NFP: The Best-Kept Secret
As a Catholic married couple, we want to let you in on what might be one of the best-kept secrets in the Catholic Church: Natural Family Planning (NFP). You’ve probably heard of NFP during marriage prep, where engaged couples check off a box in Pre-Cana. But here’s the truth: NFP isn’t just for newlyweds. It’s for every married couple trying to live their faith more fully and intentionally at every stage of their marriage.
Why Haven’t More Catholic Couples Heard About NFP?
It breaks our hearts how many of our married Catholic friends say, “Wait, what’s NFP?” And that is usually because no one ever told them about it.
If it wasn’t required during their marriage prep, many couples go years—even decades—into their marriage never hearing there’s a Church-approved, natural alternative to contraception. And that means missing out on a deeper way to connect their faith and fertility and strengthen their marriage.
NFP Is Adult Faith Formation, Too
Here’s the good news: more and more parishes and dioceses are realizing that NFP isn’t just about achieving or postponing pregnancy. It’s also about growing in trust, communication, and spiritual intimacy. That’s why some are now offering NFP and fertility awareness courses as part of adult faith formation programs and even OCIA.
NFP meets couples right where they are, offering real-life tools for building a holy, healthy, and faithful marriage.
A New Option Just for Married Couples
You might’ve heard of the Couple to Couple League (CCL). They’ve been teaching the Sympto-Thermal Method (STM) for over 50 years, primarily to engaged couples.
CCL now offers a course designed specifically for married couples: the PeakDay STM Method. It’s online, self-paced, and guided by expert fertility coaches. It includes:
- A free trial of the Catholic PeakDay app for easy fertility tracking
- A couple’s workbook
- Support from a certified fertility coach
You can learn more or sign up at learnnfp.org.
NFP Has Been a Gift in Our Marriage
Speaking personally, NFP has been such a blessing in our marriage. It’s helped us grow in trust, communicate better, and live our faith more deeply together. And we truly believe that if more couples knew about it, they’d feel that same blessing.
So, whether you’re newly married, married for decades, or involved in parish life—don’t let this stay a secret. Share it, talk about it, and help bring NFP out into the light where it belongs.
By Viva Crouse. Viva is the new spokesperson for Couple to Couple League and hosts the new Peak Life Show where she talks with her guests about nutrition, lifestyle and natural fertility.