Don’t use Natural Family Planning (NFP) without considering this

Don’t use Natural Family Planning (NFP) without considering this

by | Aug 26, 2016 | Blog

Spacing the births of children is a big deal most families will consider. If you use NFP, considering using these tools, gadgets, and apps to make things a little easier! Hello! I’m Sarah Osborne, a pediatric nurse practitioner, mother of 5, and the wife of Lance who hosts the Above Average podcast. Some people prefer close spacing between babies, allowing children to come however they come. But most parents or parents-to-be will want to consider a bigger gap to allow themselves a breather. Besides this, many parents will eventually feel their family size is “complete” and be ready to do something about it. There are a ton of different ways to avoid pregnancy temporarily or permanently, from oral birth control to IUDs to surgery. But what if you are looking for another way? What if you’re concerned about safety or health with these options? Or maybe you’ve decided that your personal or religious beliefs don’t mesh with artificial birth control or sterilization. Enter Natural Family Planning (NFP) or Fertility Awareness methods. (These names are sometimes considered interchangeable, sometimes not. See here for an argument on how one person feels they’re different.) In other words, these are natural ways to prevent pregnancy, whatever your reason may be. There are many different methods within these categories, but I’m going to tell you a little about a few of the most common devices that can help this method be as or more accurate than Artificial Birth Control and much safer! Natural methods of fertility awareness have come a long way over the years – it’s not just the “rhythm method” or the “calendar method” anymore. These can...