Fertility Software

[crobynb]

Okay - so it seems that there is some software programs out there that make charting a little bit more convenient than the ol ’ paper and pencil. They also can take the guesswork out of it by automatically interpreting the data for you and telling you your “safe” days if trying to postpone pregnancy, or prime days for conception if trying for a baby.

This seems pretty good to me since I am having a bit of trouble with doing the charting the paper and pencil way.

Can anyone give references, personal experiences, advice, etc about the different versions out there and which they would recommend. Bearing in mind that whatever I use - It will need to be in accordance with the Church’s teachings by not depending on barrier methods during fertile times.

Thank you!!

 

[USCGwife]

Two options come to mind:

“Fertility Friend” is pretty user-friendly:

www.fertilityfriend.com

I don’t use it because I much prefer:

“Taking Charge of Your Fertility”

www.tcoyf.com

There’s a free 2-week trial download (I think the FF site has a trial too, but I don’t remember). I like it for many reasons - you can send your chart off to your doc pretty easily, you can post it in a secure area and set access rights if you want others to see it, and there’s a public chart area where you can post for general opinions.

Further, the message boards are free (whether you get the software or not) and have REALLY useful FAQs and interesting discussion. They are VERY busy so you should get answers to your questions very quickly. Also, there are specific forums for infertility (male & female), pregnancy & parenting.

I’ve been using TCOYF for years - love it!

Good luck!
Karen

 

[Nicole]

I use Fertility Friend simply because I liked the graphics better, silly I know. BUT, the big thing I’ve heard w/FF is that you still should make your own interpretations of your data vs. trusting their O dates, etc. That said, they always seem right about mine. You can try both FF and TCOYF for free trials and I would suggest that. Good luck!

Nicole

 

[hasikelee]

hormonalforecaster.com

I like how you can create moods/symbols and after charting them for awhile, it can spit out graphs showing statistics on them.

For example, you might put a sad smiley on a day when you have a headache. After awhile, the program can give you a report on the numbers. It actually starts to work; I never realized how habitual somethings can be! And for big things, that can be a good way of paying attention.

 

[IlovemyChurch]

They also can take the guesswork out of it by automatically interpreting the data for you and telling you your “safe” days if trying to postpone pregnancy, or prime days for conception if trying for a baby.

What method of NFP do your use?! Your own made-up method?

Because there shouldn’t be any guess-work involved with NFP method; Billings, Creighton, CCL all teach rules to apply for determining the start and end of the fertile phase.

You apply the rules based on the facts of your mucus and/or temperature…no guessing!

 

[crobynb]

“Guesswork” for someone who is still learning. I am learning the CCL - STM method. But, we were unable to attend a class and are doing the home study instead. I just had my first post-partum cycle - so I am learning this all for the first time and putting it to practical use. I only wanted something to help “back” me up in case I was interpreting something incorrectly until I really get the hang of what I am doing.