Many couples prefer to use natural family planning (NFP) or the fertility awareness method (FAM) to achieve or avoid pregnancy. According to Toni Weschler, MD, author of "Taking Charge of Your Fertility," FAM is as effective as the barrier method of birth control that you use during your fertile times when all of the rules are followed. She also states that using natural methods of pregnancy achievement can help you to detect fertility problems within a few months. It is best to read a comprehensive book or take a class on learning to detect, record and understand your fertility signs.
Step 1
Take your temperature each morning as soon as you wake up with a basal body thermometer. Do this before you get out of bed or have anything to eat or drink. Try to take your temperature at the same time each day, if possible.
Step 2
Record your daily temperature on the chart that came with your basal body thermometer or on a chart made with graph paper. During the pre-ovulatory phase of your cycle, your temperature will be low, usually under 97.5 degrees. Once you ovulate, your temperatures will rise 1/2 to 1 degree and will remain high for 12 to 16 days. Then, you will get your period. If you become pregnant during that cycle, your temperature will remain high past the sixteenth day.
Step 3
Check your cervical secretions each day and record these on your graph. After your menstrual period ends, you will most likely have several days of dry or creamy cervical fluid. As you approach ovulation, your fluid will become thin, clear and stretchy, resembling egg-whites. Right after ovulation, your cervical secretions will become drier, and possibly sticky or creamy.
Step 4
Record any other symptoms that you have that may be related to ovulation. For example, some women feel pain in their side as they ovulate. Other women may have tender breasts or headaches after ovulation.
Step 5
Look over your graph and determine when ovulation occurred. If you are having trouble deciphering your graph, take it to your midwife, gynecologist or reproductive endocrinologist. He will be able to assist you in determining when you are most fertile, or, if you are trying to avoid pregnancy, when you can safely engage in unprotected intercourse.
Tips and Warnings
- Roman Catholic churches sometimes have seminars and classes on natural family planning. Contact your local Roman Catholic church for more information on this. Try using a website, such as Fertility Friend, to help you track your waking temperatures and other fertility signs instead of using a graph.
- If you are trying to avoid pregnancy, do not have unprotected sex until you are well-versed in reading your fertility signs.
Things You'll Need
- Basal body thermometer
- Temperature-recording chart
References
- Book: Taking Charge of Your Fertility, Toni Weschler, 2001
- Ovulation Calculator: Primary and Secondary Signs
