Hellobee

We’re NFPers.

We do NFP, but I had a roommate who did the arm inplant at one point, and the IUD at another. She said getting the IUD was agony even though she popped a vicodin before hand, plus she could feel the string and was paranoid about accidently pulling it out when removing a tampon. She liked the arm inplant though. Also, after insertion it wasn’t easy to notice.

I haven’t used any implants but I loved it when I got to switch to the patch. Super easy bc that doesn’t require getting something injected into your body.

For those of you that do NFP: have you had children? How did you keep your temps straight after having a baby and being up half the night for the first two months?

I used birth control pills for 10+ years, then switched to the non-hormonal IUD before getting pregnant. I much prefer the IUD so had it inserted again after delivery. On the IUD, my periods are heavier (they were almost non-existent on the pill) and I do cramp now (didn’t before) but it’s totally worth it not to have to worry about taking pills at the same time everyday. Especially, since I can barely remember to take my contacts off some nights. Plus, the pill made me gain weight.

I’m still pre-kiddo so I haven’t had to worry about that yet. TCOYF does cover that though, I believe.

I’ve had the non-hormonal IUD for the last 4 years. It DEFINITELY made my period heavier and gave me cramps (which were practically non-existant on the pill) but not having to remember to take pills and be somewhat worried every month? Amazing! The peace of mind it gave me was totally worth it. Lately though, either the cramps have gotten worse or my tolerance for them has lowered (because I just want a baby, dangit!) Either way, I think I’m going to have it removed at my next appointment. We’re close to TTC and if something happens now it’s ok. We’ll use the nuva ring or something more temporary to fill the gap.

All that said, I loved it but next time (post babies is the plan) I’ll try the Mirena.

Sooooo would it be weird to say that I have never been on birth control pills? Our method of protection was always condoms, and it worked for us. I’m kind of scared to go on birth control pills since I have no idea how my body will react. I opted to delay it since I am still breastfeeding, and I don’t want it to affect my supply.

i’m with yin. never used birth control pills and i don’t like the idea of taking them. and i know, just know, that i’ll forget to take it some days. i’m not sure what we’re going to do. i think i’d prefer the copper iud.

I used birth control, but I probably won’t use any form of birth control until we’re done having babies. Husband will probably get a vasectomy at that point..

We were on the pill but after baby deux, the hubs volunteered to get a vasectomy. We need to check if in his case it is reversible but we should be okay.

have you looked into mirena? it’s something they insert and has hormones but they are localized so you don’t have the effects of them like other bc. it stays 5 years then you replace it. you can have it removed if you change your mind on the kid front or just want it removed.

we were in the same position, not ready to take the drastic action of a vasectomy but not wanting to have another child either. i’ve never done well on bc but mirena has been wonderful thus far.

oh and also, my periods barely exist and no cramping. my flow + cramping was crazy before!

I also have the Mirena. Having it put in wasn’t a big deal for me. I hardly felt anything. I don’t notice any side effects from the hormones yet but I have only had it for 2 months now.

@JBhops No kids yet, however, we plan on taking a special NFP class that focuses on how to use NFP effectively after giving birth because you are right it won’t be straight forward. The couple to couple league (a Catholic organization) puts on the class but a lot of non-catholics attend too. I wish I had all the details of how NFP works post baby but we haven’t gotten that far yet- heck we haven’t gotten pregnant yet!

Glad to read that cramps are heavier on IUDs before I go get one. If my cramps were worse, I don’t think I could handle them. I took BCPs for over 10 years, but I just can’t do that anymore. Honestly, I’m thinking NFP, but we’ll see.

I was on BCP for years and switched to Nuvaring for about a year before we started to try. I really liked it. I had elevated liver enzymes and ended up being induced so my doctor won’t write a Rx for anything but the mini pill. She suggested an IUD but we plan to try for #2 relatively soon so that didn’t make a lot of sense to go that route. DH will probably have a vasectomy when we are done with our family.

We use FAM, which is basically NFP without abstaining during my fertile time (we usually use a barrier method then). I was on BCP in college because I had terrible cramps, but the hormonal craziness that they caused me was worse than any cramp. I decided I didn’t want to even try other chemical methods because of that. I love that now I’ve discovered the rhythm of how my body works and how beautifully predictable it is. Even though I haven’t been taking my temperature since my now-20 month old was born (my cycle didn’t come back until he was over 10 months old since we were breastfeeding), I’ve been able to keep track of my cycle with surprising success. We’re hoping to try for #2 in the new year. Yay!

I love that there are so many options out there for women, though. Instead of just one thing, you know? It’s so nice to find what works for you.