Many of us who menstruate grew up thinking that we could get pregnant on any day of our cycle, except maybe during our periods. The reality is that there are only a handful of days per cycle when conception is possible, and most people who cycle have no idea how to identify those days. Fertility Awareness (FA) enables you to pinpoint those days so that you can time intercourse or fertility procedures optimally. FA can also highlight some common impediments to achieving pregnancy, such as a short luteal phase, insufficient fertile cervical mucus, anovulatory cycles, and early miscarriages. If you’re lucky enough to have a health care practitioner who understands Fertility Awareness, your charts can be a valuable part of your work together.
One of the nice things about FA is that it is totally reversible at any time. When you are ready to try for pregnancy, there is nothing to remove from your body, no wait for your hormones or your cervix to resume normal functioning. And if you want to take a break from trying to become pregnant (if you are trying to go about the traditional way), simply stop having unprotected intercourse during your fertile window, and start again whenever you’re ready.
For confirmation of pregnancy, you can use urine tests if you want to, but you can also just use your FA charts. (No, you don’t pee on them!) Normally, your temperature will drop and your period will come 12-16 days after ovulation. If your temperature stays up for 18 days or more, which you’ll be able to see on your chart, you are almost certainly pregnant.
In addition, after you give birth, you can use FA (with or without barrier methods) to prevent another pregnancy, without having to worry about exposing your baby to synthetic hormones via breastmilk. But please note: using FA to prevent pregnancy while breastfeeding can be tricky, so I definitely recommend that you get some support. See FAQ on this for more information.