Starting NFP?

Nickie431 · April 2011

FI and I are getlting married in 7 months, and I'm wondering when we should take an NFP class so that I begin charting. We'll be attending Engaged Encounter in May--is NFP addressed during the weekend? Also, over the past few years I have had very irregular cycles that have ranged from 5 weeks to 9 months. Will this be problematic? Are there any ladies out there who are also irregular and can give me feedback? Thanks so much!

lalaith50 · April 2011

the sooner the better! My NFP class is 3 separate classes, once a month, and I've heard that it takes about 3 months of charting to get comfortable with how it works. (that seems to add up to starting about 6 months before the wedding)

newlyseliski · April 2011

I've had the same issue with irregular cycles since high school! Due the the length of my cycles and slightly off hormone levels, I was diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome. My current doctor prescribes me with metformin (generic version of glucophage) that has regularized my cycles to 35 days, as long as I take it daily. I had to request this because the normal treatment is to just put you on the pill, which doesn't help actually fix the issues.

Due to these issues, my fiance and I opted for the Creighton method and started 9 months out! My first cycle (I wasn't taking my metformin regularly) was really wacky and my instructor encouraged me to do a better job at taking my metformin regularly and it really helped. Now we're all ready for starting to actually practice it once we're married and I'm really thankful that I started early and didn't have the stress and confusion of having to learn it really close to the wedding. We will likely TTA for at least 6 months after the wedding until fi is close to finishing school.

Usually they have a brief session on NFP at pre-cana retreats, but I really think it varies by diocese! Your best bet to get a good and thorough lesson is seeking out local centers or doctors that offer instruction coupled with medical treatment options if necessary.

You can search locally using this directory if your parish hasn't provided you with a list already. They usually note which method each physician or center teaches or uses!

http://onemoresoul.com/nfpbyst

caitriona87 · April 2011

Yep, the sooner the better.

We did not go on EE but from what I understand, the NFP portion is just general information and does not actually teach the method.

The Couple to Couple Leage/symptothermal is what I use, and this link takes you to different options for learning it (classes or homestudy.)
http://ccli.org/learn/
However, there are other methods (Creighton, Billings) that work equally well for different people.

Having such irregular cycles won't impede your practice of NFP, and NFP might actually help you learn WHY that happens and potential ways to improve your regularity. I believe the Creighton method is usually good for this, as it has a strong medical component and can be used to help diagnose reproductive issues, hormone imbalances, etc that can cause those crazy cycles and provide ways to treat them. Someone who actually uses Creighton could probably give you much better info on it.

caitriona87 · April 2011

Oops, didn't see the post above mine before I replied. There's your better info on Creighton, lol.

doctabroccoli · April 2011

We took a separate NFP class outside of our pre-cana. As PPs alluded to, most of the courses within pre-cana are short hour-long things that don't specifically teach you the ins and outs of NFP.

mica178 · April 2011

All they said about NFP during my EE was that we should look into taking a separate class because the time alloted to talk about it wasn't enough (and also none of our EE leaders practiced it so they did not feel comfortable teaching it).

bibliophile2010 · April 2011

To echo others, the NFP component of most pre-Cana sessions (including those I attended) was an introduction, at best, to the method (what it is, why the Church teaches what she does, how it works, human reproduction, etc.). A full class is necessary to really learn it, and I would honestly start it ASAP. The longer you chart, the more comfortable you will feel with it, and the more confident you will be.

I also second everything Newly said above.

catarntina · April 2011

We were required to take a separate class. The pre-cana class didn't really talk about NFP in detail. Just mentioned that the church recommends we use that method to naturally space children.

I agree with what everyone said. Start as early as possible! It took me probably 3 months to figure out what the different cervical fluids looked like. I started charting 7 months before the wedding. And it wasn't until 4-5 months after I started that I felt really comfortable with putting it into practice -- just in time for married life.

As far as irregular cycles, it shouldn't be an issue and can actually help diagnose medical issues! The thing you have to look for is the *changes* in cervical fluid (and temperature if you use sympto-thermal). The time between your period and ovulation can vary from cycle-to-cycle. The time after ovulation to the start of next period is usually fairly constant. So if you have a 4 month pre-ovulaltory phase, you just need to pay attention to the changes in CF (and temp if ST). As soon as you see CF, you abstain. So need to worry, you won't be abstaining for 4-5 months at a time.

clearheavens · April 2011

Everyone has been said beautifully. What a great group of ladies.

We decided to use the sympto-thermal method of NFP. So we started my NFP classes with the Couples to Couples League right when we got engaged, which is about a year before the wedding. I suggest you to get at least 4-5 charts in there before getting married to feel confident. Like people said, it was three classes in three months, that way we got 2-3 charts of experience so we could apply and ask questions in class.

My CCL instructors told me the vast majority of couples, even those with irregular cycles, are compatiable with the sympto-thermal method as opposed to other NFP methods.

http://www.ccli.org/

Creighton method is really good for those who need a medical component. You're on a team with NFP-friendly nurses and doctors. Usually women who switch from sympto-thermal to Creighton do so because they're miscarrying all the time. So if you know ahead of time you may have some health issues, a simple blood test can tell you your levels of progesterone, estrogen, luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and see what's going on. All these hormones are needed at certain amounts to have a period or hold a fetus.

http://www.creightonmodel.com/

linzluvsgzuss · April 2011

I'm biased, but I recommend the Creighton Method. I'm not the most regular and that's okay because you don't predict, just observe where your fertility is at for that day - no regularilty needed to do that.

Also, we started like 10 months out with NFP classes (in our area, it's an intro session and 8 private 1-on-1s for an hour each time) because we wanted to be sure we were *really* good at charting and what not so we can use the method really well to postpone pregnancy (since we probably won't be ready for a couple years for kids, though, we're always open to God's plan). It's been really good and we feel 8 or 9 out of 10 confident (and we still have just under 4 months till our wedding). So I'd recommend jumping on it. I think we had already done 4 of our sessions when we did engaged encounter so you don't have to wait for your EE weekend.

Good luck and God bless!

chrissyinatl · April 2011

OK so on this note...

I'm signed up now for NFP (couple to couple league) starting this summer.

I have been on depo provera for about 10 years and do plan to go off of it when I get married.

Will it be possible for me to chart my cycles and so forth while still on it? I had already talked to my OB/GYN and my last shot was going to be in September (I'm getting married in November).

Calypso1977 · April 2011

chriss, you could to get in to the habit of it, but your patterns wont make much sense and they will be different than when you are off.

can you just not get your last shot? or does something weird happen if you dont complete all of the shot cycles?

ideally, you should abstain 3 months or so until you know you have a good handle on charting. if you go off the BC now, you'll have time to both flush teh hormone from your system AND get a hang of the NFP method in time for your wedding.

catarntina · April 2011

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/cultural-wedding-boards_catholic-weddings_starting-nfp?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Cultural%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:615Discussion:75943c50-2fa8-476b-93cf-2bcd54f5807aPost:c30e9891-01f2-4779-bf93-f324033c4f69">Re: Starting NFP?</a>:
[QUOTE]OK so on this note... I'm signed up now for NFP (couple to couple league) starting this summer. I have been on depo provera for about 10 years and do plan to go off of it when I get married. Will it be possible for me to chart my cycles and so forth while still on it? I had already talked to my OB/GYN and my last shot was going to be in September (I'm getting married in November).
Posted by chrissyinatl[/QUOTE]

You can start and get into the habit of checking temperature, cervical fluid, and recording it. Unfortunately, it won't mean anything. The results will be totally bogus. You won't see a temperature shift to indicate a surge of pregesterone, and you won't see cervical fluid since you won't be ovulating.

So I'm not sure how much you'll get out of the classes. The CCL class I took had us sit down 1-on-1 with the instructor to go over our charts to make sure it made sense, and we were understanding. If you don't have cervical fluid or temperature shifts, it won't make any sense.

Not sure how Depo works exactly, but any way to discontinue it sooner so you can at least get something out of the classes?

chrissyinatl · April 2011

Yes, I can discontinue it sooner. My last shot was in March and I'm due to have another one in June. Perhaps I should do that...thanks everyone!

Calypso1977 · April 2011

i think that would make sense, chrissy.

since you really should abstain (or go the condom route) until you get a handle on the method it probably makese sense to do this now, before you are married, then having to abstain after you're married.

we abstained for our entire engagement (just shy of 7 months) so as to spiritually prepare for our sacrament. i was very stupid tho and didnt take advantage of charting at that time. so, i started charting about 2 months after we married and abstaining while married kinda sucked, especially since we'd gone so long during our engagment.

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