Types of Family Planning Methods

Family planning includes the decision to have or not have children and what methods are
used to prevent pregnancy. When deciding which of the myriad options to choose, one
needs to consider their effectiveness, their ease of used and whether or not preventing
pregnancy is a temporary or permanent decision.

Family planning can be achieved through abstinence, barrier methods of birth control,
condoms, oral contraceptives, sterilization, insertion of an intrauterine device (IUD),
withdrawal, hormone shots and implants and contraceptive patches and rings. If
unprotected sex has already taken place, a woman can prevent pregnancy by taking
emergency contraceptive pills. Barrier methods include cervical caps and diaphragms--
also known as female condoms. An IUD can contain hormones or just be made of copper.
Natural family planning is when a woman tracks her menstrual cycle and avoids
intercourse on her fertile days.

Abstinence
1. The only 100-percent effective way to avoid becoming pregnant is to abstain
completely from having intercourse.

Birth Control Pills

2. Birth control pills are 95 to 99 percent effective in preventing pregnancy.
Synthetic hormones regulate the menstrual cycle, preventing a woman from
ovulating.

Barrier Methods
3. Male or female condoms are barrier methods than can be purchased over the
counter. A doctor may prescribe a diaphragm or cervical cap. These methods are
86 to 97 percent effective in preventing pregnancy.

Surgery
4. A vasectomy is a minor surgical procedure done on a man that prevents
pregnancy by blocking the passage of sperm into seminal fluid. A tubal ligation is
a permanent form of sterilization for a woman. Both of these procedures are
permanent.

Withdrawal
 5. A man using withdrawal to prevent his partner's pregnancy must withdraw his
penis from the woman's vagina before ejaculation occurs. This method is effective
in preventing pregnancy about 90 percent of the time.

Calendar Planning
6. By tracking her cycle, a woman can accurately predict when her most fertile time
of the month is and avoid intercourse during those days. When done correctly, it
is effective about 98 percent of the time.

Using the Calendar Method

According to the Contraceptive Information Resource, the calendar method is based on
three assumptions: ovulation occurs approximately 14 days before menstruation, plus or
minus two days; sperm can remain alive for three days; and an egg can survive for 24
hours.

To get started with the calendar method, you first need to know your fertile and infertile
days. To find the first fertile day of your cycle, Planned Parenthood says to find the
shortest cycle you've recorded. Subtract 18 from that cycle. That day will be the first day
you're considered fertile. For instance, if your shortest cycle was 29 days, your first day
of fertility would be day 11.
To figure out your last fertile day, find your longest cycle on record. Then, subtract 11
from the total number of days that cycle. For example, if your longest cycle was 31 days,
then your last fertile day would be day 20.
If you want to avoid a pregnancy, abstinence or other methods of birth control must be
used during the fertile period.

Considerations
Don't use the calendar method if your cycles are shorter than 27 days. Also, breast-
feeding mothers shouldn't use the calendar method, as their cycles may be irregular while
nursing. In addition, the calendar method offers no protection from sexually transmitted
diseases.
Natural Family Planning Method
Natural family planning is a method of planning or preventing pregnancy, depending on
the desire of a couple. It involves identifying a woman's fertile time each month to either
avoid or have intercourse around the woman's time of ovulation.

Ovulation
1. Each month during ovulation, a woman's ovary releases an egg. If the egg is
fertilized with sperm, it implants into the uterus and becomes an embryo. If it's
not fertilized, the lining of the uterus sheds and become a woman's menstrual
period.

Natural Family Planning and Ovulation

2. When using natural family planning, a woman determines which day of the month
she ovulates. She'll take this day of the month, and factor in that an egg lives for
12 to 24 hours and sperm live for up to five days inside the woman's body. This
will tell her when she is most fertile.

Basal Body Temperature

3. Because the day of ovulation can vary month to month, a number of tools are used
to determine the day of ovulation each month. Basal body temperature is a
woman's body temperature in the morning before any activity. A basal body
temperature is lower before ovulation, then will rise after ovulation. When the
temperature rises, that signifies the end of the fertile period.

Cervical Mucus Method

4. This method involves checking cervical mucus changes, as it changes during
ovulation. The mucus is stretchy, clear, wet and slippery during the most fertile
time of the month.

Symptothermal Method
5. This method involves combining basal body temperature charting and checking
cervical mucus with checking the cervical position, which also changes during
ovulation.

Accuracy
6. If using this as a form of birth control, keep in mind that in order for it to work,
you must accurately pinpoint ovulation. If you are wrong about your ovulation
 day, you will be wrong about your fertile period. According to numerous studies,
natural family planning is 99 percent effective when used correctly.

The Billings Method of Family Planning

The Billings Ovulation Method is a method of natural family planning in which a woman
watches for signs in her body to alert her of impending ovulation. Because ovulation is
the point in a woman's monthly cycle in which she can conceive, knowing when
ovulation is going to occur will help you avoid or achieve pregnancy.

The Method
1. The Billings Ovulation Method was developed 55 years ago by Dr. John Billings
and his wife, Dr. Evelyn Billings. It is based on a woman identifying ovulation
through observing changes in her cervical mucus. Cervical mucus changes during
points of a woman's monthly cycle, and during ovulation, it has certain
characteristics that aid in helping sperm get to the woman's uterus. Based on the
look and feel of the cervical mucus, a couple can determine when the woman is
fertile during the month. Using the Billings Method, a woman will know when
she is most fertile and can plan sex to avoid or achieve pregnancy.

Collecting Cervical Mucus

2. Because this method relies heavily on the feel and appearance of cervical mucus,
you will need to collect it to examine it. There are multiple ways you can do this.
The first way is to use toilet paper and wipe the outside of the vagina, then
examine the cervical mucus on the toilet paper. A better option is to collect
cervical mucus by inserting your finger into your vagina. The best, yet most
invasive, way to collect cervical mucus is to insert your finger in your vagina all
the way to your cervix and collect cervical mucus directly.

Examining Cervical Mucus

3. The appearance and feel of the cervical mucus changes at different points during a
woman's monthly cycle. Using the Billings Ovulation Method, you will determine
when you have clear, stretchy, slippery cervical mucus, which feels like
lubrication. This cervical mucus denotes the phase of your cycle in which you are
most fertile. The last day of clear, stretchy, slippery mucus is known as the "peak
symptom" in the Billings Method. The day after the peak symptom, the cervical
mucus will dry up or become sticky and cloudy again.

According to the Billings Ovulation Method website, if a couple is trying to avoid

pregnancy, they should have sex only during the Basic Infertile Pattern, which is
the time after the menstrual period until the cervical mucus changes to clear,
slippery and stretchy, and also four days after the "peak symptom" until the next
menstrual period starts.
 Couples trying to achieve pregnancy should have sex when the mucus is clear,
slippery and stretchy.

Advantages
4. Because the Billings Method uses cervical mucus to determine ovulation, it can
be used by women with different types of cycles and in different situations. The
Billings Method works for women with regular or irregular cycles because the
signs of ovulation are the same in every woman. It also works for breastfeeding
women who want to avoid becoming pregnant. Often a breastfeeding woman
realizes she has ovulated only when her period starts. The Billings Ovulation
Method also works for couples who have had trouble achieving pregnancy
because it pinpoints the best days of the month for conception.

When used as birth control, it involves no drugs, temperature monitoring or

devices (such as a diaphragm or condom). It also costs nothing.

Effectiveness
5. According to the Billings Method website, when avoiding pregnancy using this
method, there is an effectiveness rate of 99 percent to 99.5 percent.

Surgical Family Planning Method

Surgical methods of family planning can be helpful to those who are sure they do not
want to have any children after the surgery takes place. Both men and women can
undergo surgeries to help prevent pregnancies, and for the most part these operations are
considered permanent.

Types
1. In women, surgical sterilization typically involves cutting, tying and/or sealing the
fallopian tubes, thereby preventing eggs from traveling from the ovaries to the
uterus. This is often called tubal ligation. In men, the process of surgical
sterilization is called a vasectomy. It involves cutting and sealing off the vans
deferens, which prevents sperm from moving out of the testes.

A more drastic surgical method of family planning can involve a hysterectomy,

during which a woman's uterus is completely removed. This form of surgical
serilization, however, should not be considered if the sole purpose or benefit is for
contraception, according to medicinenet.com.
 Costs
2. The costs of tubal ligation and vasectomy vary by region, clinic and procedure
type. Tubal ligation generally costs between $1,500 and $6,000, while a
vasectomy may cost between $350 and $1,000, according to Planned Parenthood's
website.

Risks
3. Women who undergo tubal ligation run the risk of their fallopian tubes
reconnecting, although, according to Planned Parenthood, this is rare. If a
pregnancy does occur, it may develop in the fallopian tube, creating an ectopic
pregnancy. Ectopic pregnancies are dangerous, and their symptoms include pain
in the abdomen or tip of the shoulder, irregular bleeding and sudden weakness or
fainting. Other risks depend on the method of sterilization.

In men, a vasectomy is considered a very safe procedure and complications are

rare, according to Planned Parenthood.

Reversal
4. Vasectomy or tubal ligation reversals tend to be much more expensive and
complicated processes with varying rates of success. According to the Mayo
Clinic website, only 50 percent of vasectomy reversals are successful. Among
women who have had tubal ligation surgery, about 13 percent request a reversal,
and about 1 percent undergo the reversal procedure, according to Planned
Parenthood. Like vasectomy reversals, tubal ligation reversals do not guarantee a
woman will become pregnant again. Those who have been surgically sterilized
also can turn to in vitro fertilization or adoption as alternative methods of having
children.

Trends
5. According to a survey conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services in 2002, tubal ligation was the primary method of birth control among
22.9 percent of those surveyed, compared to the 16.1 percent of people who use
vasectomy as their primary birth control method.