(no subject)

[0pink-suicide0.livejournal.com]

So I was thinking about FAM as a form of birth control, my Ortho Evra patches are draining my bank every month and I don't know if I can afford health insurance (paying $100-something a month so I can get my patches for like $20 doesn't make any sense).

The problem is, I've always had an irregular period - until I was on Ortho that is. If I stop Ortho (which, I already have) will my irregularity return? Because if so, the FAM method won't really work unless I take my temperature, buy a monitor, or maybe calculate my cycle to see if there might actually be a pattern, just not a 28-day one. I've been on the patch for about three or four months now.

Also, according to most info I've gathered, you're most fertile 3 days before ovulation and up to 24 hours afterwards. BUT - sperm can live inside you for 3 days, if I'm correct...so do you stop unprotected sex 6 days before ovulation? This is a question mainly for you FAM professionals (haha).

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Comments

[motherphoenix.livejournal.com]

I've been using FAM for a couple years now..and I have PCOS. That means long and irregular cycles. I have found that my body has patterns to it, over time. I have become more familiar with signs of ovulation too. In this way it might be good for you, if you learn these things about your body. Sperm can actually live up to 5 days inside you, so you would want to stop having unprotected sex about a week before ovulation (to be safe) and then once ovulation is confirmed then you can go back. I just use condoms during my fertile time and it works pretty well.
If you're curious to see my charts, they're linked off my journal.

[0pink-suicide0.livejournal.com]

I've actually joined a cycle tracking site - mycycle.com - if my cycles go back to irregular, will it track my ovulation pattern or should I just do it myself?

[motherphoenix.livejournal.com]

It looks like this is just a general info site..
FAM requires that you check all your fertility signs..temperature, cervical fluid and cervical position. This site would probably not be handy in helping you figure out your ovulation patterns should you return to irregularity. I use www.fertilityfriend.com, which is free unless you choose to purchase additional features (mostly for those who are TRYING to conceive).

[0pink-suicide0.livejournal.com]

I actually just joined FertilityFriend.com - lol it IS a lot better than MyCycle.

Thanks!

[motherphoenix.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you found it helpful :)
also you might wanna pick up "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" by Toni Wenschler. I found it very helpful with intpreting cervical fluid, position, etc. It can seem like a dry read to start out but is actually very informative and I think every woman should have to read something like it for sex ed...

[miz-kitty.livejournal.com]

What about getting the patches for free or on a sliding scalre from Planned Parenthood?

[0pink-suicide0.livejournal.com]

I didn't know PP did that...I actually have a prescription for it (because I used to have Health Insurance) but I'll look into PP. Thanks!

[punk-is-so-dead.livejournal.com]

Off topic, but if that's you in your icon, i LOVE your hair.

[0pink-suicide0.livejournal.com]

lol thanks!

[jennifer0246.livejournal.com]

the fertility awareness method IS charting cervical mucous and taking your temperature at the same time every morning. Simply charting and hoping you ovulate on a perfect 14 day cycle is a very good way to end up with an unintended pregnancy.

fam and Terry Weschler's Taking Charge of Your Fertility (can probably find it at your library) are good resources.

[0pink-suicide0.livejournal.com]

Yeah I found that out after visiting FertilityFriend.com - that is a great site for charting EVERYTHING, even when you're gassy, moody, have a headache, etc. Good way to find patterns.

I think I'll join that comm if I do start using FAM.

[emmycantbemeeko.livejournal.com]

As the above poster mentioned, to be considered using FAM, you really must use multiple methods continuously (mucus, temperature, etc), not just calendar tracking, which is notoriously unreliable, especially for people with irregular cycles.

Some people are able to use FAM effectively as BC, and there are some excellent reasons to try it, but I would suggest that economics alone is not one of them. Using the method is free, excepting the marginal cost of a thermometer and materials for learning about and recording your cycles, but with typical use- and that's typical use of the actual method, not just calendar tracking- it has a failure rate of about 20%. Risk is relative, of course, and perhaps you're comfortable with that level, but if you're concerned about the cost of monthly BC and don't have health insurance, having a 1 in 5 chance of needing to pay for pregnancy tests and an abortion or pregnancy in the next year might not be your cup of tea. Unless you have another reason besides the cost of birth control that makes you want to use FAM, there are other options which are free or cheap, far simpler to use, don't require periodic abstinence, and have lower failure rates. Condoms are free at many clinics, and there are barrier methods like the diaphragm and Lea's Shield which are reusable and cost very little in the long term, and which are more effective than FAM. Or you could look into getting the hormonal BC you're on at a reduced rate through a clinic or mail order pharmacy.

That's just another perspective. I think that FAM, used correctly and concientously, represents a legitimate family planning choice, I just don't think it neccessarily represents an effective cost-cutting measure. Good luck with whatever you decide.

[0pink-suicide0.livejournal.com]

That was my main reason, because BC is so expensive. I am always fully stocked with condoms, though, that's not a problem. I actually never knew Planned Parenthood provided BC free/on a sliding scale until someone commented about it on this post - but I guess it does make sense. I also didn't know FAM had a 20% failure rate. I just had a child, I don't know how fertile you are (or for how long) after childbirth, and that's my main drive for wanting BC - NO MORE KIDS (lol).

I've never tried a diaphragm, and I have no idea what Lea's Shield is. Female barrier methods never really appealed to me, but perhaps I should look into them.

Thanks for all the helpful info, that's what my post was mainly aiming to receive. ♥

[emmycantbemeeko.livejournal.com]

Lea's shield is a female barrier method, but rather than being held in place by the cervix, it's held in by the vaginal walls. It's more effective than the diaphragm or cervical cap, and sounds much simpler to use. It's still not as effective as hormones or condoms, but more so than FAM, and with much simpler use. It's prescription only in the US, but you can order it by mail from Canada without one. It's about $50, I think, but it's reusable indefinitely- it's made of silicone which can be disinfected and used for years. If for some reason I couldn't use hormonal BC, I would probably switch to Lea's shield.

[blushingflower.livejournal.com]

As everyone has said, FAM means actually charting your basal body temperature and observing your cervical fluids. Just going on a calender is the rhythym method, and incredibly risky and unreliable.
If you're serious about FAM, you want to read Taking Charge of Your Fertility (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0060937645/qid=1116616374/sr=8-1/ref=pd_csp_1/102-5543650-1127331?v=glance&s=books&n=507846). The book recommends that you stop unprotected sex beginning on the days you have creamy cervical mucous, and then continue either using barriers or abstaining until after you ovulate.

[nephron.livejournal.com]

Can I please just advise that you keep your health insurance up- while you might not be using for anything but BC right now- it's just that, insurance.

If something /does/ go wrong, it's really important to be covered.

[0pink-suicide0.livejournal.com]

Yeah I know, my mom was telling me the same thing. "You can't just hope you never go to the hospital!"

lol

[emeryldmist.livejournal.com]

Just to let you know, if you hd irregular cycles before you started the patch chances are very good that you will have them again when you go off of the patch. I had wildly irregular cylces before BC (sometimes 5 periods a year, sometimes none for 18 months at a time). Since 1999 I've been on two different pills and then the patch. I went off the patch for over a year (just didn't need the protection at that time) and my cycles were just as irregular as before.

[0pink-suicide0.livejournal.com]

That sucks. And you were the only person that answered that question. LoL - thanks!