The Birth Control Series IV The Implant, The Patch, and The Nuva. Ring. Welcome back to the Birth Control SeriesIn our last few posts weve discussed the pill today were moving on to other hormonal methods. Click here to access Birth Control Unlocked, your guide to all relevant to me birth control information. The implant, the patch, and the Nuva. Ring are all hormonal birth control methods. One is a thin rod implanted into the arm by a medical professional, another is a patch attached to the skin, and the final is a flexible plastic ring inserted into the vagina. Trying To Conceive Husband Smokes Pot How To Get Pregnant As A Teenager Trying To Conceive Husband Smokes Pot Didnt Plan On Getting Pregnant 34 Weeks 4 Days. Each of them gets hormones into bloodstream. The only real difference between these methods and birth control pills is the method of ingestion. P_Evra.jpg/400px-P_Evra.jpg' alt='When To Start The Evra Patch' title='When To Start The Evra Patch' />They are marketed as hassle free birth control methods, and thats true, more or less. They require less mindfulness than birth control pills do. Whether or not thats something you desire is completely up to you. Each of the methods varies slightly by use by and by hormonal content. There are also some specific health concerns related to each method, so they are worth noting. The Implant. The implant, under the two brand names Implanon and Nexplanon, is a small rod inserted under a womans arm. The implant is made of medical plastic that is sterile and soft. This contraceptive rod is 4. The implant, once inserted, is effective for a maximum of three years. The implant is the only of these three methods to be a progesterone only method. Once the birth control implant is inserted, it begins releasing small doses of the synthetic progesterone etonogestrel. Implanon contains 6. Porta-Travessa-Para-Mesa-3.jpg' alt='When To Start The Evra Patch' title='When To Start The Evra Patch' />Since the implant is a continual dosage of a progestin, the implant does not include a regular cycle the way most other birth control methods do. For the majority of women on the implant, their periods become light but unpredictable. For 3. 0 percent of women, menstruation stops completely within one year of use. For this reason, the implant might be a convenient and relatively risk free option. The EVRA Birth Control Patch How does the EVRA Patch work The EVRA patch is a flexible square sticker that sticks to the skin for a week at a time. It releases the. Evra transdermal patch Summary of Product Characteristics SPC by JanssenCilag Ltd. Lle7634Yr5w/TlaiUey-wmI/AAAAAAAABKA/IKHGdRpplkI/s1600/SANCHEZF+ASGSTITCHES.jpg' alt='When To Start The Evra Patch' title='When To Start The Evra Patch' />I call it relatively risk free because it is estrogen free. It is usually estrogen based pillssuch as the methods belowthat have the potential for scary side effects such as thrombosis and heart attacks. The patch. The patch in the form of Ortho Evra was first released in 2. Because of its supreme convenience and relatively low cost, it became a best seller in two short years, selling nearly 4. However, Ortho Evra is a progesterone estrogen combination pill, and it turns out that the patch generated much higher levels of estrogen in the blood of users than pharmaceutical companies had anticipated. This results in a greater risk of blood clots and shortly thereafter lawsuits began piling up. In 2. 00. 5, Ortho Evra, under an agreement with the FDA, added a black box warning to its packages stating that patch users are exposed to roughly 6. That risk remains fairly low, and there are warning signs that can be heeded in order to save women at risk a new lump in the breasta sudden very bad headacheachy soreness in the legaura seeing bright, flashing zigzag lines, usually before a very bad headachebad pain in the abdomen or chestheadaches that are different, worse, or happen more often than usualno period after having a period every monthtrouble breathingyellowing of the skin or eyes. It is also of course known that women with health problems, even ones as common as diabetes or pre diabetes, should step cautiously around high doses of estrogen. Etihad Pilot Training Program on this page. Risks are low, but the costs are high. Using the patch. The patch is another birth control method that works in cycles. The pattern is three weeks on, with one patch applied each week, and then one week off. The off week is when menstruation occurs. The patch is applied to a womans upper outer arm, buttocks, abdomen or thigh on either the first day of her menstrual cycle or on the first Sunday following that day, or for an amenorrheic woman on any random day, whichever is most appropriate for this woman. The day of application is known by the companies from that point on as patch change day. Seven days later, when patch change day comes again, the woman removes the patch and applies another to one of the approved locations on the body. This process is repeated again two more times. And then one whole 7 day period is taken off for menstruation, starting the whole cycle again on the following patch change day. Continual use of the patch has been studied, but is not recommended considering the relatively higher estrogen dose of the patch. All that being said while higher estrogen levels are associated with risk of cardiovascular problems, women who suffer from low estrogen levels may benefit greatly from estrogen input. The appropriate amount of estrogen varies by the individual, so it is worth discussing these issues with your doctor if you are interested in how much estrogen you should be daring to take. The Nuva. Ring. The Nuva. Ring is a flexible, plastic ring inserted into the vagina each month. It is inserted by the individual at the start of the menstrual cycle and left for three weeks, and then removed for one week while a withdrawal bleed occurs. A new ring is then inserted for the following month. Back to back use of the Nuva. Ringthat is, without a withdrawal bleedhave been studied. They do not seem to be alarming, though have not been officially approved by any government agencies. This is presumably because the estrogen levels from the Nuva. Ring are low enough to tolerate consistent dosages. The Nuva. Ring emerged on the market after the birth control patch, and was instantly popular because it offered an easy contraception method without as much risk of blood clots as the patch. People still leapt up in arms over the Nuva. Ring, claiming that it had increased side effects, but several statistical analyses have shown that it carries the same risk as other birth control options. The Nuva. Ring is also a combination pill, and delivers 1. This is less estrogen than both the patch and other combination pills, which makes the Nuva. Ring desirable with women who have predispositions to estrogen dominance or who have a history of problems with breast tenderness, PMS, nausea, or cramping. The Nuva. Ring also has a lower incidence of breakthrough bleeding, despite how low its estrogen dosage is. Many women believe that the Nuva. Ring is a more gentle form of birth control than othersthat it wont cause hormonal disturbancesbecause it sits in the vagina, and therefore acts locally, rather than universally in the body. This supposedly mitigates the side effects. But I have yet to be able to find any evidence that this is the case. So far as I can tell, the reason the Nuva. Ring may have fewer side effects than other methods is simply because it releases a lower dosage of hormones. All that being said, some researchers argue that third and fourth generation contraceptives including those that contain desogestrel like the Nuva. Ring raise the risk of blood clots without adding any benefit. Third and fourth generation contraceptives contain synthetic estrogens, which may or may not be more problematic than original formulations and bio identical forms. No significant statistical evidence, so far as I can tell, exists to support these claims. So those are alternative methods of taking hormonal birth control The implant contains progesterone only, and reduces menstruation, the patch contains higher levels of estrogen, and the Nuva.