Discover Natural Family Planning

Natural Family Planning Classes are offered at varied times throughout the Archdiocese. In some areas it is called "Fertility Appreciation." Two similar but different methods are most effective in planning pregnancy: The Ovulation Method and the Sympto-Thermal Method. Reliability is over 98%, therefore its effectiveness is as good or better than drugs and contraceptive procedures.

Natural Family Planning can also be effective when working with infertility problems.

Click here for a list of Natural Family Planning Instructors

The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas offers two different Natural Family Planning methods: Couple to Couple League's Sympto Thermal method and Creighton's FertilityCare method.  There are instructors throughout our archdiocese.  Most couples are unaware that there are different methods available to learn.  Although both Couple to Couple League (CCL) and FertilityCare are both highly effective in achieving and preventing pregnancies, they each also have different qualities to offer a couple.  If you are unsure of which method might be a good match for you, please go to their websites and find out more about them.

Click here for CCL's website:

Click here for Creighton's FertilityCare website:

To find an instructor for CCL, on their hompage of their website there is a link for instructors.  Call or email the instructor and they will let you know when they will be starting a new class.

To find an instructor for FertilityCare, call the FertilityCare Center of KC at 816-847-1919 or go to their website: Click here

Consultant: Beth Meier
Phone: (913) 647-0379
FAX: (913) 721-1577
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Natural Family Planning

What is Natural Family Planning?
Natural Family Planning (NFP) is an umbrella term for certain methods used to achieve and avoid pregnancies. These methods are based on observation of the naturally occurring signs and symptoms of the fertile and infertile phases of a woman's menstrual cycle. Couples using NFP to avoid pregnancy abstain from intercourse and genital contact during the fertile phase of the woman's cycle. No drugs, devices, or surgical procedures are used to avoid pregnancy. NFP reflects the dignity of the human person within the context of marriage and family life, promotes openness to life, and recognizes the value of the child. By respecting the love-giving and life-giving natures of marriage, NFP can enrich the bond between husband and wife.

Is NFP Rhythm?
NFP is not "Rhythm."
The Rhythm (or Calendar) method was developed in the 1930s. It was based on the theory that the time of next ovulation could be determined by calculating previous menstrual cycles. This method often proved inaccurate because of the unique nature of each woman's menstrual cycle: some women have very irregular cycles and almost all women have a cycle of unusual length once in a while.

On the other hand, NFP methods are progressive. That is, they are based on progressive, day-to-day observations of the naturally occurring signs and symptoms of the fertile and infertile phases of the menstrual cycle. NFP methods take advantage of the changes associated with ovulation, treating each cycle as unique.

Couples using NFP to avoid pregnancy abstain from intercourse during the fertile phase of the woman's cycle. Couples who wish to achieve a pregnancy can also take advantage of the fertile time of the cycle. Because it allows couples to adjust their behavior to the naturally occurring cycles of a woman's body, NFP is not a contraceptive--i.e., it does nothing to work against conception.

Who can use NFP?
Any married couple can use NFP! A woman need not have "regular" cycles. NFP education helps couples to fully understand their combined fertility, thereby helping them to either achieve or avoid a pregnancy. The key to the successful use of NFP is cooperation and communication between husband and wife--a shared commitment.

As a method of family planning, NFP:
*Calls for mutual responsibility by husband and wife
*Requires the couple to communicate
*Is based on scientific research
*Treats each menstrual cycle as unique and teaches a couple to observe their signs of fertility on a day-to-day bases
*Has no harmful side effects
*Is effective for those wanting to achieve or avoid pregnancy
*Can be used in special circumstances--such as, post-partum, during breastfeeding, and premenopause
*Is virtually cost free!
 

NFP is unique among methods of family planning because it enables its users to work with the body rather than against it. Fertility is viewed as a reality to live, not a problem to be solved.

Used with permission from the NFP Program, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. All rights reserved