natural birth control – Leslie at Chart Your Fertility

Can I get pregnant on my period?

Many people think that having sex during menstruation cannot lead to pregnancy, but the answer is much more nuanced than that. It is possible to get pregnant during bleeding episodes, some of which may not be menstruation!

Was the bleeding truly menstruation?

Charting evidence-based fertility signs like cervical mucus, basal body temperature, and urinary tests are the best way to determine if you are ovulating. True menstruation should follow about 10-16 days post ovulation as indicated by a temperature shift or positive PdG test.

If you are not charting your cycle with a fertility awareness based method, your bleeding may not really be menstruation. Estrogen breakthrough bleeding may appear very similar to menstruation and is often indistinguishable without charting. This bleeding can be fertile, and pregnancy could result.

Day one of a true menstruation marks the beginning of the cycle.

Day 1 is true menstruation because it followed a proven luteal phase. The current cycle confirms the next bleed will be menstruation because of the positive progesterone tests. This app is Read Your Body.

How long are your cycles? Better yet, approximately when do you usually ovulate?

If your cycles were 26 days or longer for the last year, it is unlikely you will become pregnant with sex during the first five days of the cycle.

Dr. Josef Roetzer monitored 5,807 cycles. He observed only one pregnancy before day 6 of the cycle. Her cycles were 22-27 days long.

Dr. Roetzer estimates that using the first five/six days is 99.8% effective for avoiding pregnancy. It is important to note that all of his cycles monitored had a temperature shift preceding menstruation. If you do not have proof that you ovulated before a bleed, it becomes more likely to conceive during bleeding.

Another way to determine the last infertile day at the beginning of the cycle is to use Dr. Doering’s rule. Dr. Doering subtracted 7 from the earliest first high temperature in the last year. For example, Sarah’s earliest first high temperature was day 13. Day 13 – 7 = Day 6 as the last infertile day of the cycle. This rule is always crosschecked with cervical mucus. Sperm may survive up to 5 days in cervical mucus, and any presence that has not been determined to be infertile through instruction should open the fertile window. The Doering rule is more personalized than automatically assuming the first five/six days are infertile.

In Dr. Frank-Hermann’s double-check sympto-thermal study from 2007, all three method failures were from day 5 intercourse. This study used the first five day rule and Doering rule. This study yielded an efficacy of 99.6%.

So am I safe to have sex during my period? Ask yourself these questions.

Did you confirm ovulation with basal body temperature, PdG strips, or a blood draw in the previous cycle?
Are your cycles longer than 26 days on average? Have you ever had a peak day before day 13 of the cycle?

If the answer to both of those is yes, you can probably have safe sex up to day 5 of your cycle.

If your answer is no, then you have a possibility of pregnancy.

What if I want to be more conservative?

Some methods like Billings, FEMM, and Creighton suggest not having sex during heavy days of bleeding when cervical mucus cannot be observed.

If you have a history of short cycles (less than 26 days) or want to add an extra layer of protection onto the beginning of the cycle, I recommend beginning observing vulva sensation and cervical mucus as soon as your bleeding has lightened enough to no longer need a tampon, cup, or regular pad. If you need only a panty liner or are only experiencing light spotting, you should beginning checking your cervical mucus and sensation throughout the day. At the end of your day, if you have observed no cervical mucus or sensation outside of your determined infertile pattern, this day is safe for sex. (DO NOT DO THIS WITHOUT LEARNING A METHOD. THIS BLOG IS NOT ENOUGH INFORMATION TO AVOID PREGNANCY WITH ALONE).

What if I bleed for more than 5 days?

If your menstruation lasts longer than five days, you should follow the instructions from the paragraph above. It is NOT safe to consider past day 5 automatically available if you are bleeding. You need proof by using cervical mucus or urinary estrogen tests that your fertile window has not yet opened past day 5 of the cycle.

What if I randomly have a short cycle?

Checking cervical mucus is your best back up. Cervical mucus should appear when the fertile window is opening for most charters. Many methods suggest no longer considering menstruation safe once you enter peri-menopause (can occur up to 10 years before menopause) because cycles may shorten at this time. If you notice that your cycles have grown shorter than 26 days, you may want to become more vigilant and stop automatically considering the first 5 days safe.

Conclusion

For the majority of people menstruating, using the first five days of a true menstrual cycle will not result in pregnancy. For a very small percentage, it may. I recommend charting with a real fertility awareness method (Sensiplan, SymptoPro, FEMM, Billings, Marquette, etc) to determine if your bleeding is actually menstruation!

Works Cited

Boetze, Iosef. “Further Evolution of the Sympto-Thermal Methods.” International Review of Natural Family Planning 1 (1977): 139-150.

Raith-Paula, Elisabeth, et al. Natürliche Familienplanung heute. Springer Medizin Verlag Heidelberg, 2008.

Breastfeeding and return of fertility in natural family planning studies

During the postpartum period of time, fertility is in a unique state. For those fully breastfeeding, it may be months or years before they begin ovulating again regularly and with fertile cycles. This article talks about some of the data we have on what return of fertility looks like. This information may be of particular interest to those charting with a method of natural family planning or fertility awareness. Charting at this time may be difficult, and for highest efficacy should be done closely with a certified natural family planning educator.

Breastfeeding as Birth Control

Breastfeeding has been shown over numerous studies to have an effect on return to fertility and ovulation. Kennedy et al (1989) reviewed 10 studies from multiple countries to come to a consensus on what full-breastfeeding means.

Fully breastfeeding or at least partially fully breastfeeding
Fully breastfeeding meaning the infant gets all or as close to all as possible of their nutrition by suckling at the breast directly, no bottles or pumping
Small bites of regular food or water do not disqualify for full breastfeeding
No bleeding past day 56 postpartum until the 6 month mark postpartum.

Some methods suggest going no longer than 6 hours at night without breastfeeding. While this was not mentioned in the study, it is generally used as the standard in fertility awareness based methods to see if someone qualifies to rely on the lactational amenorrhea method (LAM).

LAM is 98% effective for avoiding pregnancy when all criteria is met up until 6 months postpartum. After that, efficacy drops precipitously.

What about ecological breastfeeding?

Ecological breastfeeding requires even stricter criteria and may delay fertility for much longer. Bleeding past day 56 does not disqualify someone for ecological breastfeeding. Ecological breastfeeding should not be confused with LAM! Ecological breastfeeding was coined by Dr. Sheila Kippley. You can buy her book here.

The criteria include:

Breastfeed exclusively for 6 months
Pacify your baby at your breast
No bottles or pacifiers
Sleep with your baby for night feedings
Sleep with your baby for a daily-nap feeding
Nurse frequently day & night. Avoid schedules.
Avoid anything that would separate you from your baby / prevent regular nursing

Symptothermal Method Studies on Breastfeeding

For the first part of this overview, I am going to cover a few symptothermal studies that followed breastfeeders from birth to return of fertility. Symptothermal charters record cervical mucus and basal body temperature daily in order to track their fertility and determine when the fertile window is opened and when it is closed.

In “Breastfeeding and the Symptothermal Method,” Kennedy et al. followed 73 women who charted with a symptothermal method in Australia, Canada, England. While this is a small sample size, the team collected a ton of data: 22,538 diary sheets, 9,428 urinary vials to measure hormones, and 1,600 follow-ups with the women (Kennedy 1995).

Kennedy et al. reported the following data regarding the wait to return of fertility:

Only 25% of first ovulations postpartum had “adequate luteinization.” This means over three quarters of first ovulations were likely infertile (Kennedy, 110).
In retrospect, up to 51% of possibly fertile days identified by sympto-thermal would not have lead to conception (Kennedy, 112). The study standard for this was 5 day sperm life.
They found that 94-99% of the time, the sympto-thermal method correctly identified when a day was really infertile. This means that around 1-6% of the time it didn’t identify a day that may have lead to pregnancy (Kennedy, 112).
They recorded four adequate ovulations with those fully breastfeeding for their first ovulation. This was defined as a 10 day or greater luteal phase with adequate progesterone levels. (Kennedy, 112).
Abstinence was expected per the rules for about 50% of the charted days included in the study (Kennedy, 113).

Bonus Information for Cervical Mucus Fans: Fertile mucus in this study was considered anything cloudy, opague, clear, translucent, stretchy, strands, wet, lubricative, moist, or unusually abundant.

Zinaman and Stevenson in the USA followed 25 women until they had 3 ovulatory cycles postpartum (1991).

They found the following data regarding return to fertility:

20% of ovulations in the first ovulation postpartum during the first 6 months were considered fertile (ie a luteal phase longer than 10 days) (Zinaman and Stevenson, 2037).
Basal body temperature appeared inadequate to capture the first ovulation, occurring up to 4 days after the LH peak, but it improved in later cycles (Zinaman and Stevenson, 2037).

Percentage	Time to Return of Fertility From Birth
25%	Less than 200 days
25%	200 to 300 days
35%	301 to 400 days
15%	More than 400 days

Time to return of fertility among 25 breastfeeding women in Washington, DC. Created from page 2037 in Zinaman and Steveson (1991).

In an article in the International Review of Natural Family Planning, Parenteau-Carreau presents data collected from 43 postpartum women charting with the Serena Canada method.

Parentau-Carreau reports the following data on postpartum charting:

65% of first bleeds were preceded by a thermal shift (35).
The collection of charts confirmed the theory that 4 high temperatures should be used postpartum, as there were instances of 3 raised temperatures that were not true shifts (36).
Among temperature shifts during the first 6 months postpartum, 75% lasted 8 days or more (37).
For babies who sucked their thumb or used a pacifier regularly, their mothers experienced return of fertility an average of 13 days earlier than those who only breastfed for soothing purposes (37).
The basal body temperature curve tended to become more steady or regular in the one to two weeks prior to the first ovulation (38).

What can we conclude from all this data?

Breastfeeding and meeting the criteria for LAM is highly effective for avoiding pregnancy in the first 6 months postpartum.
Most first ovulations postpartum are infertile (defined as a luteal phase less than 10 days long).
It is possible to chart during postpartum to avoid pregnancy.

What methods work best postpartum?

I recommend practicing either the Billings Ovulation Method or Marquette postpartum. I do not recommend sympto-thermal method because temperatures are not useful until fertility returns. I only recommend taking your temperature before the 6 month mark to those who are not breastfeeding. In addition, the sympto-thermal method offers less complex mucus patterns than Billings does.

Billings Ovulation Method involves charting sensation at the vulva and appearance of mucus to create a basic infertile pattern. It allows only alternate evenings of the basic infertile pattern for sex until return of fertility (IE ovulation) occurs. It is approximately 98% effective with correct use postpartum.

Subjective fertility signs (sensation and appearance)
Only alternate evenings for sex
Very affordable (Billings will work to set you up with a free instructor if you absolutely cannot afford one)
No re-occurring cost
One-time cost for instruction (ideally, please pay your educator if you can! Some instructors may charge after 1-2 years pass)

Marquette Method involves charting urinary hormones using the Clearblue monitor. This monitor reads estrogen and LH levels. This method is going to be more expensive than a cervical mucus only method, so I only recommend it to those who can afford approximately $30 USD a month or more postpartum. Unfortunately, the stick costs fluctuate up to $50 USD or so for 30 sticks, but I have seen them as low as $30 USD. Marquette is approximately 98% effective with correct use.

Objective fertility signs (monitor does the reading for you)
Any time of day sex when available
Expensive by some standards. Sticks cost twice as much in Europe. May not be available in some countries at all.
Re-occurring cost
One-time cost of the monitor ($50-$130 USD depending on if buying new or used)
One-time cost of instruction (unless you go over the year mark, you may need to pay twice)
I have heard that some instructors may offer scholarships, but you would need to contact individual instructors or organizations to learn their policies.

References

Kennedy, K; Rivera, R; McNeilly, A. (1989). Consensus statement on the use of breastfeeding as a family planning method. , 39(5), 0–496. doi:10.1016/0010-7824(89)90103-0

Kennedy, K., Gross, B., Parenteau-Carreau, S., Flynn, A., Brown, J., & Visness, C. (1995). “Breastfeeding and the Symptothermal Method.” Studies in Family Planning, 26(2), 107-115. doi:10.2307/2137936

Parenteau-Carreau, S. (1984). “The Return of Fertility in Breastfeeding Women.” The International Review of Natural Family Planning. Vol. 8(1). pp. 34-38.

Zinaman, Michael; Stevenson, Wilma (1991). Efficacy of the symptothermal method of natural family planning in lactating women after the return of menses. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 165(6), 2037–2039. doi:10.1016/S0002-9378(11)90575-4

An Honest Review of Tempdrop (Revised Review 2021)

Are you looking to simplify your basal body temperature charting routine? Is getting up in the morning just too hard to remember to take your temperature? Read on!

There are currently a few wearable basal body thermometers on the market such as iFertracker, Ava, and Tempdrop. In this blog, I will review the Tempdrop device. If you decide to purchase, use this link and get 10% off the device.

Unboxing Tempdrop!

Tempdrop is a wearable basal body temperature thermometer that came onto the market in 2017. Rather than setting an alarm, you can simply put this thermometer on before bed. You wear it around your upper arm (and it may be worn in a bra as well). It needs 3 hours of sleep to determine your basal body temperature. The device uses an algorithm to find your true temperature, regardless of how many times you have gotten up or whether you had restless sleep this night.

This device is very popular with shift workers, breastfeeding folks, and other people who don’t get a regular amount of sleep and wake up at different times, or just to those who don’t want to set an alarm!

Tempdrop holds 24 hours of data, and it must be synced at least every 24 hours or you will lose previous data. After wearing it for 15 days (as of March 2020), the algorithm will kick in. (If possible you should back up temp with oral basal body temperature for the first 60 days if you are avoiding pregnancy. If not, use a different method of protection). By day 60, the device will only change and make improvements to the last 2 temperatures taken.

Once you wear it, you will need to sync it to an app to see your temperature. Tempdrop has its own app, but I highly recommend using Read Your Body (pictured below) instead! This app is customizable for every method and can be synced to Tempdrop.

My Experience with Tempdrop

Tempdrop is red and oral temperatures are blue! One perk of oral temperatures is that sometimes I can skip taking my temperature, while with Tempdrop you do wear it daily for best results.

I used the Tempdrop device for almost 12 months. I found my oral temps to be more predictable and more steady when observing my own trends over time. I get very steady or repeating temperatures with oral charts most of the time.

However, I am not a shift worker, so I will admit that I do not need Tempdrop like some people may do. I already have to wake up at the same time 5 days a week, and I don’t find it inconvenient to take my temperature on the weekend. My oral temperatures caught my shift earlier than Tempdrop did on two separate occasions. I have seen other people say that Tempdrop catches their shift sooner than oral temperatures, so this is really an individual thing.

I discovered that there were multiple other effective ways of charting without taking my temperature. If you really want to chart in shift work, irregular cycles, postpartum and you do not want to purchase the Tempdrop, I highly recommend considering learning a new method of fertility awareness like the Billings Ovulation Method (click here to learn about working with me) and Marquette method (click here to learn what charting with Marquette is like).

If you are dedicated to using a sympto-thermal method and can’t get accurate temperatures otherwise, and you have tried trouble shooting your routine (vaginal temperatures, pre-warming the thermometer before taking it, using longest stretch of sleep), then Tempdrop may be your best option. You can use my code for 10% off, and I will get a small kickback. Thank you for using my code!

Which method of fertility awareness is right for me? A decision making tool

It can be hard to choose the right method for you. In this graphic, I have simplified the main signs, times of intimacy, and efficacies for the four methods that I am most familiar with.

As part of my charting journey, I have personally compared and charted with Billings, sympto-thermal, and Marquette. You can view my charting comparisons here.

The graphic is intentionally simplified. Method rules will vary, particularly if you are using a different protocol of the method or combination of signs. My Marquette example is for monitor-only rules.

Time of day for intimacy is very important to consider as a part of the decision making process. If you and your partner’s schedules don’t mix well, this may sway you towards another method!

Some couple like intimacy to feel spontaneous. If you never want to worry about time of day, Marquette is likely the best method to choose.

On the other hand, if you want your fertile window to be defined by cervical mucus, you may want to sacrifice any time of day sex for the flexibility of opening the fertile window that may come with using alternative evenings of the basic infertile pattern in Billings.

I recommend interviewing an educator and telling them your unique situation before committing to a method.

To find an instructor, I recommend using the Read Your Body Educator directory linked here. You can use it to find an instructor based on the fertility signs you want to chart, your location, price range, and more!

What is Walking Sensation?: How to Check for Vulva Sensation While Going About Your Day

This article was originally published on fertilityawarenessmethodofbirthcontrol.com

While some fertility awareness based methods use wiping sensation, a large majority of sympto-thermal methods (as well as mucus-only methods such as the Billings Ovulation Method) use some variation of walking sensation. Walking sensation is the feeling someone experiences at the vulva while going about their day to day activities. A good way to think about it is what it feels like to feel menstruation begin. Most people understand that this causes a wet feeling at the vulva without even needing to look to see the blood. Likewise, walking sensation can be felt at the vulva without needing to look for visible mucus.

This feeling might feel like something is falling out of your vagina. It could feel moist, wet, sticky, lubricative, slippery, or similar terms. Some people describe trickles and bubbles. This sensation opens the fertile window even if no visible mucus is seen. In fact, it is common to have walking sensation open the fertile window before any mucus is seen. It is also common for slippery / lubricative / wet sensation to be set as peak day (depending on your method rules!). Again, this would count as a fertile day even without visible mucus being seen.

Walking sensation is a practice in mindfulness. It involves tuning into the nerves at the vulva as you go about your day. Notice how it feels when you walk around, exercise, or otherwise move throughout the day. Wearing tight pants or synthetic fabric underwears can make it harder to feel. If you are having trouble tracking walking sensation, consider wearing a skirt or dress for a full cycle.

Another common suggestion to help learn it is to “chart blind” for one full cycle (obviously you will need to refrain from unprotected sex if changing up your method!). Charting blind means charting your sensation without looking at your visible mucus. This forces you to rely on the feeling at the vulva. Note that the Billings Ovulation Method which relies on walking sensation as the primary sign has done small studies with blind women who were able to chart their patterns with it while never being able to see visible mucus.

For those who haven’t tuned into these nerves before, I suggest meditation. Throughout the day, take the time to sit down (or walk around) and concentrate on your vulva.

If you are interested in learning more, reach out to an instructor. If you want to use it as a part of a mucus-only method, the Billings Ovulation Method focuses more on it than any other existing method. I personally teach this sensation in my Billings Ovulation Method class.

Why did I choose to become a fertility awareness instructor?

Why did I choose to become a fertility awareness educator?

Fertility awareness is the sex education I wish I learned in middle school.

When women actually learn how their fertility works, they learn that getting pregnant is not as easy as the drop of a hat. We learn to appreciate and live with rather than work against our fertility.

Almost every person who I’ve seen read #takingchargeofyourfertility or take a FAM class comes out of the experience saying, “Why have I not always known this information? I wish I could have known this when I was younger!” Learning fertility awareness changed my life, and I know it can change yours too.

Do I believe FAM is the right method of birth control for every woman?

No, it is probably not.

But I do believe that every woman should be taught how to understand her own body. What she does with that information is up to her.

Fertility awareness gave me the ability to avoid pregnancy on my own terms. It gave my spouse more knowledge about my body and the changes I experience during my cycle. It has strengthened my relationship in more ways than I can name.

If you want to learn FAM, I suggest getting an instructor. Check out this website for a list of instructors.

Now Opening Enrollment For December 2019 Fertility Awareness Course

I am so excited to be offering this new course for those interested in learning the symptothermal method of fertility awareness. The method I teach is based on the rules studies by Sensiplan. You can read about this study here.

I found fertility awareness after 7 years on the pill, and it really rocked my world. When I started practicing it myself, I realized that it was a grave injustice that women are not taught about FAM. Practicing FAM has put me in touch with my body more than ever before. It healed some of the mind/body split that I had developed through years of resenting my period.

Moderating in Fertility Awareness Method of Birth Control, the largest English speaking, secular fertility awareness group on Facebook at 25,000+ members, lead me to becoming a certified instructor through the Natural Family Planning Teachers Association (NFPTA). Starting in February 2020, I am pursuing a certification through Bebo Mia as a fertility doula to support women who are TTC. Outside of the fertility world, I am training to be a librarian. I have taught at the college level since 2016.

I teach a secular form of fertility awareness including information on barrier methods (condoms, diaphragms, etc). The NFPTA method has the same temperature rules as Sensiplan. I teach cervical mucus, cervical position, basal body temperature, and calculation rules (the doering rule and minus 20 and 21 rules). My distance course is offered on Moodle. It is a 4-week self-paced course that includes video charting examples and information on charting during all life circumstances (perimenopause, postpartum, postpill, and TTC). This class opens in December. Your partner is welcome to ask me questions and take the course along with you.

If you already have charting experience from reading TCOYF or the Sensiplan file (3 or more complete cycles), I will extend a discount to you if you decide to work with me. Reach out to me to find out more. I will also likely be holding a live introduction to FAM session in early December.

The best way to get in touch with me is through DM on my Instagram @chartyourfertility or through e-mail by completing a form on chartyourfertility.com. You can also follow me @chartyourfertility on Facebook.

A symptothermal method chart — An Example of Symptothermal Method Chart on Kindara

*Disclaimer: These methods only work as well as the user. Even with perfect use, there is still a .4% chance of pregnancy. Using a calculation rule is built into the efficacy, and ignoring calculations may result in unintended pregnancy. I will work closely with you so that you understand the rules, but it is ultimately on the user to follow them.

Shortcut charting, or “Wait… I don’t have to take my temperature every day?”

Many people come into FAM overwhelmed by all the data that they have to collect daily. It can be a bit of a turn off for those new to the method. They may wonder why they have to check their cervical mucus ALL day and then set an alarm on top of that.

When you first begin charting, it is vitally important to try to get the information down every day so that you can get into a habit and make sure that you are following the rules. Missing information will leave you with less complete charts that could leave you confused as to whether ovulation is confirmed or not.

However, once you have been charting for a significant amount of time and become confident, you can stop recording fertility signs once you have confirmed ovulation.

I am headed into chart number twenty-two successfully avoiding pregnancy with FAM, and I have been shortcut charting most of the time for about seven cycles now. I personally recommend confirming ovulation in 12 cycles before shortcut charting. This is so that you know how early you ovulate, your normal temperature levels, and how to tell whether something abnormal is going on in your cycle (ie sickness causing temperatures to be higher than normal or an abnormal cervical fluid dry up due to cold meds or some other medication).

Toni Weschler, author of Taking Charge of Your Fertility, recommends that women have several months of experience in the standard rules before taking any shortcuts. She offers some modified guidelines to follow and emphasizes that “contraceptive efficacy won’t be compromised as long as both your fertility signs have confirmed that ovulation has already been confirmed for that particular cycle.”

The Modified Rules

Temperature Taking

You don’t have to take your temperature during your period. Toni explains that these temps may be unreliable anyways. However, if you have short cycles with early ovulation, you may need those temps in order to confirm ovulation. If you have a temperature shift CD12 or sooner, you will need some period temps in order to have enough temperatures to draw a coverline.
You don’t have to take your temperature after you confirm ovulation with temperature rules. This means at least 3 high temperatures with a standard shift. If you have weak shift or a fall back rise, you must have the extra temperatures needed to fulfill those rules before you stop taking your temperature. Some people take their temperature again a day or two before they expect their period since it can (but not always) give an indication that menstruation is approaching.

Cervical Mucus

You don’t have to check cervical mucus after you confirm ovulation. You will need to check until you meet peak rules (P + 3) and crosscheck this with 3 high temperatures before you can stop checking for cervical mucus. Again, if you have a weak shift or fallback, you will need to check until you meet the rules.
From the day after your period until the day you observe peak type fluid, you should check cervical mucus continuously throughout the day and follow all rules for mucus checks. However, you don’t have to check cervical mucus multiple times a day once you observe peak fluid. If you observe peak fluid first thing in the morning, there is no need to keep checking. You have already recorded your most fertile observation for the day.

Those are the basic changes when short cut charting.

Here is an example chart.

This woman does not take her temperatures during her period. She begins taking her temperature on CD6 when menstruation ends. She checks her cervical mucus multiple times a day and follows the rules for checking until CD11. On CD11, CD12, and CD13, she observes eggwhite mucus first thing in the morning and doesn’t check again. On CD14-CD17, she checks mucus multiple times a day because she knows she needs at least a 3 day dry up (P + 3) to confirm ovulation. On CD 15, she has her temperature shift. CD16 is above the coverline. CD17 confirms ovulation because it is at least .4 F above the coverline. Ovulation is officially confirmed with both peak and temperature rules met. She takes her temperature again on CD26 to see if she gets a temperature drop indicating that her menstruation may begin soon.

People Who May Want to Think Twice about Short Cut Charting

Not everyone is suited to short cut charting.

Charting for Health: If you are charting for health, you may want to record your signs every day. Odd cervical mucus patterns and temperatures can indicate health issues. If this is your goal for charting, short cut charting may not be right for you.
Using Tempdrop: Tempdrop says to wear the device every day. If you don’t, it could disrupt the algorithm. As far as I know, they do not recommend short cut charting at this time. If you use this device, you may not want to short cut chart if you are worried about being at risk of pregnancy.
You aren’t confident in charting: If you are not confident in your ability to chart, you should NOT short cut chart. You should be 100% confident in your abilities before attempting this.
You are sick: If you are sick, you may want to chart more diligently and stay protected if you are uncertain about your chart interpretation.
You are only charting one sign: You NEED two signs in order to short cut chart. If you pick just one, you may be putting yourself at risk of unintended pregnancy. Ovulation must be confirmed with two signs.

An Honest Review of Tempdrop

Are you looking to simplify your basal body temperature charting routine? Is getting up in the morning just too hard to remember to take your temperature? Read on!

This device is very popular with shift workers, breastfeeding mothers, and other people who don’t get a regular amount of sleep and wake up at different times. It holds 24 hours of data, and it must be synced at least every 24 hours or you will lose previous data. After wearing it for 15 days (as of March 2020), the algorithm will kick in. (If possible you should back up temp with oral basal body temperature for the first 60 days if you are avoiding pregnancy. If not, use a different method of protection). By day 60, the device will only change and make improvements to the last 2 temperatures taken.

PROS

Helps Women Practice the Sympto-Thermal Method: If you are not able to take your temperature with a normal basal body thermometer due to breastfeeding, shift work, or other irregular sleep schedules, this device will help you practice any sympto-thermal method of fertility awareness or natural family planning.
Great Customer Service: I have had to interact with Tempdrop Customer Service several times. They are fairly prompt with responses, and they do try their best to troubleshoot with you. While there was an issue with the Tempdrop frame breaking, they fixed this issue for free.
No Alarm Needed: Hate your alarm? You won’t need to set it to take your temperature if you wear Tempdrop. This is a big game changer for people with irregular sleep schedules. It can make your mornings much easier.
Helpful Facebook Group: You may join the Tempdrop Facebook group for support and charting help. They have detailed units about how to use this device to achieve or avoid pregnancy. There are multiple spin-off Tempdrop groups that you may want to explore as well.

CONS

Price: Tempdrop Basic Package is $159 (12 month warranty). Tempdrop Confidence Package is $199 (12 month refund guarantee, 24 month warranty, Tempdrop Care available). Tempdrop Freedom Package is $249 (24 month warranty, Tempdrop Care, 12 month refund guarantee, extra armband and battery). While this price could be worth it for you if it’s the only way you can take your temperature, it may not be affordable to everyone. This price is still a little high, especially if you are making minimum wage or have other expenses like childcare. The referral codes only work with the higher price packages (scroll to the end of this to get 10% off the device). If you have kids or animals, you may want to get a better package if you believe your device may be damaged easily.
Battery: The device does not tell you when the battery is dying. However, you can contact support to find out. They now recommend changing the battery at 8 months.
Frame Breaking: Many people (myself included) have had the frame break easily. However, the company promises that they are trying to fix this issue and a newer frame with different plastic will be issued with devices bought this year.
Changing Temperatures: If you are the anxious type, you may not like the last few temperatures changing. While this is due to the way the device functions, some people may find it unsettling. Second, many people who chart expect that they will see a drop in their temperature before they get their period or the day of. I personally never got the drop to indicate my period was coming until Tempdrop retroactively adjusted my last temperature. With oral basal body temperature, changing temperatures is not a problem.

In 2020, Tempdrop released their own app. I do NOT recommend using it to interpret your data for you. It is quite expensive, and it does offers to interpret your data for you. The best app is one that lets you make all the decisions instead of forcing you into certain rules that may not fit your chosen method.

Here is an example of the Tempdrop app:

Source: Google Play Store

Instead, I recommend using Read Your Body app which is only $15 USD a year and empowers you to read your own fertility signs! It automatically syncs with Tempdrop. This is my top recommendation if you are determined to use Tempdrop for avoiding pregnancy. It is entirely customizable down to the cervical mucus categories and incredibly diverse custom data. See my blog on using this app for 7 different types of fertility methods and devices.

My Original Experience with Tempdrop in 2018

However, I am not a shift worker, so I will admit that I do not need Tempdrop like some people may do. I already have to wake up at the same time 5 days a week, and I don’t find it inconvenient to take my temperature on the weekend. Even if I take my temperature later, my oral temperatures are incredibly steady. My oral temperatures also caught my shift earlier than Tempdrop did on two separate occasions (I have seen other people say that Tempdrop catches their shift sooner than oral temperatures, so this is really an individual thing).

Funnily, alcohol appears to effect my Tempdrop temperatures MORE than my oral temperatures. I speculate that this is because whenever I would put the Tempdrop on, I was still recently drinking and hotter due to the alcohol. In contrast, I would be sleeping for 8-9 hours and have worn off the alcohol before taking my oral temperature.

Here is one full cycle comparison:

Tempdrop (Ovuview)

Oral Temperatures (Kindara)

Tempdrop temperatures will either read higher or lower than your oral temperatures. In my case, they read much higher.

Want to try it yourself?

Use this link and get 10% off the device. This discount only works on the Confidence and Freedom Packages.

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Continue reading An Honest Review of Tempdrop

Why Fertility Awareness Can Be a Feminist Choice

In this blog, I’m going to refute some of the arguments against fertility awareness. At the risk of losing some of my audience immediately, I have included the word feminist in this blog title. A while back, I got into an argument in a Facebook comment section with someone who was offended by this article that questioned the pill and it’s effect on women. The argument went nowhere fast, but it got me thinking.

In many circles, questioning the birth control pill is tantamount to attacking women’s rights. I have been told that I’m not a good feminist if I don’t support the pill. As someone who fully supports women and their choices, and as someone who only wrote about women in my graduate degree (I did a lot of gender studies topics), this assertion really hurts.

I know that the birth control pill changed many people’s lives. It brought women into the public sphere more than ever before. Women could now work and have sex without fear of pregnancy. It is considered a great achievement. What’s better than that?

The problem is that not many women are not fully informed about what their birth control options are before being put on the pill. In addition, women are put on the pill for reasons other than birth control (things like heavy bleeding, endometriosis and PCOS). However, we now know there there are alternative forms of birth control, and that the pill does not treat gynecological conditions (it masks them).

I was put on the birth control at age 15. I suffered from heavy bleeding, and mostly my mom just wanted me on it out of pregnancy fears. My doctor did not give me any information about the pill or expected side effects. (Some may point out that the packet comes with information, but freshman year aged me from high school did not think to read my birth control pack in depth). I was switched between at least 4 different types of birth control that I remember. The pill gave me migraines with aura (which I recently learned means I should have gotten off of it immediately, there is a link with having a stroke and migraines with aura while on the pill). I would lose vision while at work and had other disturbances in my vision. I also had pretty regular nausea, weird bleeding, depression, and digestive issues.

When I came off the pill for the first time at age 21, everything felt different. My emotions felt different, and my relationships changed. However, I was left with little alternatives for contraception. To me, taking the pill had become synonymous with being responsible, and I felt like I was failing at being a responsible woman and controlling my fertility.

At the same time, I felt so great coming off of it that I knew it wasn’t an option for me any longer. I felt truly like myself for the first time. One line in particular from a short film called Birth Control Your Own Adventure really resonated with me. This film is about how one woman struggles to find the right hormonal birth control. At one point a friend asks her, “How do you even know who you are if you’ve always been on the pill?” And, truly, I don’t think I knew myself while I was on it.

In my search for a better birth control, I stumbled upon fertility awareness methods. I found out that it was possible to track my cycle and determine daily whether I was infertile or infertile. Charting my cycle helped me learn when to expect a period. I had no idea that you could literally count high temperatures after ovulation in order to know when to expect a period. This feeling felt revolutionary, and I wanted to tell everyone.

When I try to share the joy I have found in this method, I often hear a few retorts. I’ve listed a few below along with my responses to these arguments.

The Arguments Against Fertility Awareness

Why should I have to plan sex? It seems kind of sexist that you expect women to wait to have sex at certain points in their cycle. On the pill, I can have sex whenever I want.

With fertility awareness methods, you don’t really have to “plan” to have sex. You can, however, choose to have unprotected sex during the infertile times of the cycle. If you are using a secular form of fertility awareness, you can also use condoms or other barriers during other points of the time in the cycle (keeping in mind that these barrier methods have their own efficacy rates).

I think it’s also worth noting how often the average couple has sex. A 2017 study found that the average American couple only has sex once a week. My window for abstaining or using backup protection is only about 9-11 days long. That’s a little over a week and a half a month. (I’m aware that some women have longer fertile windows. This aspect of fertility awareness is very individual and based on your own unique cycle). So, are these women really missing out on having unprotected sex a little less often?

Finally, yes, you can have sex on the pill whenever you want. However, the pill has been known to lower women’s libido and testosterone. Read this article to find out more. So, while you can have sex any time you want on the pill, doesn’t quality of sex matter? You can still have sex pretty often while using fertility awareness, and you may find you enjoy it more too.

This method seems really irresponsible. It only takes one time for a woman to get pregnant. What if she decides to have sex in her fertile window?

If someone is fully informed and taught by an instructor, they will know when their fertile window is. Yes, it only takes one time to get pregnant but if you are using fertility awareness, you know when that window is. If she decides to have sex in her fertile window, she may consider a barrier method. Anyone who has sex during their fertile window should be cognizant of the risks of pregnancy. By the way, at a typical use rate of 91%, someone could also have sex in their fertile window without knowing it while on the pill. At least fertility awareness lets women know what is going on in their own body.

Isn’t that a super religious method? I don’t care for that. It’s my body and I can have sex when I want.

Natural Family Planning is based in religious teachings. Fertility Awareness is not. Women can pick what they feel comfortable with based on their intentions. You can also still learn from NFP resources even if you aren’t religious. The method works the same regardless of any ideology attached to it.

Isn’t that like the rhythm method? You can ovulate at any time!! That’s not gonna work!

No, it’s not. There are many scientific studies on fertility awareness. Here is one. Here is a recent article reviewing all the studies done on FAM.

Women cannot ovulate at any time. Once ovulation has been confirmed in cycle, it is almost totally impossible for it to happen again. Some people say, “What about superfetation??” This is so rare, and almost impossible to prove. If you are confirming ovulation with a double check method, then you can be safely assured that ovulation will not happen again. At the beginning of a cycle before ovulation is confirmed, it could happen at any time. However, there are rules to follow so that women know when to stay protected.

The typical use rates of fertility awareness (when abstinence is practiced in the fertile window) is higher than the typical use rate of the pill. See my about section for more information.

But women need the pill for medical conditions, you know like endometriosis? Do you want women to suffer?

Obviously, I don’t want that. What’s important to know here is that the pill doesn’t actually treat endometriosis, or PCOS, or anything else really. It just masks the problem. If you have extreme period pain, you need expert care. The pill may mask problems that would eventually hurt a woman’s health and fertility. In particular, I want to note that if you are suffering from endometriosis, there is help. Join Nancy’s Nook Endometriosis Education to learn what your options are. For PCOS, Alissa Vitti is a great resource. Here is her website.

Isn’t it kind of anti-feminist of you to promote this? Women should be able to control their fertility however they choose.

Ah, my favorite question. I do agree that women should be able to control their fertility however they want. My whole shtick is that they should be fully informed in order to make this decision. With the dearth of good sexual education programs in the USA, almost no one is informed enough. Even doctors aren’t informed enough. Many only take one measly birth control class. Fertility awareness instructors do more than that, and they aren’t even in medical school. If more women knew that fertility awareness methods actually worked, they could make the decision to learn more about their body. I believe that all women should learn about fertility awareness methods as soon as they have their first cycle. It is so useful for girls to know what’s going on in their bodies!

I also argue that we have a #righttoovulate. I saw Dr. Lara Briden post this hashtag a while back, and I love it. Ovulation is amazing. And actually, I think it’s sort of anti-feminist to take that away from women, especially if they don’t understand what they are missing. Women are only fertile for around 24 hours a cycle (men’s sperm life makes up the rest of the fertile window). This is such a small window. Don’t we deserve the benefits of ovulation? Read Dr. Lara Briden’s article, “Ode to Ovulation” to learn more. In addition, some people have argued that it takes 7 years to develop fully healthy hormonal cycles, shouldn’t we be able to do that too? Putting women on birth control when they are young prevents so many of those benefits.

**I will note that I understand that hormonal birth control can be invaluable in domestic violence situations, or when a woman really cannot do FAM, or is forced on HBC for unrelated medical conditions. I just want the average woman to know that she has other options.

Conclusion

Most of the arguments against FAM are from uniformed people who don’t know what they don’t know. Fertility Awareness is actually feminist, and it’s certainly not anti-woman. It allows women to take control of their own fertility (here’s a great book on that). What’s more feminist than fully owning and living in your own body, while also avoiding pregnancy and planning it as you choose? Why should women subdue their own fertility when their fertile window is so short?

Do you want to learn more? Visit my other articles and reach out to me.