This is a collaborative post.
It’s easy to criticise the impersonal rush of modern life, but to do this you have ignore the many advances in advances in medicine and science that’s improved life for millions of people. This is especially true when it comes to pregnancy, and the array of effective techniques to help ease the conception process. Today let’s look at a few ways to monitor fertility and discuss the helpfulness of each option!
Where to start
A great way to start the tracking process is to chart your menstrual cycle and record it on a calendar. Whether on paper or on your smartphone, monitoring your period is essential to understanding the cycle itself. For those with regular menstrual cycles of 28 days, ovulation takes place around the 14th day. Whilst simply marking down the starting date is easy enough; many women have irregular menstrual cycles and thus this is an ineffective way to track their fertility.
How does it work
A method used by women for many years is working out your “basal body temperature” (BBT) and noticing the fluctuations in temperature at different times of your cycle. After ovulation your BBT will rise 0.5-1-degree Fahrenheit, and it will stay that way until your period begins. Although this gives you a good indication of where you are in your cycle, your conclusions are only as good as the information you’re using, so if you don’t take your temperature accurately, you might not be able to identify those small but significant spikes that reveal your fertility.
Directly measuring the temperature, hormone levels and mucus qualities in your vagina can give you an accurate prediction of your ovulation but these can be uncomfortable and complicated to record. This is where technology steps in. Modern smartphones, devices and the apps available for them are a convenient and accessible way to keep on top of monitoring your fertility, especially for those working towards conception and pregnancy
Whilst these personalised apps are convenient, they do rely on data you input yourself, and that can affect accuracy. All it takes is a single missed day of data as you rush to work instead of taking your temperature and their predictions lose a bit of power.
Accurate fertility devices
A more accurate fertility device, that removes some of the human element of inaccuracy is a fertility monitor. Clinically proven to help improve your chances of pregnancy, fertility monitors actually record your temperature and provide predictions themselves. All you need to do is build the habit of using the device regularly to ensure it has the data it needs. For those of you that are intending of starting or continuing a family, it is recommended to visit a preconception doctor or midwife to ensure the smoothest pregnancy possible.
