Does anyone else just use menstrual cycle calculating as a contraceptive?

[TettyLouBar]

I've been doing it for about a year. It's worked a treat. A friend mentioned an APP that I could use on my phone which makes it so much easier.
I'm exactly 29 days a cycle and I know from my discharge (TMI soz) that I'm ovulating. We are VERY careful for about 5-6 days before I ovulate and then for about 2 days after and it seems to be so easy.

My question is...Am I really dicing with danger doing this?

The ob/gyn doc I was working with the other day said I was.

We have 2 DD's and really don't want any more. Does anyone else rely on a similar method?

[timetosmile]

my understanding is that persona is less effective than proper fertility awareness - basal body temp, etc, but happy to be corrected if anyone knows better

[kalidasa]

Still throwing up every single day but at least I'm not in hospital any more! 18 weeks now and hoping it might improve more at 20 weeks, apparently it does for some women.

Tetty I have actually always just used an ordinary fahrenheit thermometer with just one decimal place. TCOYF actually suggests you don't use a special one with two decimal places as they can encourage you to obsess about tiny changes rather than keeping an eye on the overall pattern. If you're temping in celsius though they may be useful, I've always done F. Important to use the same thermometer every time though because they do really vary in how they are calibrated.

The key really is consistency and practice. I think a lot of people only chart when they are ttc so probably don't do it for very long and perhaps never fully get the hang of it, whereas if you're charting for contraception you have a chance to really learn your cycle patterns over a much longer period of time - I did it for over four years. Also you really need to have at least a few cycles observing cervical fluid while using a barrier method, because otherwise semen can be confusing (sorry if TMI!). I found it a really great method because I learnt a lot about myself and how much my moods/energy etc were linked to my cycle as well. It also meant I always knew when my period would arrive which was a big bonus for me as I have very irregular cycles so before I charted I would always spend weeks thinking it might be about to start.

When we started ttc I got pregnant immediately (within a few days) every time. (Had two early mc then this pregnancy.) We never had a month ttc that I didn't get pregnant! I'm sure this was partly luck/natural fertility but I do think knowing my cycle so well helped too.

[brighthair]

I have been using a combination of Persona and withdrawal since I came off the pill in January, my cycle is pretty regular but between 24 - 29 days