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Haha, if you trawl over to the catholic board you'll find a whole bunch of us charting as part of NFP. I think most of us are charting to avoid conception, but the method of observation is the same regardless; only your behavior changes depending on whether you want to try to get pregnant or not. :)
I have been charting for almost 3 years now and love it. I definitely recommend fertility charting as a method of family planning. It takes a few months to get a real handle on it, so if you want to start doing it before you're actually trying to conceive, it will probably ease your transition. Have fun!
i'm charting... my husband actually got an app on his phone so he's doing everything for me! we just started trying so we're hoping not to have trouble, but i figured it might help hurry things along. i don't think i'd do it if we weren't ttc or ttc soon, it's just too much work for me. unless i was going to use it for prevention of a baby.
I started charting pretty much as soon as I went off BC. Well not for the first cycle - but when that came in at around 60 days I decided I wanted to chart.
For us it wasn't a 'we're going to stop preventing so we'll see what happens' - it was more of a 'ok my plan is to get pregnant NOW' :) I know you can't plan this... but I'm 31 and now that we're ready... we're READY. I decided to chart from the beginning of TTC so that IF things didn't happen I'd already have the data. Vs. trying to 6 mos - then realizing something isn't quite right and starting to pay attention to the details.
It was REALLY useful because I did go to the doc after 6 months of my cycle being completely crazy and I had the data to back it up.
Now let me tell you - when we got our MIRACLE I was super happy to STOP charting. I did keep taking my temp for about a month - it can help be an early warning of miscarriage - and I liked seeing it stay high everyday. But then I just kinda stopped.
The bad thing about taking your temp is it has to be at the same time EVERY DAY. I get up at 5am during the week to hit the gym. So that meant on Sat/Sun my alarm still went off at 5am! Usually I went back to sleep - but my alarm also wakes up the dogs! ugh :)
I'm a numbers/statistical person. It was fun to review the numbers. Also fun to know the EXACT day IT happened :)
(I know this was random thoughts with no flow!)
artbee what's the app and what phone? i want an easier way, i'm been tracking since november, and were gonna start ttc in september
Yaah, I can predict my period very easily. As soon as my luteal temps start dropping I know it's either going to be that day, or the next. Depends on how far it drops. That's super for me, since I no longer get any cramps to warn me my period is coming. (I don't know why....)
Charting is a wonderful way to get to know your body and cycle. It's very empowering!
I am going to start charting this summer even though we're a year or so out from TTC. I want to be off the pill, know my body, use it for NFP, etc. My only fear is of being off BC. I used to have horrible, heavy periods/cramps/etc and I've been on the pill for 11 years, so I'm worried. That's why I'm not starting til this summer, bc I have limited bathroom access at my work and I'm paranoid of having a heavy period like I used to have! I'll be done in July so I'll go off BC and start charting then, I think :)
I am charting, its totally for anyone, not just those having trouble conceiving. My husband and I use it for birth control (we use condoms about one week each month) and I just like knowing the intricacies of my cycle. I think the experience of charting really helps you see what is normal for your own body, rather than trying to compare yourself to others.
There are lots of reasons to chart, for me one of the main ones was so I could stop ingesting hormones x__X
I've been charting since going off BC in Jan and while it has helped me learn about my body, I think it has made me stress a little more. I don't know, we've been TTC since March and since I've been watching things extra closely it seems my body, who was once perfect every 28 days, decide to do a tailspin on my and now I have no idea whats going on and when to look for my period to hopefully NOT come. Oh well, just means it is not our time I guess. :(
I had an attempt at charting recently and struggled with it. My temp was wacko- 97.7 one day, 96.2 the following, 98.6 the next, and 96.5 the following (actual numbers). This continued for two weeks, so I had no idea when my temp was actually dropping. Any advice from the ladies who chart (not to steal your thread, but there seems to be quite a bit of success on this board!!!)
I have been charting for 9 months and will continue to chart for the rest of my fertile years. I wish I had started years ago but didn't know charting existed. There are so many benefits, even if you're not using it to TTC. It can help diagnose hidden health problems such as thyroid or hormone conditions. In my case, it revealed a hidden luteal phase defect that I never knew I had. Without this info I would have suffered needless miscarriages.
If you do start TTC, most doctors won't help you until you've been trying for 6-12 months. Having years of charts prepared can be used as evidence that you have been trying so that you don't have to wait so long to get help.
Some suggestions for troubleshooting:
I'm charting! It's great! I now understand how my period works and know that my cycle isn't the "standard" 28 days which always upset/concerned me. It's really useful at determining when you ovulate so you can either TTC or postpone/avoid pregnancy. I'm Catholic so it's really suggested, however, I think all women should use so they can understand their bodies better. Taking Charge of Your Fertility is a great book to just check out of the library to get a better understanding of what's going on, and if you like the method, then you can purchase it (that's what I did). I would suggest the Catholic-related books, but the religion/morality sections and wording might be a turn off to you.
Oh and I failed to mention, if you don't want to physically chart on paper, there are numerous websites you can use that'll generate your chart for you when you input the "data". For example, fertilityfriend.com and femilia.com are wonderful. The first website generates the entire chart, whereas femilia doesn't input the data from cervical mucous into the chart.
I charted for a year before actually trying to conceive, just to get the hang of it and get to know my body. Fertilityfriend uses CM data which I found VERY enlightening and helpful.
Wow, so much information ladies. Thanks!
I charted for several months before deciding to start TTC. I do think that charting helped us conceive faster (first try!), but I plan on taking up charting again after I deliver in June. At that point, we'll be using it to avoid pregnancy for at least a couple of years. I've been off bc for almost two years now, and I have no desire to go back. :)
One thing to remember is that temping itself might not give the most accurate/easily understood results. It is important to use temping in combination with other ovulation signs (cervical mucus, cervical position, etc...) to really understand your cycle. Honestly, it was very easy for me to understand my charts, but I had also been off of bc for almost a year before I started. My body had plenty of time to regulate before I started charting, which made charting super easy for me to learn. Good luck to all who are thinking about it!
Would anyone be kind enough to explain charting in a bit more detail to a charting dummy? I know I should pick up Taking Charge of your Fertility, but you guys seem super helpful as well :) I want to go off my BC next month, just to make sure I wont have my period during the wedding. I am soooo sick of horomones! Then I will wait a month and would like to start charting after that. We dont want to start TTC for at LEAST 1.5 years so I would like to be as sure as possible that there won't be an oops ;)
What kind of thermometer do you buy, and where? And this is a really dumb question - where do you take your temp? lol mouth, or...other areas? what is a luteal phase and how do you read the tempertures - up means ovulation, down means period?
A general overview would be soooo super. :)
It's really best to buy the book and read it carefully, as there is a lot to know to do it properly. But to answer your basic questions, you take your temperature under your tongue using an inexpensive basal thermometer, which you can purchase at any drug store in the family planning section. Your temperature is lower at the start of your cycle, then it jumps up at ovulation and stays elevated until your period. The part of your cycle beween ovulation and your period is your luteal phase.
@ brittanymichelle. he has a my touch, i'm not sure what app. it's very helpful though, you put in any symptoms you have, when you get your period, when you have sex, and if anything happens you can stick a note in that day.
If you go to fertilityfriend.com, you can sign up for a tutorial. They send one email a day "a chapter" to read and learn as you go. It's the best way to digest the big picture and details in bite sized information since it's just one email. Itouch/IPHONE has an app called CYCLE TUTORIAL which I believe uses Fertility Friend info. I know the charting is linked (easier to read on the big computer though.) You may be able to register for FF for free but not sure b/c I was already on it. It totally worked for our conception(s), to the tee.
@NoopNoop: Temperature charting is basically buying a basal thermometer and taking your temperature the same time every morning when you wake up. As @smmcdowell wrote, you can purchase them at drug stores or online. Your temperature will/should rise sharply during ovulation by about 0.4 degrees. As for cervical fluid, after your period or by day 6 of your period you should start checking for fluid on your toilet paper before you urinate. The consistency will change as you get closer to ovulation and then will start drying up within a few days after. It'll go from tacky, to stretchy, to eggwhite...there are great diagrams in the Taking Charge of Your Fertility. I actually found the diagrams in that book better than my Catholic NFP books. By the way, here's a free paper chart courtesy of NFPInternational. Lastly, if you want to join a forum related or read more about, then follow this link. Good luck!
Also, if you don't mind the Catholic wording/morality, you can download a NFP manual for free from NFP International. If you find you like it, I'd strongly suggest a donation to that organization.
Also @NoopNoop, if you aren't too squimish and feel comfortable with yourself you can take internal observations of your cervical fluid and feel the position and softness/firmness of the opening of your cervix. I personally don't because I never can "find" my cervix.
Yes and i checked cervical fluid by observation in underwear or toilet paper when wiping, not by feel. I didn't do the cervix check..much to squeamish for that. But I did do the temp check at the same time in the mornings.
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I've never charted before and I always thought that you chart only if you are having trouble conceiving.
I didn't know but my sister is charting. She said she is probably on the 5 year plan before she starts having kids.
I think I might start charting. I do have at least a year before TTC but it's good to start now, right? Plus, my sister said she can better predict when she will get her period.
So who is charting out there?