Using fertility awareness as contraception can seem like lots of work.
Record every day of your period, every waking temperature, every scrap of fluid.
Wake up at the same time every single day. Never drink alcohol, or get sick, or travel, or get stressed.
Who can handle that?
Fortunately there's a limit to how much data you
Record every day of your period, every waking temperature, every scrap of fluid.
Wake up at the same time every single day. Never drink alcohol, or get sick, or travel, or get stressed.
Who can handle that?
Fortunately there's a limit to how much data you
really need, and a limit to how perfect your life has to be.
Of course there minimum requirements. You do need to record day one of your period. If you can't do that, fertility awareness is not going to be for you.
If that's all you can handle doing, and 95% effectiveness is good enough for you, you could consider using the CycleBeads app as contraception.
It's based on the Standard Days Method of fertility awareness, which says women with cycles between 26 and 32 days long are fertile from cycle day 8 to cycle day 19.
If you want a fertility awareness method that is over 99% effective with correct use you'll need to do a bit more.
Waking temperature is important. It might be easier to take it every single day but you don't have to do that.
After the first few months you could just take it from day 5 and until you have the temperature shift that confirms your green days have begun.
If you take it more than 30 minutes earlier or later than usual you can usually adjust it.
Your temperature goes up about 0.1 degrees Celsius for each extra hour later than usual that you take it, and down 0.1 degrees for each hour earlier.
How about vaginal fluid? Surely you have to keep a close eye on that?
Not really. It might help you identify the beginning of your fertile days but you can use cycle length and waking temperature to do that, so long as you have enough data.
The main thing is to look out for the maximum fluid days that should occur just before your temperature rises around ovulation.
Interpreting basic information about your waking temperature and fluid, and/or other fertility indicators, is what fertility awareness is about.
You choose what kind of data you collect, and how much.
Find out if fertility awareness is right for you here.
Of course there minimum requirements. You do need to record day one of your period. If you can't do that, fertility awareness is not going to be for you.
If that's all you can handle doing, and 95% effectiveness is good enough for you, you could consider using the CycleBeads app as contraception.
It's based on the Standard Days Method of fertility awareness, which says women with cycles between 26 and 32 days long are fertile from cycle day 8 to cycle day 19.
If you want a fertility awareness method that is over 99% effective with correct use you'll need to do a bit more.
Waking temperature is important. It might be easier to take it every single day but you don't have to do that.
After the first few months you could just take it from day 5 and until you have the temperature shift that confirms your green days have begun.
If you take it more than 30 minutes earlier or later than usual you can usually adjust it.
Your temperature goes up about 0.1 degrees Celsius for each extra hour later than usual that you take it, and down 0.1 degrees for each hour earlier.
How about vaginal fluid? Surely you have to keep a close eye on that?
Not really. It might help you identify the beginning of your fertile days but you can use cycle length and waking temperature to do that, so long as you have enough data.
The main thing is to look out for the maximum fluid days that should occur just before your temperature rises around ovulation.
Interpreting basic information about your waking temperature and fluid, and/or other fertility indicators, is what fertility awareness is about.
You choose what kind of data you collect, and how much.
Find out if fertility awareness is right for you here.