What is the moral difference between Natural Family Planning andArtificial Contraception?
In contraception, the couple engage in an act that they have altered, altered ina way that violates the inherent meaning of the sexual act which is both unitiveand procreative.
In NFP, the couple either abstain from sexual intercourse, or, they engage in anun-altered act of sexual intercourse: in both cases the acts that they do engagein have not been altered in any way.
The higher divorce rate among couples who use artificial contraception is a sign (though admittedly nota proof) that the separation of the unitive and procreative meanings of the marital act in contraceptiontragically tends towards the separation of other things in a relationship.
Natural Family Planning: The Billings OvulationMethod
Natural Family Planning provides a way for couples to
keep track of their fertility
so that they are enabled to make decisions according to their situation at anyparticular time. The Billings is a reliable, scientific method taught worldwide.
What NFP Involves:
•
Self-Awareness
:
The fertility indicator this method is based on is cervicalmucus, which can be detected by women simply by training themselves tobecome aware of it. There are no invasive or unpleasant procedures, no specialequipment, no hormonal tests.
•
One-to-One Tuition
:
The best way to learn the method is through a seriesof meetings with a qualified instructor who will teach individual women to chartconsistently and interpret correctly their own unique pattern of fertility andinfertility. The number of meetings will depend on individual circumstances,and the teacher will be available for advice at any time even when the womanhas learnt to apply the method independently. (A possible alternative is onlineteaching at www.woomb.org)
•
Daily Charting
:
It’s very important to keep a chart to accurately recordobservations every single evening because fertility is understood by watchingand interpreting a developing pattern, not by looking at individual days. Failureto chart daily will affect the success of the method.
•
Periodic Abstinence
:
The couple will be taught rules for the avoidance of pregnancy: fertile days and days of potential fertility are not available forintercourse unless they are happy to welcome a baby. (NB: the Billings is notcompatible with barrier methods).
•
Communication and Cooperation
:
The charting merely providesinformation: the couple then have to discuss whether to apply the rules foravoidance of pregnancy on each particular cycle and choose a course of actionthat they are both happy with, bearing in mind each other’s (and the wholefamily’s) feelings and needs.
The pattern of cervical mucus observed and recorded by the woman isdetermined by the changing levels of oestrogen in the ovaries and therefore the chart gives an accurate picture of what is happening inthe woman’s body on any given day of the cycle.
Advantages of NFP:
Promotes women's health:
There is no intake of drugs or artificialhormones; the Billings chart makes it possible to spot abnormalities andprovides very useful medical information.
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