Irregular Cycles Doesn’t Equal Birth Control

Verily is on a roll! The website that promotes positive and healthy views and lifestyles of women is talking a lot about women’s bodies and the pill, and it’s definitely not what you’d expect to find in our contraception-heavy culture.

They recently published two articles talking about women’s bodies, fertility, and the pill. And whether you’re new or old to NFP, these topics are a big part of the conversation and have everything to do with women being in tune with their bodies to know when something is or isn’t normal.

One article gives a set of tips, answering questions about irregular cycles and giving women a taste of the body knowledge that CCL and NFP thrive on; getting to know your cycles to understand what is truly going on in your body.

The key question in this article points to everything that is great about NFP — Can a doctor help me regulate my cycle? Their answer is just part of why CCL loves Verily so much, as they point out that doctors might suggest prescribing the pill but that is not always the best solution. Even this doctor believes the pill is over-prescribed, and we couldn’t agree more (we even featured him in our July-August 2015 magazine!)

Many women may think that they can’t use NFP because the pill is “curing” their irregular cycles or other cycles issues, and therefore they would be impossible to predict in charting. This couldn’t be further from the truth (just ask Karina and Alison).  Issues with women’s cycles often involve an underlying issue that they think the pill fixes but often times it just masks the symptoms, and the minute you come off the pill, the issues come back. So if this applies to you, check out the Verily article for some short answers, and for long-term natural solutions for problems with your cycle, try reading Marilyn M. Shannon’s book Fertility, Cycles, & Nutrition. It has helped countless women, younger and older, with things like PMS, heavy periods, PCOS, thyroid problems, premenopause, and male and female infertility.

The article is summed up with the perfect closing line, calling for women to respect and appreciate their bodies: “We are more than the sum of our parts. Taking care of your feminine health is an important element of being the very best version of your whole self.”

We couldn’t have said it better ourselves. Now, share this with someone who could be helped by it!

— Megan Imwalle
Communications Intern