Use Fertility Charting

Fertility charting involves observing and recording signs of fertility, which can help you to identify the best time to conceive and increase your chances of getting pregnant.[1] You can also use fertility charting as a form of natural birth control, in which you abstain from sexual intercourse during your most fertile days.[2] Keep in mind fertility charting can only act as a guide and is not a foolproof way to get pregnant or to avoid getting pregnant. Your menstrual cycle can shift or change month to month due to health issues, stress, diet, or other complications. But using several fertility charting methods at once can give you a fairly clear understanding of your menstrual cycle and your most fertile days.

Steps

Tracking Your Menstrual Cycle on a Calendar

  1. Chart your menstrual cycle on a calendar for eight to 12 cycles. To get a sense of your menstrual cycle, you should be prepared to track your cycle for at least eight to 12 months. Use a calendar you can write on and mark down each day of your cycle or keep track of your cycle on your cellphone’s calendar app. The calendar method will help you keep track of the length of each of your menstrual cycles, which can then help you determine when you are most fertile, or your fertility window.[3]
    • Circle the first day of your cycle, which is the first day you have a menstrual flow, on the calendar. This will be Day 1. Continue to circle each day of your cycle for the entire month. Stop circling days of the month when your period is over. The average menstrual cycle can range between 28 to 32 days.
    • Repeat this day-to-day tracking of your period for at least eight to 12 months. This will give you a clear sense of your menstrual cycle and hopefully account for any irregularities in your cycle.
  2. Count the total number of days in each cycle. Make sure you include the first day of your cycle when you count. Do this for all cycles you have tracked. An example cycle record may look like this:[2]
    • January 20: 29 days
    • February 18: 29 days
    • March 18: 28 days
    • April 16: 29 days
    • May 12: 26 days
    • June 9: 28 days
    • July 9: 30 days
    • August 5: 27 days
    • You should not use the calendar method if your cycle is less than 27 days during an eight to 12 month period.
  3. Identify the shortest cycle in your cycle record. This cycle will be used to determine your first fertile day or the start of your fertility window.[2]
    • Subtract 18 from the total number of days of your shortest cycle. Count the resulting number of days from day one of your current cycle and circle or mark that day with an X. Make sure you include day one when you count the days. The day you circled or marked is your first fertile day.
    • For example, if your shortest cycle is 27 days, subtract 18 from 27 to get 9. Then, count 9 days from day one of your current cycle to get your first fertile day. If day one of your current cycle is the fourth day of the month, you will count 9 days from the fourth day. You will then mark the 12th day as your first fertile day or the start of your fertility window.
  4. Note the longest cycle in your cycle record. This cycle will be used to determine your last fertile day or the end of your fertility window.[2]
    • Subtract 11 from the total number of days of your longest cycle. For example, if your longest menstrual cycle was 30 days, take 30 and subtract 11 to get 19. This means the last day of your fertility window is on the 19th day of your cycle.
  5. Determine your fertility window. Use the days you calculated based on your shortest cycle and your longest cycle to determine your fertility window. In the above example, your most fertile days will be from the 12th day to the 19th day of your cycle. This means ovulation is expected to occur on one day during this time frame.[4]
    • If you are trying to conceive, you should have sexual intercourse with your partner during your fertility window to increase your chances of getting pregnant. Though you cannot get pregnant every day during your fertility window, there is one 12 – 24 hour time frame during this period where pregnancy has a very high chance of occurring.
    • If you are trying to avoid getting pregnant, you should abstain from sexual intercourse during your fertility window or use birth control during this time. You can have unprotected sexual intercourse the day after the last day of your fertility window, but not before, as this could lead to pregnancy. Keep in mind that fertility charting is considered the least effective form of birth control and may result in unexpected pregnancy, even if you don't have sex during your charted fertility window.

Tracking Your Basal Body Temperature

  1. Understand how basal body temperature can be used to track your fertility. Your body temperature actually falls during the first stage of your menstrual cycle. It then rises slightly after you have ovulated and the egg has been released. Your body temperature will then remain elevated for the rest of your cycle and then fall again just before your next period. Tracking your basal body temperature can help you to determine when you are ovulating and identify your most fertile days.[2]
    • Your basal body temperature (BBT) is the temperature of your body when it is completely at rest. BBT can vary from person to person, but usually, before ovulation your BBT is 96 to 98° F (35.6 to 36.6°C). After ovulation, your BBT is usually 97 to 99°F (36.1 to 37.2°C).
  2. Buy a basal thermometer. To track your basal body temperature, you will need to chart your temperature every day for at least 1-3 cycles. The changes in your body temperature will be very small, about 1/10 to ½ a degree. You will need to use a large-scale basal thermometer that is easy to read.[3]
    • You can find basal thermometers at your local drugstore. Look for a thermometer that only registers 96 to 100 °F (35.6 to 37.8°C). Some basal thermometers are made to be used in your mouth or in your rectum. Rectal thermometers are usually more reliable but can be uncomfortable. Regardless of which type of thermometer you choose, you should take your temperature the same way every day.
  3. Take your temperature every morning before you get out of bed. Make sure you take your temperature as soon as you wake up. Do not do any activity before you take your temperature, such as talking, eating, having sex, or smoking.[2]
    • Place the thermometer in your mouth or your rectum for a full five minutes. This will give the thermometer enough time to correctly read your temperature. If you are using an oral thermometer, make sure the tip of the thermometer is under your tongue on the soft flesh at the base of your tongue.[5]
  4. Record your temperature every day on a calendar for one to three cycles. Record your temperature every morning within 1/10 of a degree. Do this for one to three menstrual cycles to get a good sense of your basal temperature fluctuation.
    • You can get a calendar or a chart to record each temperature reading from your doctor or your local women’s health center.
  5. Note a pattern on the chart. As you continue to record every morning reading on the chart or calendar, you should be able to see a pattern. You may notice that your temperature rises suddenly, gradually, or in steps. You may also notice that the pattern varies from cycle to cycle.[5]
    • Your BBT can shift due to small changes like stress, illness, or fatigue. It may also shift if you smoke and drink. You should note these changes on the chart so you can understand what may have triggered a change or shift in the pattern. You should also try to get three consecutive hours of sleep before you record your temperature so you get an accurate reading.[2]
    • Show the chart to your doctor after you have recorded your temperature every day for three cycles, or three months. Your doctor can then help you to read the chart and determine your fertile days.
    • If you have a cycle where you do not have any shifts in temperature at all, you should not use this cycle as part of your temperature method and do another cycle to compensate. You may not experience a temperature fluctuation due to stress or due to a genuine anovulatory cycle, which is a cycle with no ovulation.[5]
  6. Identify your fertile days. Highlight the days when your temperature rise lasts for at least three consecutive days. Then, highlight the period when your temperature falls back down from this rise. Do this for all three cycles and note if the three high days fall on the same days in your cycle. After these three high days, you have finished ovulation and the remainder of your cycle is infertile.[5]
    • This means that if you are trying to avoid getting pregnant, you should not have unprotected sexual intercourse during the high periods of your temperature chart, and on the days before you ovulate, or when your temperature rises sharply.
    • If you are trying to conceive, you should plan to have sexual intercourse during the high temperature days of your temperature chart, as this will be when you are most fertile.
    • The temperature method is often combined with another method, like the menstrual cycle calendar method, to get a clear picture of the fertile and infertile days of the cycle.

Analyzing Your Cervical Mucus

  1. Understand how your cervical mucus can help to determine your fertility. The same hormones that control your menstrual cycle also cause your cervix to produce mucus, which collects on your cervix and in your vagina. The mucus will change in quality and quantity before and during ovulation.[2]
    • When you have your period, your flow will usually cover any signs of mucus. As the egg starts to ripen, more mucus will be produced. It will appear yellow, white and/or cloudy and feel sticky or tacky. You will usually have more mucus just before you start to ovulate and it will appear clear and feel slippery, like raw egg white.
    • At the peak of your fertility, during your fertility window, the mucus will be very stretchable and slippery. After four slippery days, your body will suddenly produce less mucus and it will appear cloudy and tacky again for several days. You may also notice “dry days” where you do not produce any mucus before your period starts again. These days are considered the days where you are infertile.
  2. Chart your mucus on a calendar for one to three cycles. You will need to record the color and texture of your mucus every day for one to three cycles on a chart or calendar. Check your mucus by wiping the opening of your vagina with a tissue before you urinate. You can also look at the mucus discharge on your underpants, or put clean fingers into your vagina to check the mucus.[2]
    • Note the color and texture of the mucus. You should describe the mucus as yellow, white, cloudy, creamy, or clear. You should also note if the mucus has a dry, tacky, wet, or slippery texture and a thick, sticky, or stretchy consistency.[5]
    • To do the mucus method, it is important that you are comfortable with touching your cervical mucus. You will need to analyze and record your mucus every day in order for this method to work effectively as a fertility charting tool.
    • This method may not be ideal for women who do not produce a lot of mucus. Your mucus pattern can be altered if you are breastfeeding, if you have had cervical surgery, if you have a sexually transmitted infection, if you use douches or other feminine hygiene products, or if you have recently used hormonal contraceptives, such as emergency contraception or Plan B.
  3. Determine your fertility window. Once you have charted your mucus over one to three cycles, you should start to notice a pattern. Your mucus will usually be the most dry at the start of your cycle, when your fertility is very low. When the mucus starts to appear and feels moist or damp, you have moved into the ovulation stage. You will then experience a clear, slippery mucus when you are highly fertile, or in your fertility window. Finally, you will experience yellow and brown mucus and several dry days with no mucus as your fertility window ends.[5]
    • Identify the two to three days before you experience the first signs of slippery mucus. These are your most fertile days and are the best days to conceive.
    • Once the slippery mucus drops off and appears cloudy and tacky again, you are no longer in your fertility window. You can have sexual intercourse and have a lower chance of getting pregnant. The dry days that follow the end of the slippery mucus period are also considered safe days for sexual intercourse if you do not want to get pregnant.
  4. Be aware of the two-day mucus method. This method works best for a woman who has been using the mucus method consistently from one to three cycles and is good at reading her mucus pattern. To do this method, you will need to ask yourself two question: Do I have cervical mucus today? Did I have cervical mucus yesterday?[2]
    • If you can answer “no” to both questions confidently, it may be safe for you to have unprotected intercourse on that day. Keep in mind women who use this method may have only 12 safe days during every cycle.
    • The two-day mucus method is not foolproof and should not be your only method of fertility charting. According to Planned Parenthood, of 100 couples who use the two-day method correctly for one year, four will have a pregnancy. As well, of 100 couples who use the cervical mucus method correctly for one year, three will have a pregnancy.[2]

Warnings

  • There is a difference between "perfect use" and "typical use" when calculating the effectiveness of contraception. In typical practice, fertility charting is the least effective method of contraception and results in a 24% pregnancy rate per 100 women each year. This method should not be used if the possibility of pregnancy is unacceptable.

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://natural-fertility-info.com/guide-to-fertility-charting.html
  2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/birth-control/fertility-awareness
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 http://americanpregnancy.org/preventing-pregnancy/natural-family-planning/
  4. ↑ http://americanpregnancy.org/preventing-pregnancy/natural-family-planning
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 http://www.fertilityet.org.uk/pdfs/Charting-Your-Fertility-Cycle.pdf
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