The Importance Of The Fertility Window

Egg meets sperm, sperm meets egg. It's a monthly date, a match made in Heaven, and it can result in the creation of a beautiful little baby. But did you know that the amount of time that your egg is actually fertile — ready and waiting to meet the sperm, is actually quite short. Usually only one day of your entire cycle? Sperm on the other hand, have a much longer life span. They can live inside a women's body for up to five days. That means after intercourse, the sperm will just hang out, dressed to the nines, waiting for the egg to be released, where they will join together in the uterus and conception has occurred.


So what is the 'Fertility Window'? It is a window of time which includes every day in your cycle that intercourse could possibly lead to fertilization.  Because sperm have much longer life spans than egg cells, the fertility window is extended past the one day of the egg's fertility, and usually encompasses about  a week total.


Knowing your fertility window is very helpful if you are trying to conceive, and even more important if you and your partner have decided that now is not the time to get pregnant. As long as the sperm does not have a fertile egg for it to attach to, there is no chance at conception.


Your fertility window is so short — why would you risk putting unnatural and potentially harmful methods of birth control into your body. You probably did not realize that all the hormones you are ingesting, or the constant use of barrier contraceptives is really only necessary for the short period of time that your egg is fertile. But without information about your precise date of ovulation, you feel you have no choice but to protect yourself for your entire cycle.

Natural Family Planning (NFP) & the Fertility Awareness Method (FAM) of Birth Control

Thats where NFP and FAM come in to the picture. They give you vital information, open your eyes, and allow you and your partner to make fertility based decision about your chosen method of birth control. To be classed as NFP, you will abstain from sexual relations during their fertility window, to be classified as FAM, you will not necessarily abstain from intercourse, but instead use some type of reversible contraception like a condom, diaphragm or cervical cap.
There are a number of ways to identify your fertility window. Lets take a look at three of the most common methods.

Tracking your Basel Body Temperature

One of the most popular methods of natural contraception involves recording fluctuations in Basal Body Temperature (BBT) in order to pinpoint the fertile and non fertile days of your cycle.  A subtle but recognizable change in your BBT pattern signifies ovulation.


Contraceptive monitors such as Cyclotest, Bioself, Pearly and Lady-Comp use your BBT in order to recognize your personal fertility cycle. By charting the length of your cycle and the day of ovulation, contraceptive monitors are able to create a pattern that displays when you’re likely to become fertile in the coming days. This can also be achieved with an accurate thermometer, a fertility chart, some training, and a lot of discipline.


This graphic  below displays a typical BBT profile over a cycle.

 

LH Hormone Testing 

An increase in the hormone LH, which can be detected in urine samples signifies ovulation is about to occur.  To test your LH levels, you can purchase a urine test from any pharmacy or buy a Persona or Clearblue Contraceptive monitor. Be aware that you'll probably end up using about half a dozen of test sticks each cycle, and depending on disposable tests means both money out of your pocket and a larger carbon footprint.

Cervical Mucus Observations

The cervical mucus  you excrete is  directly related to your likelihood of conception. It is like a secret code that your body is sending you throughout the month, you just have to learn to decipher it. To learn to monitor your fertility this way, check out our page on cervical mucus to get the basics, and then seek instruction from a family planning consultant, as it can be a bit confusing at first.

The Symto-Thermal Method of Fertility Awareness

By recording, monitoring and charting BBT readings and cervical mucus we arrive at what is known as the Sympto-Thermal method of Fertility Awareness. LH levels can also be used as an indicator or the Sympto-Thermal method.  Because it gathers information from a variety of sources, the Sympto-Thermal method is able to deliver the most accurate and reliable results regarding your ovulation period and fertile days.


Take a look at the graphic below displaying the relationship between LH detection and the BBT profile during a 'typical' cycle.

 And be sure to check out Cyclotest, the only contraceptive monitor currently available in Europe that tests using this highly reliable method.
 

Using Contraceptive Monitors for Fertility Awareness

Contraceptive monitors make practicing fertility awareness, for contraception or conception, a breeze. They out all the hard work and charting, and you are left with the information you need to make fertility based decisions. If you are trying for a baby, your optimal days for intercourse are clearly displayed  on a handy little screen. If your decide to use the monitor for contraception purposes, avoid sex or use a reversible method of contraception for that window of time. Either way, you are avoiding the potential health risk of unnatural hormones to both yourself and your unborn baby.

Cyclotest - Fertility Awareness Made Easy

Cyclotest is a small handheld device with an integrated digital thermometer that automatically charts your fertility for the easiest experience possible. The Cyclotest is available in the classic blue version or the pink Cyclotest Baby.  Both options are basically the same device, however, the Cyclotest Baby comes with additional software to download fertility charts that will be particularly useful for those who are trying to conceive.

Both Cyclotest and Cyclotest Baby are designed to give you control over and understanding of your fertility without changing the natural harmony of your body.  They offer 97% contraceptive reliability just by taking a simple waking temperature in the morning.

Cyclotest 2 Plus - The Absolute Best Contraceptive Monitor for Fertility Awareness

How can the Cyclotest get even better? Welcome to  Cyclotest 2 Plus. With this version of Cyclotest you have the option of increasing the contraceptive reliability from 97% to an astonishing 99%.


You are now able to monitor a secondary fertility indicator of either the LH hormone or the appearance of cervical mucus. When one of these two natural indicators is noticed you just press a button and Cyclotest has learned a bit more. That information is added to your automatic charting, and your Cyclotest and it's accuracy are that much greater.


Remember that unlike other contraceptive monitors, Cyclotest is a one-and-done purchase with no need to buy any environmentally unfriendly test sticks every month.  Cyclotest, with its amazing functionality and level of accuracy, is sure to be one of the best purchases you ever make!

Read original article here: http://ethicalfamilyplanning.com/nfp-fertility-window