What Have You Experienced with the Natural Family Planning Method?

If you're not breastfeeding, I LOVE the Nuvaring. Three weeks of not thinking about it and one week out. My husband stopped noticing it after the first couple of times and it was so EASY!

Don't listen to those that say you can't conceive while breastfeeding.......I have 3 friends that did and their children are, needless to say, very close together!

Go to this website http://www.tcoyf.com/. I read this book and used it for birth control for 3 years. I got pregnant when I wanted to twice. It's not really natural family planning because there are 3 ways you check yourself to know when you can or can't get pregnant. If you do it right it is the safest way to do birth control. I also have a close friend who it worked for as well. She avoided pregnancy for 2 years and also got pregnant twice right away when she wanted to. It's a big book with a lot of information, but it is not hard to do. Good luck!

I had Mirena put in at 6w postpartum because my son was a serious "whoops" and I did not want to take any chances. I didn't have any problems with it. And I also never got a period while I had it in (2 years), which made me feel completely out of touch with my own body.

So I had it taken out and used Sympto-Thermal Method, "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" and www.fertilityfriend.com to avoid pregnancy for over a year. Then we decided to have another baby and I was able to get pregnant the second cycle without buying some stupid kit to tell me when I should have sex. :)

I regret that I don't already have one example of how my cycle returns postpartum under my belt and feel like it was a lost chance in a sense. I will feel pretty comfortable using LAM (lactational ammenorhea method) for at least the first 6 months with this baby or until I have postpartum spotting and/or the baby starts solids. Also, know that the use of pacifiers and/or bottles and/or feeding 'schedules' can trigger the return of fertility faster.

GL!

I have tried birth control as well but did not mesh with me as well. I took a class on NFP and I am doing it now. I love it! It is easy and really works best for me and my body. I have two children now and plan on wanting more in the future but not for at least another year. I did not like all the side effects of birth control and with NFP you are letting your body do its own thing. If you would like a name of an instructor let me know and I can send you her contact information.

Hi,

I know this is a little late, but my husband and I use NFP and really love it. We use the Sympto-Thermal method, and took the Couple to Couple League course through a local Catholic church (we're Protestant, and so was another couple there :). If you and your husband are both committed to making NFP work (there is periodic abstinence) it is Highly effective. You're not putting any chemicals or other things in your body (the IUD can prevent a fertilized egg from implanting, and the idea of that happening even once, much less multiple times, is not something I could tolerate). It's also great for your marriage as it fosters communication, love, and respect. I'd highly recommend it!

Hello, B.!

Unfortunately, my experience with the NFP (Creighton) method wasn't very positive because I had some type of hormonal issue going on. Now, when I say "not positive" I mean, I couldn't really ever be sure of whether I was ovulating or not. The chart showed I was not... but I did get pregnant almost 1 1/2 year after I went off the pill without any meds to induce ovulation.

I wanted us to go back to our instructor (I highly recommend you get some classes!!) to help us space the kids after the birth of the 21 month old, but we didn't. I was keeping track of what days seemed like I could be ovulating and kept my hubby informed though. At the same time, since it took so long to get pregnant the first time, I was not too worried about it. I got pregnant with our 1 month old almost as soon as I stopped the milk production for the 21 month old.

Now... I've read how some ladies are warning against using breastfeeding as means of birth control while others are encouraging it. Really, as with other methods, it depends.

Our bodies produce milk thanks to prolactin. Prolactin also stops you from ovulating. I'm not a doctor but it follows that if you have enough prolactin in you to stop you from ovulating, then no babies! I have never asked... I wonder if an endocrinologist could tell us if there's a magical prolactin level (an actual number) we could use to determine our likelihood of getting pregnant while breastfeeding? I had no periods and obviously was not ovulating the whole time I breastfed. And as soon as I started diminishing my milk production I got a period... then I got pregnant!

The Creighton method works if you really pay attention to your body. It's equally helpful if you are trying to prevent a pregnancy than if you are trying to get pregnant. Unlike the rhythm method, you don't have to be regular to be successful using this method. Check it out! It beats getting sick!

Best of luck!

B.,

The complications with Mirena are really, really rare. Remember, of the hundreds of thousands of women walking around perfectly happy with their Mirena, you will have a handful who have a problem - that's all you hear about.

The mini pill is the same way - you will always hear about the very few who have a problem. The mini pill worked fine for me, but I don't like to remember a pill every day, so I prefer the Mirena.

If you choose natural planning (and it is only for those who have VERY predictable cycles) just remember that your chances of getting pregnant are greater. Would you be really overwhelmed by a "surprise," or would you just roll with the punches and call it fate? That is what I think would be the ultimate decision maker.

Don't believe that nursing will protect you. It is good birth control for some women, but definately not all. I have several friends who got pregnant while nursing, but they never had a period. They ovulated first, got pregnant on that one time, and it came as a big surprise. They were waiting for a period to start birth control.

Good luck,
S.

If you are going to go with the NFP method, I would recommend finding an instructor. My husband and I used the rhythm method, and that worked fine for us, but NFP involves more than charting your period and the methods used make it much more accurate than the rhythm method.

After the birth of both of our children, I chose to use the mini-pill while breastfeeding, but after I had my first period I went off of it. For me, it was more risky to have the false sense of security of a pill, and then forget to take it and get pregnant anyway.

There is a website I would highly recommend that you check out. www.mycycle.com. It is a great site to help track your period and ovulation. My cycle was pretty regular, so when "My Cycle" tells (it sends email reminders) me I am going to start my period/ovulation, it is usually pretty accurate. My husband has since had a vasectomy, but I still use the My Cycle website, just so I know when to expect my period, then I am not caught off guard when it comes.

Good luck!

Whatever you decide, think long and hard about an IUD (Mirena or otherwise). I had the most horrible experience with mine, and wouldn't wish that on anyone. Having something "implanted" in my body created such chaos with my whole being--I was a mess. Anyway, good luck with your quest!

Sorry to add yet another response...but I wanted to add the website I use to track my cycles. I read the book many suggested "Taking charge of your fertility" and it is wonderful. I use the website www.fertilityfriend.com and have for many years. I do have very regular cycles so it works well for us and I used it for over 3 years to prevent getting pregnant.

Good Luck and I hope you find something that works well for you and your family.

Hi B.! I recommend the book "Taking Charge of Your Fertility". This book is a wonderful resource for NFP. You get to know your body's signals so well.
The book helps you determine when your ovulation cycle is. The long standing myth is that all women ovulate on the 14th day in a cycle. I happen to ovulate early in my cycle whereas a friend of mine ovulates just a couple days before her period. Every woman is different.
It's kind of overwhelming at first but it gets alot easier as time goes on. If in doubt, use a condom! Strict NFP books tell you not to do that but who are they to say! :)
When we have used this method we didn't have any "surprise pregnancies". NFP is also used to get pregnant not just to avoid pregnancy.

EDIT***** You must know that most of these responses saying how hard NFP is and how it's prone to error are very ignorant.
This method is used world wide and it works! Don't be discouraged if this is what you really want to do!

I don't have any personal experience, but I know it's the only method my husband and I were to use if we ever had cause to space our children. I've heard wonderful things from people who have used it though. Find a local Couple-to-Couple league for more information. What's not to like? It's completely safe, hormone-free, very effective (although prone to user error like all things are!), and can strengthen your marriage- I don't know of any other birth control method that can say that!

BTW, with a 6 week old, if you are nursing on demand (morning and night) and not supplementing, your chance of conception is virtually zero. As long as you are only breastfeeding (no solids, no formula), the chance of becoming pregnant in the first 6 months is less than 5%. If you continue to breastfeed past 6 months, most women do not experience a period for 14 months, on average. Mine were delayed 15 and 18 months, so my children are all spaced over 2 years apart.

I have not tried natural family planning. But, one thing I do know is that you need to be very regular for it to work. After having a baby it takes several months for your cycle to return to any sort of pattern in most cases. Have you considered Implanon? It is a small rod-like device that is inserted into your upper arm. It works by putting out a very small amount (much less than the pill) of the birth control hormone into your system all of the time. It lasts for 3 years at a time. Because the amount of the hormone put into your system is much less you should not experience the same side effects as with the pill. It can also be very easily removed if you decide to have more children. Good luck!

It is a great method but the "oops" factor is the greatest with this true birth control method than ANY other METHOD. Only calculating TRUE documented methods....

I see you have a newborn baby. To top it off, you have a really young toddler as well. At this phase in your life, it can be a VERY VERY hard method to do though. If you are very intune with your body, it can be possible, just hard.

Postpartum there are a couple of little flips that are some issues.
1) If you are breastfeeding, your temperature goes up and down all the time. There is no AM baseline. Depends on when your milk is letting down. The baby this young really does not have a schedule they will be sticking to.
2) Also breastfeeding supresses ovulation in many women and it is hard to determine when you are going to get your first period. Now remember you ovulate BEFORE your first period....
3) You do not usually have a set schedule. You are out of the bed at totally different times throughout the night. When practicing the temp. method, you need to take your temp by mouth every morning at the same time without sitting up or your feet hitting the floor. You even are suppose to do it before your head lifts from the pillow. Might not work if you usually do it at 6:30 AM and your baby just decides it is a 5AM morning.
4) As long as you are breastfeeding (if you are), your vaginal secretions are effected by breastfeeding. So a little bit harder to check that as well.

An IUD is a nice form of BC if you can not get your husband to use a condom. There are hormone free IUDs as well. Know that the mini-pill does not have as many hormones in it as the standard pill. Diaphrams are effective but cumbersome.

I do think this is a nice method, but trully do not think it works well for newborn moms or lactaing moms.

Good luck with your search. Congratulations on your newest member.

I really like NFP. I suggest a book called 'taking charge of your fertility'. I think it is great that you are willing to learn how your body works rather than take drugs that alter it. Once you get the charting down you can decide to abstain, or use another method during those few days.

A.

I was able to successfully space apart my two older sons with using mostly NFP. I religiously followed the guidelines from the book "Taking Charge of your Fertility" which has been recommended to you already. I was not bf-ing and I do have a fairly regular cycle so that helped. I do have to note that the NFP didn't work so well when I was bf-ing my younger son and I now have beautiful surprise twin girls 13 months younger than my youngest son:) I was fully breastfeeding him and he didn't even have a pacifier but my cycle came back really quickly probably to do with the fact that I had attempted to put him on a schedule and ended up pregnant when he was 4.5 months old. Obviously something you are probably trying to avoid. That's why I would only recommend NFP if you took an in depth class with your hubby (your husband has GOT to be on board if you want it to work) as well as if you are a person who can handle being anal about charting. I was good about charting but never attended a class which I think was my downfall. Despite the fact I ended up with a double surprise blessing while using the NFP method I still think it has a lot of merit. It was so wonderful to be in charge of my cycle, not relying on drugs or anything else to tell me what was going on with my own body. I do not know how you would find a class. I am Catholic so I know my parish would have information so you could start by calling your nearest Catholic Church. You do not have to be Catholic to attend any of the classes on NFP that they offer.
K. H.

Don't let the internet scare you about the mirena. The information on it appears slanted. I've had it for over a year and love it. I spoke with my OB after reading all the stuff online and he told me he's only removed 1 mirena due to unusual side-effects in the years he's been placing them (he has a very busy practice). It may be worth it to ask your OB more about it. The family planning method is tough--and unless you're willing to have a child unplanned, I would seek an alternative.

I use the Billings Ovulation Method that tracks cervical mucus and not my temperature. I completely love the system and our NFP instructor. I'm now pregnant with our third child (I miscarried our second child). I know I would not have been able to achieve my pregnancies without our instructors assistance. A good website to find a teacher in your area and to learn more about it is www.fertilitycare.org. The method, if tracked and used properly, has the same success rate as birth control pills. Our instructor has two children so don't think it is completely hard to track and you'll end up with more children than you want. The best thing is you aren't putting any chemicals in your body, it is low cost (cost of instruction and charts and stamps) and you can decide at any time if you want to avoid or achieve pregnancy.

D.

If you want to make sure you don't get pregnant and also not put any hormones into your body, you could do a combination of NFP and some other method like condoms or diaphram. That would allow you to get to know your body well, but also be spontaneous during the time you are fertile. I use a diaphram and it's not as "freaky" wierd as I thought it would be. Just a suggestion.

We use the Creighton Method, Naprotechnology, and I love it. It helps you get to know your body and how your body works. It not only helped us to space our children, it has helped diagnose some health issues that were going undiagnosed.

I really like NFP. I have been using for three years. You have to be organized and able to check your body everyday. I don't use the tempature method, just mucus. I recommend taking classes at www.tcnfp.org, You get 8 classes with an individual instructor and then you have them to call anytime with questions. Best of luck!

I have no experience with NFP, but my sister in law has Mirena and loves it. She has no period, so claims she feels none of the up-and-down of a hormonal cycle. She's thrilled with it. They might have children later, but for now, one's enough.

Oh--I read a response about resuming your cycle with breastfeeding...with both my children, I breastfed on demand and fed A LOT--they were both great eaters. With my first I resumed periods at 6 months, with my second, who nursed even more, I resumed my period 3 weeks after I finished bleeding from birth. My children were fed through a year, so I personally would not have trusted breastfeeding to stop ovulation at all, but that's just my experience.

I used my basal body temp to GET pregnant or plan accordingly, many use it to PREVENT pregnancy. Read Taking Control of Your Fertility and it explains. Take your temp BEFORE you get out of bed at the SAME time every morning, record it.. you will know when you are ovulating. It will take a couple months to know your own schedule,etc

HI,
I read and used most of the method in the book Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weshler. Have used this for 8 years and I've enjoyed being off the pill. As I got used to the method I figured out what I needed to do (rather than doing all that she suggests) but adhered to it pretty completely in the first year. The benefit was figuring out my cycle! Good luck.

Hi there! I used NFP after the birth of my first child and now I have two girls 14 months apart. I knew exactly when I ovulated, etc., etc. etc. I used the Nuva ring prior to that and loved it! In fact...I am using it again so I don't have another incident like the first one. =)

I see that you already have a ton of responses but I'd thought I'd put my 2 cents in too :)

Mirena came highly recommended by my midwives right after I gave birth. fter some thought I did decided to go ahead with it (I felt really strange about having something put it me) but I must say it is great! I haven't had any side effects, I only spotted for a week after it was placed and have only had 1 light period and I've had it for about 9 months. I convinced all of my firends to get ti after their baby's came and they all love it too. Its so nice to not have to worry about it!!
If you choose NFP be very carefull. My friend was doing that and was very regular and had sex a good 10 days before she was scheduled to ovulate and she got pregnant! I know condoms can be a hassle but hey, less clean up!!! :) No matter what people tell you, YOU CAN STILL GET PREGNANT WHILE NURSING EVEN IF YOU HAVEN'T GOTTEN YOUR CYCLE BACK!!!!!

good luck!!

Thanks for asking this. I'm struggling as well since DH wants me to wait a year before I get my tubes tied and Mirena didn't work for me. However, I wanted to let you know that my problems with Mirena were strictly hormonal. I knew I was very emotional and I had a feeling that it was caused by Mirena. I had it removed quickly and easily. Basically what I'm trying to say is that you'll know within a month or two if you have these problems and it's easily removed so it may be worth a try.

i had the same feelings.. i was even on the mini pill... what they DONT tell you is that the pill, in any form, will not work if you are the slightest bit overweight and you do not take the pill at exactly the same time every day. it only works with perfet use..

i decided to get the mirena. my mom had an iud in the 80s but it made her sick the minute the dr put it in. anyway, the mirena is pretty nice. i didnt have any nausea or anything - the only "annoyance" i guess i had was the fact that i had spotty periods without warning for around ... 2 months or so. it was usually very light, it was only for like 3 or 4 days... but it was always without warning. i was like, didnt i just have a period?!?!

anyway, after 6 months or so, it calmed down and became regular, and like many other mirena users, i now have no period - or hardly a period at all.

there is a bit of discomfort, like something is in your stomach (which is true) and my husband had some pokey complaints for a while... but that string finally softened... and since you are sposed to go loooking for that string periodically, it freaked me out cuz i couldnt find it, only to find that it felt like spaghetti instead of pokey. lol.

anyway, i highly recommend it, yes there are reactions to it, but they arent as common as it seems. you hear less from the people who dont have problems because we dont think about it i guess. the people who have reactions usually scream the loudest.

if it makes you feel better, talk to your doctor about your concerns. if you dont trust him or her to give you straight answers, then that is your cue to just find another doctor. you need to trust your doctor.
also, if you have concerns about reactions, see if you can stick around the clinic for a while, or just in town (if you dont live in town) and they can make sure you dont have any reactions and you can be safe knowing they can immediatly remove it if you do get a reaction.

good luck!

i do recommend natural family planning if you are regular and can keep track. i always forget to keep track. yes, after leaving the bathroom when getting my period, i do and will forget to write it down... lol. rediculous. but true.

I'll second getting the book "Taking Charge of Your Fertility." Lots of fantastic information, even if you decide that FAM isn't for you.
I personally wouldn't want to chance it while breastfeeding. It's a difficult method to use anyways, and with a young baby it would be nearly impossible (imho). That said, I'm pretty sure the book has a whole section about charting while breastfeeding.
I had a mirena and LOVED it. I had it inserted about 8 weeks pp with my son, and removed 18 months later when we decided to start trying again. I'm currently 21 weeks pregnant with #2 --- it happened RIGHT away.
There are also IUDs without hormones. Talk to your doctor about the paraguard. A lot of women who prefer to be hormone free really like this option.
GL

It can work well if you are extremely disciplined. Although everyone I know who has used it has taken a chance when they shouldn't have and become pregnant. I wouldn't use NFP unless you are open to surprises.

Check out the book "Taking Charge of your Fertility" by Toni Weschler, PhD. It is awesome. Most OB/Gyn think it's crazy, but it has proven VERY accurate for me, and I am completely "irregular" Tracking morning temp and cervical fluid combined will tell you when you are or are not fertile. There'a a little more to it than that, but it's worth the read--very reader friendly, simple terms, etc. Every woman should have this book whether they want children or not! Good Luck!

A good friend of mine (who's also a RN) became pregnant using the "natural family" planning method right after her first child was born. I would definitely use a condom and spermicidal lubricant if this is what you and your husband decide.

I LOVE the Mirena...Used it for 3 years w/no complications. Had it pulled when we decided to try for our first child, and became pregnant after 3 months. I now have a healthy 5 month old. My primary care provider administered the Mirena about 2 months after I gave birth. No mood swings, periods, or any other side effects. Plus, effortless birth control for 5 straight years.

I would recommend talking to your doctor to see if it is right for you.

Natural family planning can work really well if you are diligent and determined.
To give it the absolute best shot at working you need to do your research and you need to stay focused on it! The more you put into it, the more accurate it will be.
For the most accurate charting I would suggest using software, temping and checking cervical mucous. And when you are comfortable with that move to using ovulation predictor sticks, or ovulation microscopes.
Once you know what is going on you will only need to take your temps after your period is over until after you are sure you have ovulated.
On top of that, you have to be committed to not having unprotected intercourse during the 5 days you are fertile.
It really is not hard to get it figured out or to work it. It is hard to not be spontaneous in the love life. But my grandma did it without charting and temping. She did it by learning her body and knew when she was fertile and avoided grandpa certain days. She only had kids when she wanted to. She was Catholic, so that was the only option she had for birth control.

For free charting you can use fertilityfriend.com, and in the beginning they will give you the VIP charting to try. They have courses to take to learn about charting. Fertility Friend lets you chart everything, cm, temps, meds, pains, intercourse, etc, and tells you after you ovulated so you know you are in the safe zone.
To get to seriously know your body, check out the book Taking Charge of Your Fertility from the library, or buy it.

If you want more information, you may pick my brain. I've been doing it for years. Though I don't avoid conception, I still chart to always know what my body is doing.

The pill and other hormonal methods also make me sick, but I have had the Mirena for almost six months now and I am happy with it. I had some irregular bleeding at first, but that has gotten better. I think some of the things you read on the internet are "worst case scenario." It can also be removed if it doesn't work out. Send me a message if you want to reconsider the Mirena and want any additional information.

Hi, I know you have had a ton of responses. I just wanted to let you know I can totally relate and was scared of IUD's (heard horror stories). I first went with a hormone free one( bad idea, extra flow, crampy ect.) Had another baby and then went with a Mirena. LOVE IT! LOVE IT! LOVE IT!! No side effects, I got super sick on the pill also but not so on the Mirena. I would suggest at least trying it out, you could always take it out. Also, I got pregnant on a "natural" birth control attempt. Not so good for me. Good luck.

The only kind of NFP that completely works is abstinence. If you are OK with that, or OK with another baby soon, then go for it. A family I know on this method just had their sixth...

Why not try a different kind of pill? There are several kinds and because they are made with different types of hormones, they will affect different women differently. The mini-pill did not work for me (side effects like breakthrough bleeding) and most of the "pill babies" I know happened while on the mini-pill. They have a minimum amount of hormones, which doesn't do the job for a lot of women.

I highly recommend talking with mid-wifes. They will take the time to listen to you and are very knowledgeable about options.

Why not try an IUD or diaphram?? I know NFP works for some, but you have to be diligent or you will end up with a suprise.
I used both a diaphram and IUD in the past, both with great results and no surprises. The diaphram is a bit 'bothersome' as you have to insert it before you have intercourse. The IUD is not noticable and there are a few new types out there now too. I was able to get pregnant 4 months of trying after I had the IUD removed.
I guess you need to decide what is best for you, but these are a few non hormonal options for you to research.

D.

It can be beneficial if you know you body VERY well and are willing to temp and chart your fertility signs everyday. However, even with doing that, it can still fail. I have used this method since my now 20 month old was born. I am now 5 weeks pg with my next one...and we were NOT trying. I was SURE I was safe, but sometimes it doesn't work out that way.

I'd say it's a great birth control method to use if you don't want any hormones or anything, but make sure you are comfortable with the idea of getting pg at any time.

Love my Mirena. If insurance covers it (mine did) you could get it and always have it taken out.

We tried to be careful and not use birth control while I was nursing our second child because I did not want to be on the pill while nursing him, but the NFP obviously did not work on this Fertile Mrytle as we found out we were pregnant with our daughter while he was just 7 months old. I had a Mirena put in at my first check up after she was born. The side effects are not a big deal at all. I did have a small patch of hair loss that grew back, some spotting for a while that eventually stopped all together and now have not had a period for years. Molly is 3, Thomas is 4, and I have a ten year old, Aaron. I could not imagine how hard it is at your house with 3 kids 3 and under. I can not even take the younger two to the grocery store by myself while our oldest is at school. Too Hard! Of course they have their dady's temperment, I swear:) The IUD is localized so is not like the pill which is in your blood stream. The hormones just do not allow your lining of your uterus to become thick. I love that I do not have to worry about pads and tampons anymore. Plus is lasts five years so you have lots of time to decide whether you want more kids or not.

Hi,
I just thought I would respond as I have the Mirena. I had terrible migraines from the pill, so after our son was born, I needed another alternative. My doctor recommended the Nuva-ring or Mirena. I chose the Mirena and haven't regretted it for one second! As with any birth control, there's always side effects, but I have been fully satisfied with the Mirena.

We are going on 2 1/2 years with my being on no birth control at all. I use beads that I think are called "moon beads" or something like that. If a person has a regular cycle of 28 to 34 days then the moon beads can be used. It helps mark off the fertile days. I do that and also watch my body "signs" for the time frame of when ovulation should happen for me.

T.