Fertility Awareness Method

[aelle]

This is about the cycle tracking method based on a combination of daily symptom tracking (cervical fluid, cervix position, dilation and firmness, mittelschmerz) and temperature charting. This is not about the "rhythm method".

The term Fertility Awareness Method (FAM) usually refers to this method when used as a means of birth control (either by abstaining or by using an additional barrier method during fertile days), but since it allows you to know when ovulation occurs it can also be used when trying to conceive.

Some resources:
Welcome to Taking Charge of Your Fertility Taking charge of your fertility
Beautiful Cervix Project - images of womens' cervixes (and cervical fluids) throughout their cycles.
http://community.livejournal.com/fam/

Anyway! I don't have any personal experience with FAM (yet) but I have some questions for those who do.

- how long did it take you to understand the patterns of your cycle?

- can the temperature charts make sense without tracking the symptoms? I'm thinking of practicing charting but I currently have an IUD that definitely affects my cervix.

- how do you deal with FAM and traveling? Can it work if you have inconsistent sleep schedules? What do you do when changing time zones or flying a red eye?

All user testimonials welcome!

[aelle]

Also, what is special about basal thermometers? Can't I use a regular electronic thermometer?

[Curious cat]

I've only just started charting as my husband and i are ttc again (trying to conceive). I am slooowly reading through Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler. I highly recommend it. I am finding it quite useful, and it's great to understand my body and my cycles this intimately. Quite empowering for me.

Basal thermometers are meant to be more sensitive and give a reading up to 0.11 degree. I bought one from ebay and it took me months to realise it was faulty! I just assumed i was one of those women who always had a consistent bbt of 37. Now, i am just using a regular tommee tippee digital thermometer and it seems to work fine. The graphical charts are in increments of 0.1 degree anyway, plus i find depending on how good my sleep was (which is choppy as my toddler can get a bit waawaa even now), my temp can jump 0.2, and within a couple minutes between each reading.

i take my temp orally, just under my tongue, but you can do it vaginally. Under the armpit isn't recommended as it isn't as accurate. Make sure you have at least three hours of sleep. Take your temp first thing and try not to move much before hand, so don't go to the bathroom or drink or eat, and keep your thermometer close by so you don't have to exert yourself in reaching for it and corrupt the reading.

In my understanding, the day you get your period is cycle day 1. From cd1 up until ovulation, you will have a baseline bbt (around 36.5 deg celsius). Just before ovulation, some women will dip in bbt and then jump (up to) 37 deg celsius, and sustain higher bbt until menstruation. If you are pregnant, your bbt will remain high.

It's important to note that bbt rise happens after ovulation. It wasn't until after i read the book that i realised that the assumption that women ovulate on cd14 can be very incorrect as women are different and individual and won't necessarily ovulate on day 14. I only discovered myself that i ovulate on day 19. I'm pretty sure This will change from cycle to cycle too no doubt.

I hope that is enough for now. I don't want to bore you too much with all this regurgitation. Perhaps you can couple FAM with a ferning device (not sure it's technical name) which detects the hormone in your saliva when you are most fertile.

[Curious cat]

I love the cervix website, so informative. I actually thought about posting it on the forums but decided against it.

The book i mentioned does discuss the impacts a different timezone can affect your cycle and your charts. And to an extent shift workers too, but it's important to have at least a minimum of three hours of uninterrupted sleep. The time you take our temp can affect the reading as well, the later in the morning, the higher your bbt will be.

[aelle]

Originally Posted by Curious cat

The book i mentioned does discuss the impacts a different timezone can affect your cycle and your charts. And to an extent shift workers too, but it's important to have at least a minimum of three hours of uninterrupted sleep.

Mmh, that's a bit bothersome. So it would mean that if I fly overnight and don't get any real sleep over these 2 days, I can't get a proper sample point for that day? It happens often enough that this could be an issue for me.

I'd be using it to try to avoid + general curiosity, not try to conceive, although it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world if I got pregnant at this point in my life.

[Criseyde]

Originally Posted by aelle

Anyway! I don't have any personal experience with FAM (yet) but I have some questions for those who do.

- how long did it take you to understand the patterns of your cycle?

A couple months after I started temperature charting. But my cervical fluid is incredibly easy to read, I have definite mood effects, and my cycle is usually like clockwork. So I'm an easy case.

- can the temperature charts make sense without tracking the symptoms? I'm thinking of practicing charting but I currently have an IUD that definitely affects my cervix.

Yes, the temperature charts are incredibly cool and interesting. I use the software at Ovulation Calendar and Ovulation Chart - Fertility Charting and you can see it very clearly.

- how do you deal with FAM and traveling? Can it work if you have inconsistent sleep schedules? What do you do when changing time zones or flying a red eye?

Here's how taking your temperature works. You need to be asleep for at least 3 hours (more is better), and take your temperature right after you wake up but before you move around too much. So, don't get up and go to the bathroom, then take your temperature -- it's too late. And from my understanding, it's more about the length of time you're asleep than about time zones -- BUT, I've had some significant effects on my cycle from international travel, so I'm sure that travel does affect it. Unfortunately, I'm not sure exactly how, because I wasn't charting at the time.

I definitely wouldn't have unprotected sex if I were close to ovulation and didn't get a data point. Luckily, anytime in the luteal phase, you're infertile. So it's only a problem half the time (if that).

You need a basal thermometer because it has a... what's that word. Mine displays to a tenth of a degree, but it can read out to the hundredth and round either up or down. Since your temperature only changes by a couple tenths of a degree, it needs to be sensitive enough to do that accurately.

I would NOT use FAM alone to avoid pregnancy. It has the highest failure rate of all the methods when used for contraception. I chart when I feel like it because I think it's awesome to know when I'm ovulating, and I'm a nerd. I also don't want to go on HBC, ever, and I think it'd be useful in conjunction with barrier methods.

ETA: I do ovulate on CD14, unless something happens to throw it off.

[aelle]

Originally Posted by Criseyde

I would NOT use FAM alone to avoid pregnancy. It has the highest failure rate of all the methods when used for contraception. I chart when I feel like it because I think it's awesome to know when I'm ovulating, and I'm a nerd. I also don't want to go on HBC, ever, and I think it'd be useful in conjunction with barrier methods.

Is that so? I thought it had a poor pearl index only when lumped together with all the other avoidance methods (like the rhythm method, which does have a terrible failure rate), but that the proper FAM as outlined in TCOYF had a much better success rate when it comes to pregnancy avoidance (see note 5: Comparison of birth control methods - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

[Criseyde]

Originally Posted by aelle

Is that so? I thought it had a poor pearl index only when lumped together with all the other avoidance methods (like the rhythm method, which does have a terrible failure rate), but that the proper FAM as outlined in TCOYF had a much better success rate when it comes to pregnancy avoidance (see note 5: Comparison of birth control methods - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

I've looked into it, and typical use failure rates vary widely from study to study, but they're often reported to be higher than HBC, diaphragms, and even condoms. I basically don't trust myself to be a perfect user. I know a woman who has used FAM alone (+ condoms while ovulating, obviously) to very successfully avoid pregnancy for YEARS. But I also know a couple women who did everything right (or so they believed) and became pregnant.

Plus, I just really don't want children and I know I would panic at least once a month, so it's not a good idea for me.

[aelle]

Yes, I understand how this completely depends on your mindset and life situation at a given time. A few years ago, I was all like "Are you crazy! Give me the most effective, foolproof BC method or give me death!" Now, I'm all "Meh, whatever."

I feel so over BC these days. My cervix strongly dislikes my IUD, which means I cramp like mad 2 weeks out of 4, and I don't want to go back on the pill because of what it did to my mood and libido. Mostly though, these side effects weigh much more than they used to in the face of my currently very low motivation at remaining unfertilized. But I suppose that's another discussion...

[Curious cat]

Originally Posted by Criseyde

ETA: I do ovulate on CD14, unless something happens to throw it off.

criseyde, if you don't mind me asking, do you consistently ovulate on cd14? Or does it fluctuate often for you?

[Curious cat]

Originally Posted by aelle

Mostly though, these side effects weigh much more than they used to in the face of my currently very low motivation at remaining unfertilized. But I suppose that's another discussion...

i was very against having any children in my 20's (and even at 27 was leaning toward being childless), so i can definitely relate to what you and criseyde are saying about not wanting children at this stage in your lives.

This isn't a reason to not use BC of course, and it also depends on the couple and their situation, but you may be surprised at how diffiult conception can be! They say it will take 12 months for a healthy couple to fall pregnant. I was 30 when i fell pregnant so not that old, but it took us 12 months of trying to get there. I always thought it was going to be as easy as pick a date + sexy time = sticky.

[ButterflyWoman]

I don't use this as a method of birth control, but I keep track of my fertility just as a matter of personal interest. I'm perimenopausal and my periods are still totally normal (slightly irregular, but the average is always the same).

I keep track here: MyMonthlyCycles - Ovulation Calendar, Period Calendar, Fertility Cycles

The site is free, and quite handy. You can even get it to email you reminders if you haven't logged a period, etc.

I can tell when I ovulate by a combination of cervical mucus, calender charting, and I generally notice Mittelschmerz (literally: middle pain, but for me it's just a noticeable twinge). From what I can tell, I'm only ovulating on one side these days (i.e., every other month). That's not uncommon for a woman my age, from what I've read, and I'm not really planning on having any more babies, so it's not a big deal.

I've never been motivated to do the temperature thing. It's quite regimented, and I've never had the discipline or, honestly, the need. I've always been very fertile when I wanted to conceive (except coming off the pill back in my early twenties), and I use birth control when I don't want to conceive.

Interestingly, as I approach menopause, I find that my moods and/or PMS are actually BETTER than when I was younger. But, well, a lot of things are generally better than when I was younger so I don't know if it's the hormones or if it's just that I'm so much more emotionally stable now. (Worst part about perimenopause, by the way, is the hot flashes. My entire face will go bright red and it feels like it's on fire from the inside. Very, very uncomfortable, and weird looking, too.)

[Curious cat]

Butterflywoman, can you elaborate on hot flashes some more? Does it feel like a fever, or is it more isolated?

[ButterflyWoman]

No, it's not like a fever. That comes from inside. Hot flashes are more on the surface of the skin. It's like the dermis, itself is heating up. It doesn't feel hot to the touch like a fever does (in fact, it feels kinda clammy), but YOU feel like your face is super hot. And my face turns BRIGHT red (not everyone has the super red face, though).

It's kind of your own PERSONAL hell. A fever can be felt by others, as can a hot environment, but a hot flash is just one woman going, "OMG, I'm burning up!" and turning colours.

For me what triggers it is going from a cool environment (like outside on a cold day, or an air conditioned area on a hot one) into a warm environment. Very occasionally, I get them with no apparent trigger, but usually it's the sharp shift in temperatures that does it. Oh, also, being in a too-warm environment for too long can do it, too. Not usually in, say, my house (which can get pretty warm in the summer), but something like a shopping centre when they have the heat up too high. Also doing exercise can trigger it (usually in the pool, possibly because of the cool water/heated body from exercise thing).

Some herbal remedies can help, but I haven't been that worried about it, so I haven't really looked into them very much. I usually just fan my face with whatever's handy or use an actual desk fan until it passes. Normally it doesn't last more than a few minutes.

[Kaie]

When I was trying to conceive, I was religious about temp charting. I found it interesting to track my body cycles. I used Fertility Friend to chart, that have both a free and a paid service... For me, the free was fine.

I charted at approximately the same time each morning, but it varied somewhat. I always saw a beautiful pattern. Plus, a huge advantage, I always knew when I would start my moontime, it was never a surprise.

I was able to really get to know my body, and I know the way my fluids are during different parts of my cycle. I used to check my cervix, but I don't see the need to do that anymore.

I am not trying to avoid (the pill really doesn't agree with me, and I don't want to put hormones into my body.)

I highly recommend this method

I also learned many things about supplements and little tricks to conceive. I conceived twice, both ended in miscarriage

I am open to questions