It essentially made me more proud to be a woman; there is so much power in knowledge and understanding that knowledge.
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I've intended to write about the fertility awareness method, aka FAM, for probably a year now. I love to call it natural birth control because, when used properly, it can help women to avoid pregnancy or plan a family without the use of pills, patches, shots, rings or IUDs. After enduring adverse experiences with birth control when I took it last year, upon entering a monogamous relationship, I searched for alternatives and found some including this method. I have used FAM for almost a year now and it has changed my life in so many amazing ways. Today I'm sharing three things that I love about the fertility awareness method
1) No pills, patches, shots, rings or IUD's are involved.
No synthetic anything needs to go into my blood stream, uterine lining, etc. This method is 100% non invasive and no monthly prescription needed.
2) It puts me in control
Conventional birth control put me in the passenger side of my fertility and being aware of my body and reproductive cycle. It made everything a puzzle, robotic and sterile feeling for me. I wasn't in tune to anything going on with my cycle except if I got my period that month or regularly. Through the charting of my cycle, which is a main component of FAM, I no longer was as puzzled by my reproductive system. I didn't have to rely on blindly accept insight from a doctor; I was finally able to receive the information my body was giving me and understand it first hand, in real time. It just made me feel more present in what was going on inside of me.
Now I can go to my OB/GYN with my charts of my cycles and observations and we can review them together. Once I understood what different elements of charting cycles, through observing my basal body temperatures and cervical fluid every day, I began to have an accurate idea of when I was fertile, ovulating and when I was no longer fertile. It essentially made me more proud to be a woman, there is so much power in knowledge and understanding it. I'm currently avoiding pregnancy (TTA) so FAM helps me to know when condoms most definitely need to be use or to abstain.
3) It's [virtually] free.
All you need to get started is a digital thermometer (which you may already have on hand), a charting app (most are free to download from android or iTunes app stores) and a desire to understand your reproductive system. There are tons of websites and blog posts dedicated to sharing information for free on how to successfully use FAM (I've shared my picks at the end of this post). There are also a host of free cycle tracking apps that will chart your periods, basal body temperatures and other fertility factors like cervical fluid, cervical position, symptoms and whole bunch more. I have used apps by Period Tracker, Daysy and Kindara. Kindara is my favorite.
Please note, not everything is for everybody. I'm fully aware that this method may not be everyone's cup of tea but it works fabulously for me and for millions of women all over the world and in this country (USA). In my opinion, this method works especially well for those who don't view taking 5 mins out of their life each morning to record their basal body temperature and cervical fluid observations as an arduous chore. It works optimally when you are only sleeping with one partner consistently but it still can be utilized successfully if you aren't (you just need a thermometer with you at all time. Haha). Please also note, no form of birth control is 100% effective. The 100% successful form of birth control is no sex. LOL. The fertility awareness method has over 98% success rate when you practice it properly. I've been using it for close to a year now and still no baby. I am excited to now be in a space where I want to start a family so it will be so cool to use it in the near future to achieve pregnancy!
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Fertility Awareness Method resources
Below are my book and website recommendations to learn about/more about the fertility awareness method. I utilize them and they helped me out a lot when was I was first learning about the method and deciding if my partner and I should try it. Any book recommendations below are available for purchase from our Amazon store, see the SHOP tab above for more information.
- I dub this book the BIBLE for the fertility awareness method: Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler (affliliate link)
- If you have or know adolescent girls, Toni Weschler has a book for them that is basically the Taking Charge of Your Fertility book tailored to teenage girls: Cycle Savvy (affiliate link)
- Another FAM book that is on my read list and has received great reviews and recommendations from others is The Garden of Fertility by Katie Singer (affiliate link)
- The Taking Charge of Your Fertility website and forum www.tcoyf.com
- Apple Seed Fertility
- Kindara www.kindara.com and www.kindara.zendesk.com
Milan is a New York City based, creative writer and the founder of AGrlCanMAC. She's a self proclaimed accessories junkie who's passionate about healthy living, adventure, books, crystals, the Law of Attraction and arts & crafts. AGrlCanMAC is a resource for women of color all over the world who want to look good, radiate good and feel good at the same damn time.
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