back in because i was supposed to put a new one in the next morning. But me and my boyfriend ended up having sex on monday night too and i forgot that i didnt have my ring in so i was unprotected again. so instead of having my period start tuesday i put in a new ring for the extended cycle effects and i was talking to my friend who is pregnant and said she had the same symptoms im having when she was pregnant so she told me to take my ring out for a week and take a pregnancy test just to make sure because birth control is bad for the baby if you are pregnant and im supposed to be having my period all this week so i took my ring out on friday and it's sunday and i still havent started bleeding. Should I be concerned? Thank you so much,
Kenyata

Answer
Dear Kenyata,
There is a possibility that you are pregnant. Yes, it is bad for the hormones to be going into your body if you were pregnant. I am not a medical doctor so I would say that you consult with your physician. My opinion is that you should see if you're pregnant before using the nuva ring again. You could abstain until you find out for sure. Check this website http://www.optionline.org to find a free testing center in your area. They could recommend when to take the test and any other questions you might have. Please email me at DCHERYL51@yahoo.com with any further questions. I would also like to know what happens.
Diane Cheryl
DCHERYL51@yahoo.com