Why I Choose Natural Family Planning/Fertility Awareness

I don’t have any religious or moral objections to birth control. I do, however, have significant health objections to all forms of hormonal birth control. Depending on the method in question, hormonal birth control can cause side effects like nausea, vomiting, changes in libido and more serious but rare problems like heart attack, stroke and blood clots.

Even if you don’t experience any of these side effects, I think that hormonal birth control is far from benign. On a philosophical level I have serious objections to continually taking a drug designed to upset your body’s healthy functioning. Fertility is not an illness. Taking hormonal birth control to disrupt your body’s natural fertility seems entirely different to me than taking medications to treat an actual illness. (Of course, for many illnesses I don’t think that drugs are necessarily the answer either, but that’s a whole other topic.) All parts of our bodies are so interconnected that when you start messing with one part it’s hard to know what else you’re going to disrupt. In their eagerness to treat problems I don’t think that scientists always acknowledge these challenges.

What about Barrier Methods?

I’ve known for a long time that I didn’t want anything to do with hormonal birth control. When I was first reading about other options, the next category I investigated was barrier methods. I think barrier methods can be great options for some people. Condoms, the most effective barrier method, are very good at preventing pregnancy when used correctly. Personally, though, I just don’t care for condoms. Other barrier methods have lower rates of effectiveness so I haven’t considered them.

There’s also the copper IUD, of course, which is not exactly a barrier method but isn’t hormonal either. I’m not totally sure what to think about the IUD. I’m not particularly interested in trying it, though, since it can cause more cramping and heavier bleeding during your period and already have both of those in abundance.  I’d also be a little worried about having a piece of copper in my body long-term, though I don’t know if that’s justified or not.

My Experience with Natural Family Planning

I don’t remember when I first stumbled on natural family planning but I was instantly intrigued. Eventually I bought the book Taking Charge of Your Fertility, which has been my go-to resource for learning how to practice fertility awareness. I highly recommend it for anyone wanting to learn natural birth control or even just better understand how your fertility works.

I use the symptothermal method outlined in Taking Charge of Your Fertility, meaning that I track my waking temperature as well as my cervical mucus. This is more effective than just tracking one or the other.

I have been very pleased with the symptothermal method. We’re currently waiting to have kids and we’ve been using it to successfully prevent pregnancy for the last three and a half years. I feel great knowing that I’m not putting anything potentially harmful into my body. Theoretically conception should also be easier once we start trying for kids since I already understand how my cycle works.

I also like that natural family planning is inexpensive and doesn’t require you to buy much. Once you get your thermometer and your book (or perhaps take a class instead) you’re set for life (or at least until your thermometer dies). I would not use cost as the sole factor in picking my birth control method, but the fact that my chosen method is cheap is just an added bonus.

Fertility awareness is not without its drawbacks, of course. You can’t have intercourse whenever you want because you need to abstain (or use barrier methods) during your fertile period to prevent pregnancy. This hasn’t been a big issue for us, but it may be difficult for some couples.

Taking your temperature is also not always convenient. You need to wake up at around the same time every day to make sure you’re getting accurate temperature readings. Sometimes I wake up late and can’t take my temperature that day. Depending on where you are in your cycle, this may mean that you have to abstain for additional time in order to assure that you’re not fertile. I always err on the side of caution, though some couples may be looser with the rules if they are not as concerned about avoiding a pregnancy.

Effectiveness

I just packed my copy of Taking Charge of Your Fertility so I can’t look up effectiveness there, but according to the book’s website the failure rate of the symptothermal method is about two percent per year when used correctly. Planned Parenthood actually puts the failure rate even lower, at 0.4 percent per year when used correctly. In either case, this is comparable to or better than condoms, the most effective barrier method.

I feel comfortable with this effectiveness rate. Other than abstinence, no birth control method can promise 100 percent effectiveness at preventing pregnancy. At the moment we prefer to wait a little longer before getting pregnant but could certainly handle a pregnancy should one occur unexpectedly. Natural family planning is not quite as effective as certain hormonal methods, but avoiding hormones is well worth the trade-off to me.

One Final Note

In this post I’ve been using the terms “natural family planning” and” fertility awareness” interchangeably, although technically the two are separate birth control methods. Natural family planning requires that you abstain from sex during your fertile period while fertility awareness methods allow the use of barrier methods when you are fertile. Philosophically I agree with fertility awareness but we don’t actually use barrier methods so I guess you could say I adhere to natural family planning. Just thought I’d clear that up in case there was any confusion.

Do you use natural family planning/fertility awareness or chooseother methods? Why or why not? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!  

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12 Responses to Why I Choose Natural Family Planning/Fertility Awareness

  1. Amanda says:
    Hi Meghan! Fantastic post! I totally agree with you on the health issues surrounding hormonal birth control. I really have an issue with how women are not informed about the side effects of hormonal birth control - some minor, some very serious. I think fertility awareness is for women of all faiths, backgrounds, cultures, etc. TCOYF is a tremendous book - a life changer. It literally changed my life forever. I read the book and started practicing the sympothermal method. After trying to share the book with all of my friends, I quickly realized not everyone was comfortable, had the time, was interested, etc. in reading a 300 page book and memorizing all the complex rules. Since then, my husband and I started Ova Ova, a modern, easy to use fertility charting site for practicing the symptothermal method. It automates the rules for you, so you can learn the method quickly and practice it without the concern of making a mistake of misinterpreting the rules. We also offer a bunch of info on how your body works, the rules work, etc. I'd LOVE to get your feedback on our site. I love what you are doing with your blog, and the information you are sharing to help educate and empower women. Thank you!! Let me know if we can help you in anyway! - Amanda, Founder Ova Ova
    • Wendi says:
      Amanda, I'm trying desperately to get a hold of you to find out what's going on with Ova Ova and none of my attempts (this is the 4th one) have received a reply. Please contact me!
  2. ann says:
    Nice post; we have used NFP for over 20 years. To read about the moral/religious reasons why people use Natural Family Planning, see the website nfpandmore.org & click on chapter 1 of the book, "The Complete Approach to Natural Family Planning". At this Natural Family Planning International website, be sure to read up on the special form of breastfeeding which is also NFP, for when babies enter your lives. Three-fourths of women will have 9 to 20 months without cycles with this "eco-breastfeeding"; I went over a year with my babies. Also, for your readers, using condoms in the fertile time reduces the effectiveness of NFP; if they fail, you are in the fertile time when pregnancy is likely.....best wishes!
  3. Amy says:
    I read Taking Charge of Your Fertility back when I was researching non-hormonal birth control methods, and found it really fascinating. I knew from the get-go that NFP/FA wouldn't be for us (I've got a copper IUD now, and I'm pretty happy with it), but I like knowing what's going on with my lady parts!
  4. ann says:
    Amy, it is my understanding as a nurse that if a woman ovulates w/an IUD in place, she could conceive; but, the IUD is often an inflammation for the womb & the baby is unlikely to implant 5-9 days later & will just die and be washed out - thus, IUD's and IUCs can be abortifacient....no one told me this years ago... I am very sorry to have been unable to make better informed choices, so I hope you appreciate the input whether it concerns you or not is up to you
  5. Natali says:
    Thanks for the information! Good write-up. I too am perplexed at how so many people choose to alter their bodies with hormones. I did it a couple of times in my life (one year each time on two separate occasions) and both times I wanted my own thoughts back!
  6. Peggy says:
    I've had awful experiences with using hormone based contraceptives in the past - one of my friends told me about Taking Charge of Your Fertility and I've never looked back. I think you have the same views as me when it comes to contraception - a really good article.
  7. Alison says:
    You are very right to be concerned about the copper IUD. Copper toxicity is very prevalent nowadays, and copper IUD's can be a direct cause. Google copper toxicity, you can pinpoint so many symptoms directly to that, including psychiatric ones. Great post!
  8. [...] a natural childbirth? Be sure to include these 10 essentials. from Mama Natural Why I Choose Natural Family Planning/Fertility Awareness by Whole Natural Life Nutritional Remedy for Heavy Periods by The Healthy Home [...]
  9. Rachel Roddy says:
    Hey! Thanks so much for writing this post! I am currently looking into starting NFP. I have one question, when your temp spikes, that means you are fertile, right? and then once it goes back down, you will start your period? Just making sure I have all the facts straight! Thanks! Rachel

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