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If you know what I'm talking about when I put TCOYF in the title page, chances are you've read or heard about the amazing book that is "Taking Care Of Your Fertility" and is one I've recently read and referenced to in my quest to better understand my body.

I have ALWAYS had doubts about my fertility. I had heavy/painful periods from the word go (aged 14) and after a stint on BC I decided it wasn't for me as they suppressed my emotions and made me gain weight.  Since then I have been diagnosed with PCOS and an underactive thyroid, be treated for abnormal cells on the cervix and I suffer from cystitis (maybe 3 times a year) and I get a pain so sharp in my groin that it sometimes it stops me in my track. I notice discharge but thought nothing of it and I learn to live with the issues I have, (med for thyroid) exercise for pcos.

Despite this list, I am a very healthy active person. I don’t smoke or drink excessively and I go to the gym 3/ 4 times a week, so it frustrates me no end that my body doesn’t seem to work in the way that it should, being a woman.

Above all, the thing that made me question my fertility most is, my period pattern. Having lost pcos related weight my periods are semi-regular (every 6 ish weeks) So not great but consistent. But since being engaged future pregnancies have become a focal point for the next few years ahead and every time someone says "I bet you'll be pregnant by this time next year".. or asks if we will have a family, I always play down the excitement and say, "well it may take years to get pregnant, if at all" I was until very recently still sure that everything my body was showing me was a sign that there was something "wrong" with me.

That was until I read this book, cover to cover in a weekend.

After reading the book I took the decision to "watch “what by body throughout the course of 2 months to see how it reacted if I knew what I was looking for and I have learn more in this time than I ever knew before. I have come to realise that:

• My discharge doesn't just do something random, it is in a very specific pattern, and I know where I am in a cycle just by noticing it.

• My ovaries give me that stabbing pain right on q for ovulation

• my PMT symptoms are present at ovulation as well as time of the month (sore breast, water retention, feeling “heavier”

• My cervix moves according to the cycle

• My emotional state of mind is linked to this all.

I have also been able to temp which, while I admit is still learning in progress, I notice the pattern here and can see when my luteal phase starts- Which eliminates the horrible worry of "OK where is my period and should I do a pregnancy test?!" (Something I find myself doing often just to check I'm not.) I don’t have to fret anymore, I know to count down the days and wait.

While I know this doesn't prove I won't any issues with getting/staying pregnant, I feel like there has been an element of faith restored in my body's ability to do the things it should/needs to do! Instead of cursing and damning myself for not being "perfect" I'm now noticing in wonderment what my body is doing, so naturally.

If you haven't read this book and you want to learn more about your body, I cannot recommend it highly enough. If you have and you love it, share your thoughts!

TCOYF should be something every woman reads to just learn the basics of how their bodies work. I remember having a lot of "a-ha!" moments the first time I read it and thinking "I can't believe I never knew this". It's very informative and empowering to be in tune with what is going on with your body.