Natural family planning is a method whereby you abstain from sexual intercourse when you are in your fertile days. In this method, it has no side effects, and you can get pregnant as soon as you decide. However, when you are using this method, you are entirely relying on your fertility awareness. You can use some tools like equipment that measure certain hormones in your urine, high tech digital thermometer as well as smartphone apps.
What matters most when you are using this kind of tools or any other assistance is that you have to understand the principle behind the method. Below are some ways which can help you.
Standard Days
This method is also known as the rhythm method. It is the use of a calendar. However, it depends on a basic rule which says, you are most fertile from day 8 through 19 when your menstrual cycle is between 26 and 32 days long. During that time, you should abstain from sexual intercourse.
Temperature Method is an essential factor for Natural family planning
In this method, you can use basal body temperature as the signal. You can check the temperature in the morning before doing anything else and before every meal. However, this can be done orally, vaginally or rectally with a special basal thermometer which can indicate a perfect measurement to within 0.1 of a degree.
Cervical Mucus Method
To use this method, you need to master well and distinguish between your fertile and infertile days on the maters of types of mucus produced by your body. To check the state of your mucus, you can do by carefully placing your middle figure into your vagina and pushing it up.
Immediately after your periods which is known as an infertile stage, your vulval will be dry, and the next is a fertile stage where your vulva will be wet with slippery, clear, stretchy mucus. The last step is known as the post-ovulatory stage where your vulval produces thicker and cloudier mucus due to effects of progesterone produced. Then the vulva returns to dryness once again, and the cycle continues.
You should carefully mark these changes on a chart, indicating your last day of the slippery mucus and numbering the three days following it. When trying to avoid pregnancy, you should abstain during this fertile phase and wait for three consecutive dry days to pass. In case you have sexual intercourse after your periods, and before the production peak, you should do it in alternate days when your body produces no mucus. Otherwise, you will not tell the state of your mucus because of the semen produced.
Symptom thermal Method
This method combines both temperature and cervical mucus techniques, where you take your body heat in the morning, and examine the mucus in the evening. Sometimes it is used in conjunction with other signs of ovulation, such as mid-cycle pain, spotting or breast tenderness.
Lactational Amenorrhoea Method (LAM)
LAM is a crucial method which some women use to control birth as natural family planning. With correct and consistent use, very few women will get pregnant in the first six months of breastfeeding. Remember feeding your child other food will reduce the amount of lactin hormone which may result in getting pregnant.
Natural family planning has some advantages as well as disadvantages as listed below.
Advantages:
· It doesn’t cause any side effects because it requires no medicine, devices or chemicals.
· Natural family planning is approved and acceptable to all faiths and cultures.
· It is easy to understand how to go about it.
· Natural family planning can be used either to avoid pregnancy or to become pregnant with no health risks.
· It is not expensive compared to other methods.
· It can help you recognize vaginal secretions changes so that you can be aware of the possible infection.
· It involves your partner in the process, which brings you close and increases feelings of trust.
Disadvantages:
· It does not protect against STIs infection.
· You’ll need to avoid sex, during the time you might get pregnant, which will lead to sexual frustrations.
· It can be much less effective than other methods of contraception because accurately predicting ovulation can be very difficult.
· It won’t work without continued commitment and practice. Therefore, couples may be being motivated.
· You’ll need to keep a daily record of your fertility signs lest you get pregnant.
· It’s not suitable for every woman, especially those with irregular periods.
· It is not so accurate because factors like illness, travel, stress, lifestyle and hormonal treatments can alter your fertility signs.
Conclusion
It is the natural family planning where you can regulate and determine the number of pregnancies you would like to get. It comes to reality when you use the above methods such as observing your body temperature and cervical mucus, Lam method, standard days methods, and the symptom-thermal method. You need as well to be aware of the advantages and disadvantages of using the technique.