Crazy Birth Control!

I recently stopped my birth control. We are really excited about starting a family soon (we plan on starting to try in May), but the main reason I took it out so soon was because of the side effects I was having! I have been on Nuvaring for around 5 years or so. I can't remember exactly when I started, but it has been a long time. In April of this year my lower back started to hurt. It wasn't horrible, but it was enough to make me uncomfortable. I had thought it was my workout class, Body Pump. I kept going to the class and thought it would just heal itself, but it never did. Finally I stopped going to the class and went to the doctor who told me that I had just strained my back really bad. He gave me vicodin and sent me on my way. After another couple months of now intense pain I went back and was ordered to get x-rays done. Nothing showed up and I was ordered to try Physical Therapy. At this point I am in so much pain I was in tears at work from sitting. Oh, I also tried a chiropracter before the second visit back to the doctor - and nothing. I went to physical therapy for two weeks (a total of 6 times) and it did nothing. She had told me that I should start feeling better after two weeks, but it felt the same. I was starting to feel like nothing was going to work. She had told me that she thought it might be a disk problem and the only way to find out was with a cat scan. My insurance here isn't that great and it would have cost me $2500 min. out of pocket! AH! Who has that kind of money laying around? I knew if things didn't change I would have to suck it up. Since we want to try to get pregnant soon, having lower back problems would make things horrible.

One day I decided to do some research on how long it took some girls getting off of the Nuvaring to get pregnant. I came across a forum of women talking about their experience with the Nuvaring and how many of them had back problems! I about fell out of my chair. I couldn't believe it. Some of the women's experience were almost identical to mine. So, I talked to Alex that night and told him what I had thought. I printed out tons of stuff in case he didn't believe me - haha! I was thinking he would think it was a ploy to get pregnant sooner. Of course he told me to take it out because my health comes first. I waited till that Sunday when I was supposed to take it out anyways, and guess what!? Two weeks later I have no back pain. It started to feel better after only 5 days with it out which was insane. Today I feel great. There is some occasional pain, but NOTHING like it was. I went back to Body Pump (the best class ever!) and besides not being able to walk from my muscles being so damn sore...I am fine! I can't tell you how exciting this is!