How Natural Family Planning Works

Natural Family Planning or NFP is a form of birth control that does not require the use of contraceptives. Natural Family Planning uses abstinence from sex around the time of ovulation to prevent pregnancy. Natural Family Planning necessitates a woman knowing the signs of fertility that her body gives during each menstrual cycle.

Natural Family Planning is often confused with the rhythm method, but Natural Family Planning is much more involved than the rhythm method. While the rhythm method tends to focus on the calendar and an estimation of ovulation, Natural Family Planning is more precise and uses the true signs of fertility to narrow down the days that are not safe for preventing pregnancy. At the same time, when a woman has used Natural Family Planning and has become aware of the signs of her fertility, when she is ready to become pregnant, she knows exactly when she should try to conceive.

When using Natural Family Planning there are two things that women look for from their bodies that are essential to know. The first is body temperature and the second is cervical position.

Body Temperature

During each cycle, a woman's body temperature changes depending on where she is in her cycle. After ovulation, a woman's body temperature rises from .04 to 1.0 degrees. Most women practicing Natural Family Planning use a basal body temperature monitor (and possible a fertility chart) to detect this small shift in body temperature. Temperature taking for Natural Family Planning is best done in the morning before getting out of bed. The cause of the rise in body temperature is the rise in progesterone levels. Because an egg only lives for 24 hours after its release from the ovary, after a woman sees the rise in body temperature, she is safe to have intercourse without the risk of getting pregnant.

Cervical Signs of Fertility