High-tech fertility apps: What’s the deal with Natural Cycles?
What are fertility awareness-based methods? Fertility awareness-based methods (sometimes also called “natural family planning” methods) are one inexpensive way for people to prevent pregnancy without taking hormones. They’re all about tracking your menstrual cycle and other signs of fertility to determine the days that you can get pregnant and then not having sex on those […]
Which fertility and period tracking apps can you trust?
Want to track your cycle? There are a lot of apps for that. But do they actually work? And are some better than others? We’ve written about period tracking and fertility awareness apps from a user perspective, but we’re happy to see the science community weighing in. Two recent studies looking at the many free […]
Low-effort fertility tracking coming soon: Priya Ring
Measuring your basal body temperature (BBT) as part of fertility awareness ? There are some great apps to help simplify the tracking , but they still require you to take your temperature every morning. Now imagine a world where you could insert a ring into your vagina that would take your temperature for you… Introducing […]
Fertility awareness: Birth control and beyond!
By Victoria Jennings, PhD. Contrary to popular myth, pregnancy is not possible every time a woman has sex. With a little bit of effort every day, it really is possible for a woman to understand which days she can get pregnant and which days she can’t. Fertility awareness techniques are not widely known , but […]
Birth control for breastfeeding moms
Now that your bundle of joy has come, it’s time to snuggle up with that new-baby smell and settle into being a mom. Between that and dealing with the effects of sleep deprivation— going to the grocery store in pajamas, falling into bed right after dinner, and drooling in public —you’ve got enough to worry […]
Keep on suckin’
Breastfeeding is awesome for your baby. Not so awesome as a birth control method, unless you meet three conditions . Here are some reliable, low-maintenance birth control options for breastfeeding moms . original post
Andre, 29, fertility awareness
Fertility awareness is au naturel family planning. Andre appreciates that there’s nothing to take, use, or buy (except maybe a thermometer or period-tracking calendar app). His wife simply keeps track of her menstrual cycle to determine which days she can get pregnant and which days are safe for as much spontaneous sex as they want. […]
Breastfeeding: good for baby—and for mom’s birth control
Effective birth control isn’t always a product made by a pharmaceutical company… sometimes our own bodies take care of it for us. Breastfeeding, if done a certain way, can be one of those times. In the first six months after birth, breastfeeding provides many benefits to a new mom and baby—and effective contraception can be […]
Lindsay, 20, fertility awareness methods
Lindsay first started using birth control after giving birth as a teen. After trying a number of hormonal methods, she decided to start practicing fertility awareness methods . For the last three years, she’s been looking at her cervix, charting the consistency of her mucus, and monitoring her basal body temperature. She now knows what […]
Angela, 22, fertility awareness methods
Angela, a stay-home mom of one, has been using fertility awareness since giving birth to her daughter. She’s been tracking her periods and learning when in her cycle she’s most fertile. Rather than using condoms (or another barrier method), Angela chooses to not have sex during her most fertile times. She feels closer to her […]
