Fertility Awareness: The Natural Way to Achieve or Avoid Pregnancy

Increasing your awareness about fertility can help you encourage or avoid pregnancy in a natural, drug-free way. To avoid pregnancy, abstain from sex or use a barrier method during fertile times, usually about one-third of each month. Try the following to become more aware of your cycle and fertile times:

Chart your cycle. Keep a written record of each cycle, counting the first day of menstruation as day 1. Each woman's fertile time is unique, based on average length of cycle. After you have been charting at least eight months, you can begin to get a clearer idea of when your fertile period is. Take your shortest cycle length and subtract 18. This gives you an idea of the first cycle day on which you could get pregnant. Take your longest cycle length and subtract 11. This is likely to be your last fertile day. As you continue to chart, periodically update your calculations based on your last twelve months. Avoiding or encouraging pregnancy is much more effective when charting is combined with other methods.

The Contraceptive Information Resource website offers a sample chart on which to record multiple indicators of fertility:

http://www.contracept.org/nfpchart.php

Chart your temperature. A woman's temperature drops immediately before ovulation, then rises and stays high until the end of the cycle. After three days in a row of high temperature, a woman is usually in her infertile phase of the cycle. Having a record of your temperature will give you an idea of when the egg has been released. Each morning, immediately after waking and before getting out of bed, take your temperature and record it on your cycle chart. After you have been charting for at least eight months, you'll get a good idea of the period during which ovulation occurs during your cycle.

According to the Feminist Women's Health Center (http://www.fwhc.org ), an egg can be fertilized within 12-24 hours after it is released. Because more than one egg can be released, using 48 hours as a potential fertilization period is more accurate. Sperm can live in a woman's body for between 2-5 days. Pregnancy is most likely during the 3 days before and the 3 days after ovulation. Those wishing to avoid pregnancy add 2-3 days to the beginning and end of this period to decrease the likelihood of fertilization.

Observe your cervical mucus. Once you start paying attention to cervical mucus, you'll notice distinct changes in its consistency throughout your cycle. At your least fertile times, you'll notice more dryness. The days immediately following menstruation are driest and least fertile. Before mucus turns fertile, it goes through a sticky stage. The type of mucus that is most lubricating and conducive to sex is fertile. It show up as shiny on toilet paper and will form a string if stretched between thumb and forefinger. Fertile mucus is slippery and similar to egg whites. Recording your cervical mucus consistency on your cycle chart will help you to gain a greater understanding of when you are fertile.

Check the position of your cervix. By inserting your middle finger in the vaginal canal, you can feel whether your cervix is low and firm (like the tip of a nose) in its infertile phase or high and soft in its fertile phase. Noting cervix position on your chart will help you learn more about how all your physical indicators work together.

Look for other physical signs. Some women experience breast tenderness or abdominal pain around the time of ovulation. Record these indicators on your chart.

Pay attention to how your moods and feelings align with your physical signs. Chances are that you'll feel the strongest sexual urges on your most fertile days. Learn to get in touch with these signals and use them alongside your other indicators.

Check your saliva. If your fertility signs are unclear and you're looking for backup, a handy tool is a mini microscope (about the size of a tube of lipstick) that will show changes based on your fertility. A ferny, crystal-like pattern shows up about three days prior to ovulation, ending when ovulation has occurred.

Use an ovulation predictor kit. Another backup is a urine test that will measure hormone levels to predict ovulation. A positive result is usually followed by ovulation within 12-36 hours.

According to the Feminist Women's Health Center, 60-80% of women who use no birth control will become pregnant within one year. By contrast, 2-20% of those who limit intercourse during fertile cycle phases become pregnant. Using fertility awareness for birth control is far more effective when several indicators are monitored together.

If you are using fertility awareness to become pregnant, it is helpful to know about other factors that promote fertility. A 2007 report in Obstetrics and Gynecology noted that the following lifestyle factors increase fertility:

- Replacing animal protein with vegetable protein (as in beans and lentils).

- Taking a standard multivitamin.

- Exercising daily for at least thirty minutes.

- Maintaining a healthy weight.

- Avoiding transfats.

- Reducing consumption of sugar and refined carbohydrates.

Fertility awareness takes time, commitment, and the willing participation of both partners. When multiple indicators are consistently monitored over time, it can be a very effective and natural way to achieve or avoid pregnancy.