Understanding the Importance of Fertility Awareness

Effectiveness in Preventing Pregnancy

Of 100 couples each year that use natural family planning methods, such as fertility awareness, up to 25 women may indeed become pregnant. Continue to read about Fertility Awareness

Fertility awareness-based methods alone do have a one in four chance of leading to an unintended pregnancy. However, this approach can rather be effective if the instructions are followed carefully for each menstrual cycle.

It can also be an effective type of birth control if more than one method is made use of, and if the methods are made use of correctly. Additional methods may also include practicing abstinence or making use of condoms or other barrier methods during potentially fertile times of the menstrual cycle.

What is fertility awareness?

Fertility awareness-based methods to help women, as well as couples, become more familiar with the signs of ovulation and the pattern of the menstrual cycle in order to understand how to plan sexual activity and avoid pregnancy or become pregnant. A woman does learn to recognize the specific signs of her fertile days—the days during each month that she is most likely to become pregnant (conceive)—and either does not have sex during these days or makes use of birth control method such as condoms.

Several fertility awareness-based methods do tend to rely on information about the timing of a woman’s menstrual cycle, changes in her cervical fluid, and/or her basal body temperature.

• A menstrual cycle and fertility is counted from the first day of bleeding in one month to the first day of bleeding the next month (usually 23-35 days). The most fertile time is when of course ovulation does occur, usually in the middle of one’s menstrual cycle.
• Cervical fluid (healthy vaginal discharge) does change throughout each menstrual cycle. After each menstrual period does end, there may be no noticeable cervical fluid in the vaginal area. These are “dry” days indeed. As ovulation does approach (and a person becomes more fertile), the fluid does become more wet and stretchy (such as egg white).
• Morning body temperature does rise within about 12 hours of ovulation and does stay at this slightly higher range until around the time of the next period.

The following fertility awareness-based methods to make use of a calculation to identify the fertile days:

Standard Days Method using Cycle Beads:

This based on statistical information about women who have of course regular menstrual cycles, and one can use this method if one’s cycle is between 26 and 32 days long. Counting from the first day of a period, days eight through 19 of the menstrual cycle are considered fertile days.

Calendar Rhythm Method:

one needs to count and record days in each menstrual cycle for six months and predict future fertile days (days when pregnancy can occur) using a standard calculation.

The following fertility awareness-based methods do rely on observing bodily changes:

Two Day Method:

track cervical fluid every day, twice a day. A woman is considered fertile when she has secretions that become more wet and stretchy on either that day or the day prior.

Ovulation Method:

One needs to observe and chart cervical fluid and identify fertile days.

Symptothermal Method:

One needs to observe and record cervical fluid as well as changes in basal body temperature.

The Lactational Amenorrhea Method (LAM) is indeed another form of natural birth control. This method is for new mothers who do feed their babies only breast milk for up to six months and having no periods or spotting during that time. Women considering LAM should get counseling from a healthcare provider in order to make sure it is the right choice for their lifestyle, as well as to plan for a new form of birth control as soon as breastfeeding frequency does decrease or solid foods are introduced.

How effective is fertility awareness?

Of 100 couples who make use of natural family planning methods each year, up to 25 women may also become pregnant. Couples making use of more than one fertility awareness-based method correctly will indeed increase their ability to identify fertile days accurately.

The effectiveness of making use of fertility awareness-based methods for pregnancy prevention depends on making use of the method correctly as well as consistently. Because there are various approaches to fertility awareness methods, the effectiveness rates do vary.

These methods can also be effective if the instructions are followed carefully for each menstrual cycle. Fertility products are available in order to help keep track of the changing fertility signs.

If preventing pregnancy is a rather high priority, more effective methods (for example, an IUD or implant) of birth control should be considered.

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