Toni Weschler, MPH
This may be one of the best books I've ever read. No I'm not kidding. I read this book two years ago when I was just starting to think about trying to conceive. In the midst of being totally amazed at what I didn't know about my own body, I couldn't help but wonder - why didn't I know this before? This is not what kids are learning in sex ed. This is not what our mother's are teaching when we first get our periods. Why? Because they didn't know. The female body has remained a mystery for even females!
This book teaches how to learn your body's natural cues of fertility. It teaches that your cycle doesn't revolve around your period, but rather ovulation. It teaches how to know when you ovulate. The natural birth control taught here is the Fertility Awareness Method (FAM). FAM is 99% effective when followed properly. It is not the "rhythm method", but rather following your bodies cues to know when you are fertile. It absolutely puts you in charge of your fertility. You can decide when to try for pregnancy or when to avoid it. It is not just looking at a calendar and counting to 14 as your OBGYN might teach. It also can tell you when you have an issue in your cycle so you and your OBGYN can be more precise and effective. The FAM combines charting your basal body temperature with other fertility cues. You may be thinking "Ugh, not charting!" A lot of people find charting laborious or stressful because they tried it when trying to conceive. I'm not going to lie, it does take work and organization. If you have trouble remembering to chart, are too busy, or don't have the discipline, then this method is not for you. But I love spreadsheets and I love learning about myself, so no big deal!
I absolutely believe that hormonal birth control is destroying our fertility. It wreaks havoc on our bodies causing more than just some uncomfortable side effects or mood swings. I believe it can cause lasting damage to your cycle. No, I don't have science to back me up. All I have is experience, testimonials, and a fair bit of speculation. So many people are experiencing miscarriages. I believe some of these could be related to hormonal birth control. Progesterone is what carries a pregnancy. Pro-gestational-hormone. It is essential to maintain pregnancy. While on birth control you do not produce progesterone. Hormonal birth control shuts down your natural progesterone and replaces it with progestin, a synthetic progesterone derived from horses' urine. Because the body is not allowed to produce it's own progesterone, it often has a bit of trouble kicking it back up once off the pill. The body could then not produce enough causing crazy cycles, delayed ovulation, or loss of a fertilized egg. Your hormones are in charge of everything from sleep, to your mood, to fertility, and a hormone imbalance can cause insomnia, headaches, weight gain, allergies, arthritis, auto-immune disorders, fatigue, etc, etc, etc. Hormone balance is very fragile, and personally, I believe hormones are nothing to mess with.
So get the book and read everything you may not know about yourself. It is totally eye opening and fascinating. Also, Weschler, has a book for teens called "Cycle Savvy: The smart teen's guide to the mysteries of her body" that teaches young girls all about their cycle. If there isn't something newer by the time my daughter enters the great abyss of puberty, then I'm definitely getting that.
I swear by this book and recommend it to everyone I know who is trying to conceive or find a method of birth control that is non-hormonal and/or non-abortive. It's amazing what you can learn about yourself!
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