Hey earth muffins! I was looking through my Femometer data the other night and realized that I have now been using it for over 2 years! 😮 I wrote a 1 year update post about my experience with natural birth control; so, I thought it would be fitting to share my thoughts on natural birth control methods after the 2 year mark. I haven’t posted much about this topic, so I hope you all find this interesting to read about!
What Methods Do I Use?
If you have been following my blog for awhile, you will know that I use two natural methods: basal body temperature and cervical mucus. I have written in-depth posts about what these methods are in the past, so I highly suggest checking them out on my birth control page if you are interested! 😊 Starting off with the basal body temperature method, this is what I use my Femometer for. The Femometer is basically a normal thermometer; but, it connects to an app on my phone through bluetooth to automatically keep track of my temperature each morning. I saw a YouTuber the other day advertising a natural birth control thermometer that requires you to pay each month. I was laughing about that because the Femometer is FREE (after of course you purchase the actual device for $40 [affiliate link]). In terms of other birth controls, this is much cheaper!
Alongside basal body, I also monitor my cervical mucus. Growing up with the bare minimum knowledge about the menstruation cycle, I never knew why I had discharge on certain days. After embarking on this journey of figuring out my body and natural birth control, I’ve now learned that you can track this discharge to figure out the exact day of ovulation. The Femometer app allows you to track your cervical mucus observations as well, which is awesome because it uses this data to predict your future cycles! 😄
What Have I Learned from Using Natural Birth Control?
First, I learned that there is nothing wrong with my cycle. Again, I wasn’t taught much about menstruation. Health class taught me that you will have your period every month; so, when that didn’t happen for me, I always thought that something was wrong with me. It was extremely difficult to predict when my period would arrive. This definitely was added stress because there was always the possibility that I would be caught unprepared! After using the Femometer, I have learned that my cycle is completely normal – it just lasts longer than the “average woman”. A typical temperature arc looks like this:
For me personally, I have added days in the time frame after my period but before my fertile days. This happens every single cycle, so the app has adjusted to this and can now accurately predict my future cycles even though mine isn’t considered an “average” one. When I used period tracker apps in the past, it would never adjust for this… So I love that I can now accurately predict it!
Using natural birth control methods for 2 years has also taught me a lot about my body and my cycle. The visuals in the Femometer app are incredible; there are so many ways to look at your current and past cycles – even options to compare temperature charts across them! When my body is feeling off or my mood isn’t what it usually is, the Femometer app usually has all the answers I need. Plus, I know the minute I wake up if my period is going to start that day, which is a pretty incredible feat. I cannot tell you how amazing it feels to know my body inside and out! 😍
What Have Others Thought About Natural Birth Control?
People are judgmental for sure! Natural birth control isn’t taught in health class or suggested by doctors. I’ve found that there is a stigma around it because people don’t understand it and are quick to judge. There is evidence that natural methods are very accurate, but no one knows about this unless you research alternatives. I personally chose the natural route because 1) I didn’t want to put extra hormones or chemicals into my body and 2) I didn’t want any side effects (becauses news flash you won’t get any of those with natural methods!).
It’s safe to say that natural birth control does take time to understand and to learn about. If you want to pop a pill each morning and just forget about it, then great! Do that. But, if you don’t, there are still options for you! It takes time to collect the data and time to learn about your cycle; but, after two years I can say that I can accurately predict my cycle by myself without any outside hormones/IUDs/patches doing it for me. As a female, it is truly empowering.
Love,
Jenna ♥
Thank you for this update! You are very right that most women aren’t taught much about their periods or their body. That can make everything feel sort of scary and uncertain. It is wonderful that this process has really brought you closer and given you more understanding.
I never even knew that natural birth control was a thing! I really wish I’d received more information on periods when I was younger since I started mine when I was 10! A massive shock for a kid! Great info, hun!
I totally agree – it is such a shocking thing for most women, even if they are semi “prepared” for it!
Jenna ♥
I would love to try the natural birth control but have been on the man made one for so long now, I’m scared to come off it. I hope you have a great week ahead : ) xo
http://www.juanitalikes.com
Thanks for sharing – and yes, I’ve heard that it is always a difficult transition once you get off things like the pill.
Jenna ♥
I didn’t know this was even an opption. Thank you for the post, it was interesting red x
Laura
https://www.beautywithlala.com/
This is great info! As a health teacher and health education advocate, I can second that so many women are not in a full understanding of our cycles and bodies. Thank you for sharing this, and I’m so glad you’ve found a method that works for you! I’m visiting today from the Hearth and Soul link up. Have a great week Jenna!
Another fabulous post Jenna, thank you for sharing x I so agree, girls are pretty much left to just get on with things, or at least they were when I was at school (many moons ago lol). Our health class was a single visit by an elderly nurse who showed us how to put a condom on a banana (seriously!) and in the same sentence said penises were bad and we should stay away from them. That was it.
Nothing about cycles or even that it happened. I didn’t start mine till over a year later and it was a shock, I can tell you. It was as if it was something dirty that we should be ashamed of. I went to a non denominational school (although we had the loveliest Church of Scotland Vicar, who, years later, married me to my Hubby 🙂 and it was a good school, it really was (and is, still tops the league tables for the area) it was thought to be forward thinking (hence the condom & banana display I suppose) We weren’t ever lucky enough to be blessed with children, but I’m so glad that today’s generation of girls have choices, they have information available to them that we didn’t have in my younger days. I’m so proud of you that you’re taking care of you, doing your own research and making your own decisions. Well done Jenna, hugs x
Love to hear this experience – even years later it seems like the sex education thing is still the same, as my health class basically sounds the same as yours (except they used a fake wooden penis instead of a banana!). I’m also so glad that I found out about natural birth control before getting on the pill or other “traditional” forms, as it probably would have been more difficult to switch off. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
Jenna ♥
This was so interesting to read, because it is basically the method I used for getting pregnant–once I started tracking those things I was able to get pregnant with my son after trying for over a year, and then got pregnant with my daughter right away! I’ve never used that method for birth control, but I could see how it would be effective!
Love this – the app I used (Femometer) allows you to set if you are trying to get pregnant or avoid pregnancy when you set it up! So it agree – it definitely is a great method for getting pregnant as well 🙂
Jenna ♥