Natural Family Planning

The idea behind natural family planning is very simple and easy. A woman is fertile for only about 100 to 120 hours during a month. This time period is called "window of fertility." By avoiding sexual intimacy during the window of fertility, pregnancy can be avoided. This method can also help achieve pregnancy by understanding the fertility cycle better and learning when the probability of concieving is highest. To determine the window of fertility, these methods use such things as temperature, mucus, and cervical changes.

Two methods of natural family planning are currently taught. The first is the ovulation method. Ovulation is the time when an egg or ova is released by a women's Ovary. In this method, the days just before and just after ovulation are determined by checking the woman's cervical mucus. When a woman is most likely to become pregnant, the cervical mucus is stretchy, clear and slick. Some people say that the cervical mucus during this time looks and feels much like an uncooked egg white.

The second method is called the symptothermal method. With this method, the woman takes her temperature each day with a special thermometer and writes it down on a chart. At the time of ovulation, a woman's temperature will rise slightly. The woman also checks the consistency of her cervical mucus. She may also notice other changes, such as pain in the area of the ovaries, bloating, low backache and breast tenderness. A woman who has irregular menstrual cycles may still be able to tell when she is ovulating by watching for the changes in her body.

Advantages of Ovulation Method

1, The Ovulation Method is completely safe with no harmful side effects.
2, The Ovulation Method is simple to learn and to use. It does not distort the sexual act nor involve distasteful procedures. The spouses do nothing to their bodies but simply plan their relations according to the fertile and infertile days of the woman's cycle.
3, When used to avoid pregnancy, the Ovulation Method is at least as effective (98-99%) as any contraceptive but without the physical and psychological side effects.
4, The Ovulation Method costs nothing more than the modest price of simple learning materials.
5, With the Ovulation Method, the woman is able to know herself, to learn, and to appreciate the processes of her own body.
6, Using the Ovulation Method enables the woman to accept, control, and respect her fertility from the beginning to the end of her reproductive years.
7, The Ovulation Method can be used to achieve as well as to postpone a pregnancy. It is immediately reversible when the couple changes their decision to achieve or postpone pregnancy.
8, The Ovulation Method is acceptable to people of all cultures, educational and social levels and religions. The couple can use it with a clear conscience. This method, when used generously and not for selfish or materialistic reasons, respects life and the privilege of transmitting life.

Disadvantages of Artificial Methods

1, Every contraceptive method involves medical risk.
2, Artificial Method of birth control involves ingesting dangerous drugs or using intrusive devices
3, Often artificial methods are used blindly without the woman knowing how they are affecting her body.
4, The use of contraception suppresses the normal, healthy function of the human reproductive system.
5, The use of contraception often encourages spouses to never communicate with one another about something as important as family planning. Many women are not even aware of when they are fertile or infertile.