By the number of weddings I had to attend in December, I would say that June is no longer THE wedding month.
But now that the wedding and honeymoon are over, time for husband and wife to sit down and discuss family planning.
Of course, a visit to your friendly gynecologist would be ideal. But if time and budget will not permit, here is a brief overview of the different choices in planning your family.
Natural Family Planning (NFP)
The newer and more politically correct term for NFP is “fertility awareness.”
The method does not use any medications or devices.
The fertility awareness method combines 3 methods to aid couples who are trying to control pregnancy, as well as, others who are trying to get pregnant.
1. CALENDAR METHOD
Acquaint yourself with your menstrual cycle. Record the first day or Day 1 of your cycle every month for at least 6 months.
This will give you an idea of the length of your monthly cycle. Take note of the longest and the shortest cycles.
From the longest cycle (eg. 35 days) subtract 11 (answer=24).
And from the shortest cycle (eg. 28 days) subtract 18 (answer = 10).
You are only fertile one day, or more specifically, 12 hours, each month. It can happen anytime from Day 10 to Day 24 of your cycle.
If you want to start your family early, have sex during these fertile days. On the other hand, if babies aren’t in your plans for the next few years, then avoid each other on said days.
2. BASAL BODY TEMPERATURE METHOD
Take and record your temperature by mouth every morning before you get out of bed.
You will notice a steady, constant daily temperature around 36.1 C to 36.4 C.
Then, one day, you will note an increase in temperature to around 36.8 C to 37.1 C. This means you have already ovulated.
The temperature will stay in the 37 C level until you get your period again. At that point, it will go down again to the 36 C level.
If you achieve pregnancy during this cycle, your temperature will remain elevated indefinitely.
3. CERVICAL MUCUS METHOD
The last of the fertility awareness methods is probably the easiest to follow.
Take a sample of your vaginal discharge every day. Familiarize yourself with the consistency because it varies depending on the day of the cycle.
On the days that the discharge is clear and slippery, those are the days that the sperm can swim all the way up and meet the egg and achieve a pregnancy.
While on the days that the discharge is thick and clumpy, the sperm will be trapped and will not be able to meet the egg and no baby will be formed.
75% success rate
Combining all three methods and using them correctly and consistently produces a 75% success rate in controlling your family size and properly spacing the interval between each child to adapt to your family’s needs.
If computing, recording and reading the thermometer is not your thing, then wait for part 2 of this Contraception 101 series, which tackles medically-assisted family planning methods.
By the way, one no longer uses the term Artificial Family Planning. It is so 70s.
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