Natural Birth Control

There are many different types of birth control.  I have tried 3 different types of birth control and the one that works with my lifestyle is the Natural Family Planning (NFP) or the Rhythm Method.  The Natural Family Planning method is a natural form of birth control that is almost fool-proof and allows you the freedom of not having to remember to take a pill every 24 hours.  However, NFP does require you to document, chart, analyze and take your basal body temperature everyday.  Once you get into the rhythm of this new form of birth control you will love it! I promise! Especially if you are trying to get pregnant.  You will be so in-touch with your body and menstruation cycle that even Mother Nature herself would be impressed!  So, let's get started! Or should I say, "Let's get charted!"

My chart above is showing the positive pregnancy.  I'm not going to go into great detail about this unless I get requests.  A great resource to go to regarding charting and everything to go along with NFP is http://www.fertilityfriend.com/.  They also have a mobile app to make it more convenient if you don't want to write everything down in the morning.  I trust their mobile app, because the data you put into the mobile app is actually stored in their web-based database...if that makes sense.  When you set everything up on the website (non-mobile version) that is the data you access from the mobile app.  Essentially, the mobile app is really their website, just scaled down and formatted to fit your mobile phone.  Start with the free version and if you are serious and committed to the NFP, then purchasing a membership will be well worth your money.  There is a chat room just for paying members.  However, the free version gets you into the forms.  One piece of advice regarding the chat room and forums: There are women out there that have been trying for years to have children.  They could have underlying medical conditions or other ailments that are causing miscarriages or infertility.  They will post their experiences and problems with fertility.  Do not feed into it.  If you are a healthy woman going through a healthy pregnancy don't even read some of the posts you see; it will cause you stress that you do not need.  Especially if you are in the first three months of your pregnancy.  If you have questions at all during your pregnancy ASK YOUR DOCTOR!  So, the key takeaway here is to use fertility friend for their charting tutorials: http://www.fertilityfriend.com/Presentations/tutorials.html

I started charting 14 months before I got pregnant.  This consisted of taking my basal body temperature (BBT) the same time every morning.  I bought my basal body thermometer at Target for $10.  You can do the same, or get one on Amazon.

  The BBT reads your body temperature to .01 of a degree, which is vital for determining when you are fertile, when you ovulate and when you become pregnant.  Your body temperature will increase when you are pregnant.  If you notice the continuous climb on the chart, you will see that  my BBT increased, because I became pregnant.

It may take a few months to get the hang of charting, but once you have a good understanding of when you are fertile and when you ovulate you are well on your way to becoming pregnant with the Natural Family Planning method.

Planning

 

So, you and your spouse or significant other have tossed around the idea of having a baby.  Here is the conversation between my husband and I one day when we decided the time was good:

Me: "When do you want to have kids?"
Dear Husband (DH): "Whenever, is fine."
Me: "How many do you want?"
DH: "3 is good, don't you think?"
Me: "Yeah. 3 is a good number."


4 years before this conversation we got married and then a year later had adopted a pit bull mix from a local animal shelter.  This dog had so much energy even when he grew out of the puppy years, that we decided to wait on having kids until he had calmed down some.  Well, it took exactly 4 years for this dog (Chief) to mellow out. He was now calm, obedient and protective. Perfect! Bring on the baby!  But wait! I was only working part-time.  How on EARTH are we going to afford to have a baby?  Isn't the first year cost of a baby over $10,000?! We have to wait until my position becomes full-time.  Fast-forward to a promotion of full-time and amazing health benefits; including an HMO that will pay 100% of maternity including prenatal, labor, delivery and recovery?  OK! Let's get to it!