Looking for a safer and natural method of family planning ? Then you will be excited to know that there is one. The rhythm method of family planning is a natural method which relies upon the fact that a woman is not fertile all days of the month. There are days when conception is not possible for a woman, and there are days when a woman can conceive. The rhythm method focuses on abstinence on the fertile days. It is based on the ovulation cycle of the woman. This technique of using the calendar to estimate the fertile period in order to avoid sex is also known as the calendar method.

How does rhythm method work?

A woman, right from puberty, has monthly cycles of ovulation in which an egg is released from the ovary every cycle. When this egg meets the sperm, it gets fertilized, and the woman gets pregnant . The time period during which the chances of this fertilization is high is known as the fertile period. The rhythm method of family planning relies on people abstaining from sex during this fertile period – which means that the rhythm method is based on periodic abstinence.

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How to find out the period of abstinence?

Here comes the next question – how to find out the date of ovulation, or at least, how to get it right most of the time? There are certain techniques that you can use to find out when the egg is released from the ovary .
The basal body temperature falls just before ovulation and increases after it. This warrants a daily morning measurement of the body temperature and see if there are any changes. Although this method would not work if you have a fever.

Another method is to check your cervical mucus for appearance and consistency. On the day of ovulation, your cervical mucus increases and becomes clear. It will be wet and can be stretched.

Recommended Read: What is Calendar Based Method of Family Planning?

If you have been tracking your monthly cycles regularly, by this time, you would have an idea on how your cycle works. If your cycles are regular, then you can use this information to ascertain your day of ovulation, and then use this information to abstain from sex five days before and three days after the day of ovulation. Today, you have a lot of online tools that help you keep track of your ovulation cycle and that help you determine your fertile period. If you can get the dates to practice abstinence right, the rhythm method will be highly effective for you.

There are also ovulation test kits that measure the luteinizing hormone in your urine to say whether you are ovulating or not.

There are formulas that help you calculate the date of ovulation.

The simplest way to find the fertile period is to ascertain the first and last day of the cycle. Take your shortest cycle and subtract 18 days from it. Now count this number of days from the first day of menses, and this would give you the first day of the fertile period. For the last day of the fertile period, reduce 11 days from the longest cycle and count them from the first day of the menses.

Recommended Tool : Ovulation Calculator

The rhythm method is safe and devoid of side effects. There is no need for a physician’s prescription or for taking pills. Do note that, to use the rhythm method, you need to have a fair amount of knowledge of how your monthly cycles work and how to ascertain your period of ovulation.