Sex & Romance
Dear Community,
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Natural Family Planning
Do you do this? How did you get started? I just stopped taking BC and trying to figure out when I'm ovulating. Is there a kit you'd recommend? THANKS!
Re: Natural Family Planning
Well, here's a free "kit":
1) Go to your library & check out "Taking Charge of Your Fertility."
2) For free, sign up on FertilityFriend.com (can click link in my sig). Free, easy way to chart online.
Good luck!
I have been charting for a little over a year now and it is wonderful! If you TTC or TTA it works for both.
I read Toni Weschlers Taking Charge of Your Fertility. I bought it off amazon for like 10 bucks. It took a couple months/cycles to get used to, but it is great learning about your own body!
Msg me if you have any questions!
My husband and I started using NFP right before we got married because I was dissatisfied with the ways that hormonal birth control was affecting my health. I love NFP, and I've been on 3 different pills and Depo. I love it because I know my body and my cycles better than I've ever known them before, and it brings my husband and I closer together too--our chart is done entirely in his hand writing.
1. If you aren't too weirded out by religion (or if you can tolerate it at least), take a class in your area offered by CCL (The Couple to Couple League). It's a series of 3 classes. The class costs about $130, but they will teach you how to use the method correctly and in all scenarios and the teaching couple will go over your charts with you until you feel comfortable charting on your own. They'll also answers all your questions and I mean ALL of them. Our teaching couple was fantastic and I asked some pretty random questions. At the class you'll also receive a "kit," which includes a digital Basal Body thermometer that holds your temperature until you decide to check it later (trust me this comes in handy!) It also includes, charts, a how to book, software, and a great book on nutrition. Best money I ever spent.
2. Read/Buy Taking Control of Your Fertility! It's a fantastic book! I am glad, that we took the CCL course first because TCOYF has a lot of information and can be overwhelming if you don't know what you're getting into. CCL gives you what you need to know to start practicing effectively right away. TCOYF gives you more of the nuts and bolts.
3. I know many people who have used NFP very successfully to postpone pregnancy. My husband and I are an example. Once you learn the science behind it; it will really make a lot of sense. Just like with any birth control failure rate is more related to user practice than the method. If you practice NFP consistently then it is just as successful (99%) as any other kind of birth control and in some cases more so.
Sorry, for such a long post. I hope it could give some helpful information. Here's the website for the CCL if you're interested: http://www.ccli.org/
Taking Charge of Your Fertility is a great tool to answer questions like this. NFP is not something you're "on" - it's basically a lifestyle. YOU are the one who actively practices it and YOU are the one who can control it's effectiveness. You control this by making informed decisions when it comes to unprotected sex. It is true that is it impossible to become pregnant once you have ovulated. An egg only lives for 12 - 24 hours and after that it disintegrates. If you have 3 full days of a higher temperature as well as 4 full days of cervical fluid dry up and your cervix is low, firm and closed you can be confident that ovulation as occurred.
So yes, your risk does go up between your period and ovulation but really you are only considered fertile when there is cervical fluid present and your cervix is open, soft and high. For me, this happens for about a week to 10 days, others have a shorter fertile period - like 5 - 8 days. It just depends. So to answer your question pregnancies can happen if someone ovulates earlier than expected and is not paying attention to cervical fluid (since sperm can live in fertile cervical fluid for up to 5 days), uses a barrier method or withdrawal during the fertile time and it fails, takes a calculated risk, or someone simply does not follow the rules to avoid.
It took me a while to realize that I could trust all the signs and my body was not trying to "trick" me. DH and I are VERY dedicated to avoiding so we choose to NEVER go unprotected before the fertile period and abstain completely if there is any cervical fluid present. It's been over 2 and a half years and there's never once been a problem. I LOVE NFP and wouldn't trust anything else. We take it to an extreme, but you get to choose how strict you want to be.
Good luck!
Mom to Lily Gayle 4.25.06 Charlotte Kathleen 3.27.09 Samuel Thomas ~8.4.12~