Current Method: Boston Cross Check
Previous Method: Creighton Model
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- Tell us a little about yourself.Well I seem to have become an NFP oversharer during the last year or so- lol. I am a doer, I am not good at being quiet. I enjoy reading, quilting, taking pictures and scrapbooking. I am currently a Kindergarten E L teacher in Nashville, Tn. Have been married for 20 years and and 1 child a 15 year old boy. I am work with our priest organizing and NFP support ministry at our parish and will begin training as a Boston Cross Check instructor in September. Being 100% honest though when we started this journey NFP almost broke me and my faith. We have come a long way! β€οΈ
- What effects has fertility awareness had on your relationship?First it was a huge test- and a spotlight. It really highlighted some struggles for us and brought out our lack of communication and how I really let him take the lead and felt like I couldnβt really say no to him- it was my wifely duty. Please donβt think he was a bad person- I didnβt ever communicate this to him and he thought I was happily skipping down this road with him. My health finally got to a long that sex was painful and I trudged on (still didnβt tell him- just sucked up) got out on HBC again after a uterine biopsy. It made me feel crazy. Started working with a functional NP, she helped me see that that wasnβt really helping and increased my odds of cardiac events (already have some risk factors there) so when I decided 7 month into HBC that I was getting off this was our only licit option. We have come a long way. I have done pelvic floor PT. Itβs not painful anymore. My cycles are better, we are finally to the pint we BOTH feel good about our charts and I finally got passed the feeling used/must be available stuff. It was a hard road with a steep learning curve after our late start but we are chugging along fine now! Oh sharing- we paper chart on our bedside table, he is sometimes asked to lay out monitor or LH strips, if someone wants to give the other a heads up for if they are feeling amorous we have a special pillow to toss on the bed. π
- Current Method: Boston Cross Check - How did you find your instructor?On the BCC website. It was $200 or $250. I donβt remember exactly...
- Describe your daily charting routine.I do mucus, monitor (just did LH strips starting out) and temperature. I have been doing temp for 1.5 years, mucus just over a year and hormone just under a year. Been doing BCC for 11 months. I love this charting, the exactness of mucus is not as bad as it was with my first method and I have cross checks to sooth my anxious heart. Using non subjective pieces like urine tests and the thermometer sure help me not feel like it is all on me or that I messed up if something unplanned should happen. Charting gives me more insight into my health so I think physically it helps, and where we are now, well NOW mentally it has me in a good place, not so much at the beginning.
- What made you choose this method?Cross checks! BCC helps me to feel confident in knowing what my body is doing. Finding and switching to this method was a game changer in being able to do this long term and still feel connected with my spouse. My doctor was βit would be detrimental for you to get pregnant nowβ when we started and so that was a lot of pressure to not mess up. I was very unsure of mucus only observations starting out so there were months with almost zero availability ( like one month 1 prepeak day we were scared to use and one post peak day and that was it)
- Has charting helped you to understand your overall health?Yep. I now know that the day my husband irritates me by breathing near me is the day my progesterone takes a big drop. I know when my period is going to start- even though it isnβt the exact same number of days every month. I also now know some things to be watching for as I head towards the age menopause may be ramping up. And best of all- I learned what was causing the pain and got help!
- Did you switch to this method from another one? If so, why?I didnβt feel confident enough in my mucus only observations and we were having very little availability some months, and we didnβt feel confident enough to use all the supposedly available days. The transition was amazing. I felt like I could confirm my observations and not be super scared of a double peak. It also really helped our availability for times together. My hubby works early and weekend mornings often work best for us. The first method kept being...end of day, well by the time I get the house settled for the night, do end of day checks etc he is passed out/exhausted. Mornings were NOT an option based on method rules. Getting more flexibility into available times and more confidence in what was going on in my body made everything better! β€οΈ
- Previous Method: Creighton Model - How did you find your instructor?The first one (terrible fit and also not following the scheduling rules) through our Diocese. The second one through the initial instructor reaching out to help me find a better fit. It was either $200-$250, included the whole first year and we got extra follow ups that she didnβt charge for because I struggled with this method.
- Describe your daily charting routine.I still chart this was for my NaPro doctor (yes I run two chars like a crazy lady). I have been charting this way for 15 months- I think 18 cycles. Tracked mucus only. This method gave me so much anxiety. 1- because of the subjectivity, 2- some of the meds/supplements my doctor had me on could effect the mucus- and did make me drier, 3- my nervous and indecisive nature hit a major anxiety level with this one, I didnβt trust myself or my body enough Relational we both felt confused, scared to touch each other, fought about NFP, we did have more conversations and more open conversations but this period was SUPER HARD and ultimately it just didnβt work for us for family planning. Again, I still chart this for my NaPro doctor who is amazing and he has been able to tell me that if we switch to TTC I need to let him know because there are somethings we need to do to help us be more successful so I am greatly for the info but we struggled as a seriously TTA couple using this method.
- What made you choose this method?I chose this one because it was the only one 2 priests in our diocese knew to tell me about, and was the only method and teacher on the diocesan website at the time.
- Has charting helped you to understand your overall health?Yes! I see a NaPro doctor and he has been a lifesaver. I also know that if we switch to TTC we will need some support. I wouldnβt have known that without this method.
- Did you stop using this method? If so, why?So we kinda stopped. I still do a Creighton chart for my NaPro doctor...but I am not terrified if I miss an observation, or only check after I pee. We use another method for our family planning now.
