Natural Birth Control Methods

Natural birth control avoids the use of devices or medicines, and is useful for people who wish to have sexual intercourse without getting pregnant. Many women also use the methods explained below to keep track of the bodily changes by keeping a check on their menstruation cycle.

What Is Natural Birth Control or Natural Family Planning?

Natural family planning is also called fertility awareness, and is an assortment of methods that are helpful in determining the days for women when they can get pregnant. It is a contraception method where a woman can effectively monitor and record the different signals of fertility that are present during her menstruation period. NFP makes use of these changes of the body’s natural physiological and symptoms to identify the phases of fertility. There are alternative methods that can be used for natural family planning such as the sympto-thermal method, the ovulation method, the billing method etc.

Advantages of Natural Contraceptive Methods

Most couples use natural family planning or contraceptive methods to avoid pregnancy. It is identified as one of the best methods for natural birth control and is efficiently provides countless advantages to people. Some of the major benefits of contraceptive methods are elaborated as follows:

• Safe: One of the most important things for a human being is to keep the body safe and healthy. Natural family planning methods are useful in avoiding risks and side effects that come with contraceptive drugs or devices. These methods are entirely harmless, and there are no chemicals, hormones or devices interlinked with the NFP. Basically, these methods don’t have any negative impact on the body as they are considered to be healthy.
• Effectiveness: When used correctly, NFP is the most effective birth control method as chances of conception can be reduced to zero.
• Pleasure: Most forms of contraceptives such as condoms, sponges, and copper T have some form of a physical barrier which reduces the level of pleasure. With natural contraceptive methods, there is no barrier hence, love-making is sensual and satisfying.
• Builds Relationships: NFP helps in improving a couple’s relationship. It is helpful in keeping the relationship fresh, flirtatious and fun. Couples can easily build respect for each other while integrating the natural family planning in their decisions for delaying pregnancy. It is helpful in enhancing the levels of communication among the partners and teaches them to compromise to some extent in a relationship. Studies have shown that couples who are using these methods are less likely to get divorced.
• Environment-Friendly: Contraceptive like condoms, when not disposed of properly become an environmental hazard. The industrial process for mass producing pills and other contraceptives is no less environmentally friendly. Natural family planning doesn’t include the hormones that are artificial which lead to polluting the water systems and leads to harming wildlife. It is affordable and includes the purchase that is one-time.
• No Side Effects: Some contraceptive methods such as pills do not have any physical barriers. However, they can have side-effects on the body such as decreased libido and cramping. With natural contraceptives, there no risk of side effects.

Disadvantages of Natural Methods of Birth Control

As undoubtedly Natural family planning is offering certain benefits to the couple, but there are also disadvantages which need to be considered while using the method:

• Natural family planning is a process that is couple-centred, so it becomes an issue sometimes as both partners are required to agree for using these methods. This means that some form of compromise in terms of preferences would take place.
• In monogamous couples, the risk of STDs is minimal. However, for open relationships where there are multiple sexual partners, this form of birth control becomes disadvantageous. It doesn’t protect the couple from any sort of sexually transmitted diseases (STD), and it cannot help people from protecting any such disease.
• Couples need to make careful observations and need train themselves to make accurate recordings which can be time-consuming and frustrating.
• The fertility indicators are frequent and subtle; this would make it difficult for women with a hectic work schedule to keep track of the readings.
• It is identified that the method of coitus interruptus has a high rate of failure when performed incorrectly.
• In the withdrawal methods, the majority of the workload is handled by the man and can lead to huge stress. This would inevitably lead to reduced sexual performance.
• These methods are not appropriate for women with irregular periods.
• Sexual intercourse cannot be done at any time. In fact, it needs to be avoided for 8 to 16 days in every menstrual cycle. This can be inconvenient for couples that have a high libido.

Best Natural Birth Control Options You Can Try

If you are interested in knowing the options that can be useful for you in natural birth control, then there are different methods which can be considered. These include:

• Calendar method: The calendar method of contraception is helpful for you in predicting the fertile days through tracking the menstrual cycle lengths over various months. It is important that before you make use of the method, you should ensure the tracking of menstrual cycle length for around six periods. You can make use of the applications that are available these days on play store. With this method, you will not have to be worried about the managing of natural family planning whether it is associated with achieving or avoiding the pregnancy.
• Basal Body Temperature method: Basal body temperature method is another natural planning method. The basal body temperature is interlinked with the temperature when the body is at rest. Ovulation can cause some sort of increase in this method. It depicts that fertility is increased during two or three days before the increase of temperature. This method is also helpful in predicting the ovulation period.
• Billing’s ovulation method: In this method, women make use of vaginal mucus for determining fertility. It is not dependent on ovulation presence. Instead, it has the effect of defining the potential fertility and infertility.
• Sympto-thermal method: This method relies on the woman’s body temperature monitoring and of the symptoms that are physically interlinked with the ovulation.
• Sympto-Hormonal Method: This method is helpful for you in detecting the key production of hormones fertility with a simple urine test at home and cross-checking it with the mucus observation.
• Lactational Amenorrhea Method: This is a method which is known to be the temporary contraceptive, and that is dependent on breastfeeding that is exclusive. This method can be used from birth and till around about six months.
• Withdrawal Method: This is a method in which a man is required to withdraw the penis during sexual intercourse from the woman’s vagina, for ejaculating the semen away from the vagina.
• Fertility Awareness Methods: This is another method for predicting the times of fertility and infertility during the menstruation cycle. It is dependent on the signs of the body which keeps on modifying during every menstrual cycle in association to the hormones that lead to causing ovulation.

Are Natural Methods of Contraception Really Effective?

Fertility awareness-based methods are the techniques that are used by individuals for getting pregnant or preventing pregnancy. There are several methods available for predicting when a person ovulates. These methods are completely dependent on the facts, and some of them are that first, a person can get pregnant if they have sex that is unprotected, and second, people ovulate once in each cycle. Hence, the use of natural family planning is effective, but there are different cases for every couple. A lot has to be based on the type of individual body type, as some don’t have to face any kind of effects using these methods, whereas some people have to face severe effects.

It is imperative that these methods should be used in an appropriate manner, so that any kind of problem can be eradicated in an efficient way. Natural family planning methods are undoubtedly effective, but it is important to note that the individuals should understand considering the medical supervisions or should research carefully so that the complications can be avoided otherwise it can cause hassle for avoiding or achieving the pregnancy.

Precautions to Take While Using Natural Methods of Contraception

As the methods of natural birth control don’t work all the time, it is important for you to comprehend that there is always a conception risk if you have chosen having sexual intercourse. If you are using natural methods for controlling birth, please consult your healthcare provider so that it doesn’t affect your fertility and cycle. There are certain precautions that can be integrated by you while using the natural birth controls:

• You should make sure that you are keeping an account of the very first period.
• You have currently stopped consuming the pills for birth control or any other sort of contraceptives linked to hormones.
• Though breastfeeding acts as a natural contraceptive, its effectiveness is reduced after six months.
• If you are experiencing menstrual cycles that are irregular, natural contraceptives become unreliable, and you may end up conceiving.

There are more than 100 million pills that are in production worldwide and are used by couples every day. While they are highly effective, they also come with many side effects such as mood swings and reduced libido. Natural birth control offers a solution to those couples who are conscious about their body’s health and want to enjoy building their relationship through physical intimacy. However, it is to be noted that many of these techniques require careful planning so go for these methods only after thinking it through carefully.

Also Read: 

Methods and Home Remedies to Avoid Pregnancy
Mini Pill (POP) – Birth Control Pill
Best Home Remedies to Avoid Pregnancy