LET’S TALK ABOUT SEX, BABY!
Okay, not so much sex - but what I’m about to talk about goes hand in hand with this! So, let's talk contraception and fertility... For years I was putting harmful and unnatural synthetic hormones into my body and manipulating it into doing something that was against what we as women are naturally suppose to do! Such widespread use of "the pill" worries me because many women are not aware of the serious health implications of this drug, and I believe it is prescribed often just to mask symptoms (like cramping, spotting, irregular periods and acne) instead of curing the actual underlining cause of the symptoms.
Many women don't consider the dangerous side effects of these synthetic hormones, but trust me - you owe it to your body and your health to do your research like I did! After being diagnosed with PCOS and other health problems, I knew the pill wasn't the answer (even though every doctor told me it was). Three years ago, I stopped taking the pill, allowed my body to do what it is suppose to do (even though it was hard at the start) and now I use the most amazing form of contraception - FAM (Fertility Awareness Method).
Thanks to the LADY COMP Fertility Monitor, I am now able to track my period and fertility in the most natural way possible. It's amazing how well you get to know your body and what we as females can experience when given the chance. We as women are cyclical beings and I think by masking our femininity with synthetic hormones will only cause damage in the present and in the future.
All I do is upon waking, I take my temperature using the mouth gauge attached to the Lady-Comp, wait until it reads my temperature and it will tell me whether I am fertile, infertile or if it's learning my cycle. If I have my period, I simply enter it. Below I've listed some reasons why I love using the Lady-Comp for FAM, and I think you will love it too, also I explain a little bit more about it!
1. EXTERNAL FACTORS (SUCH AS TRAVEL, GRIEF, ILLNESS, STRESS) AND OUR HORMONES
Our bodies are so in tune with our environment and our emotional health. With Lady-Comp by charting each day we become aware of our temperature fluctuations which can reveal important information on how our bodies are tracking, help us become aware of these external factors, moderate them and put systems in place to correct them. We can note these changes - we might miss ovulation (monophasic cycle) or have delayed ovulation, have small temperature steps where our body is not producing enough progesterone (Corpus Luteum Insufficiency). It can also notify us when we start to enter peri-menopause later down the track. Amazing, right?
2. THE PILL IS ONLY MASKING YOUR CYCLE, NOT REGULATING IT
Touching base on what I said before... Most synthetic hormonal contraceptives use a high dose (one size fits all) of artificial hormones to suppress your natural ovulation. It is not a product which ‘regulates’ your cycle, rather it shuts down your body’s ability to make our natural hormones - estrogen and progesterone. On "the pill", your period is not your true period when you are on the pill rather it is a hormone withdrawal bleed. Our periods are most often a healthy sign that we have ovulated and produced progesterone via the corpus luteum. Our periods are a way of ‘checking in’ with our bodies to see that everything is on track and operating how it should be. Like I say to people and my clients -
"A woman's menstrual cycle is a clear indication of her health and wellbeing".
Many women who go off the pill after many years of use, who originally went on it for menstrual irregularities, often find when they do stop the pill that these symptoms come back 3 fold. Like I said, it only masks their previous fertility concerns. These exacerbations do not last forever, usually the first 3 months symptoms may worsen however, you will find your body will get back into its normal rhythms within a few months. Our bodies are always wanting to achieve homeostasis and health. Working with a natural therapies practitioner is ideal here to help support and normalise your fertility patterns.
3. LADY-COMP BENEFITS AND HOW IT WORKS
You have the ability to send your fertility information electronically to Lady-Comp or you can take it into your doctor or natural therapies practitioner. It can help you naturally and accurately track your cycle so you know your body is ovulating and making the lovely hormones that it should be. If you are coming off the pill, it is important to wait till you have experienced any hormonal withdrawal bleeding before you start measuring and to not enter this bleed as menstruation into your device as it is not a true period.
It's as easy as 60 seconds/day!
Take your temperature under your tongue each morning, enter menstruation on days that you have it, Lady Comp evaluates your data and calculates your fertility statues for the next 24 hours!
3 fertility indications:
Red= fertile (abstain from sex/use protection i.e.. condom if you do not want to get pregnant)
Yellow= Learning (abstain from sex/use protection i.e condom if you do not want to get pregnant)
Green= infertile (you may have sex without protection)
Women are only fertile about 6 days/cycle. Sperm will last for up to 5 days plus the life of the egg so why use contraception for every day of our cycle? This information collected by Lady-Comp helps women recognise their fertile periods so they can use this information to avoid pregnancy or enhance chances of conception.
4. IT'S EASY AND FOR ALL WOMEN
Women who have busy lifestyles can enjoy Lady-Comp / Women who travel, enjoy sleeping in, work shift work can all use Lady-Comp. Women who have to get up several times a night (e.g. mothers of babies or toddlers) can almost always take their temperature, either at their scheduled waking time or directly at night before taking care of the child (since reading takes only 30-60 seconds, this should not be a problem). If you are a shift worker or want to sleep in, you can change the measuring period at any time within a cycle by simply setting the alarm clock accordingly. That way you can take your temperature at 7 a.m. on one day and at 2 p.m. on the next, provided you had your sleep before that. This means that Lady-Comp can be customized to meet your requirements on a daily basis.
New Mums - from 6 weeks post-partum can begin using Lady-Comp to track their cycle. Yellow/red fertility indications will be received until first ovulation post-partum as the first returned ovulation cannot be predicted. It has a 6 hour window in which you can take your temperature, plus/minus three hours of the alarm time. If your baby wakes you during this window, take your temperature quickly before getting out of bed. If your baby wakes you before the time window, go ahead and take care of baby and then go back to sleep; when you wake up the next time, within the time window, you can go ahead and take your temperature as long as you’ve had at least 3 consecutive hours of sleep.
Women who have irregular cycles can enjoy Lady-Comp as it detects ovulation based on your basal body temperature step. If your ovulation day changes from month to month, as it does for most women, It is designed to protect you despite this variance. Lady-Comp users with significantly irregular cycles may have more red days, so generally it is not recommended for women who have cycles over 55 days long.
5. BETTER SEX LIFE!
Seriously, I never knew I had so much libido ever since I got off the pill (this goes for any other hormonal contraception). There are also no side effects , I'm in control of my body again, and my partner is involved and we share the ownership/partnership in fertility awareness! It's really special for us in a way. I think it will get even better when we try for a baby in the future!
6. LAST BUT NOT LEAST - THE DETAILS
Lady-Comp is a fertility computer which helps a woman determine her fertile and non-fertile phases in her cycle through basal body temperature with 99.3% accuracy (that's better than any hormonal contraceptive). It gets to know your unique cycle. By navigating through the on-screen menu, you can view your temperature curve, cycle statistics, and calendar view. It has an integrated alarm that is used to set or change the time window in which to record your temperature and runs on 2 AAA batteries, either standard or rechargeable.
Lady-Comp can also be upgraded with a planning software for those women who are specifically trying to conceive. The planning software offers the ability to track sexual intercourse data, gender prediction, and expected birth date calculation as well as early pregnancy confirmation (how cool is that??). It also allows you to connect to your computer via an included USB cable and create a pdf of your fertility report using the portal on our website to see your data in a larger scale. It will predict future fertility statuses as well as menstruations, also allow you to enter personal notes. Your fertility data cannot get lost even if the batteries lose their charge.
Why Lady-Comp?
Past and future fertility statuses
Menstruation forecasts for the next month
Cycle lengths and lengths of luteal phases
Temperature curve and temperature rise after ovulation
Ovulation fluctuations in days
Easy as 60 seconds
No nasty, synthetic hormones damaging your body
View your cycle details on your Lady-Comp or computer by uploading your data using the provided USB
I really hope you enjoyed reading this blog post about contraception and the benefits of using Lady-Comp. If you have any questions about this and my experience (if there's anything I forgot to mention) then please don't hesitate to ask. This has truly changed my life, health, and my view and knowledge on fertility
Use the code MANGOS for 15% off at www.ladycomp.com.au
Love, Mary xx
This was in collaboration with Lady-comp, but all opinions are my own. Please chat with your trusted health care provider before stopping any medication etc. This is not to replace any medical advice given by your healthcare provider.
