Should Catholic Teenagers understand and be knowledgable of NFP?

[TheHolyTrinity9]

I’m wondering, in accordance to the question that should Teenagers know what NFP is and the process of it or is it something best left until Marriage? What’s people’s thoughts?

 

[Convert_in_99]

I’m wondering, in accordance to the question that should Teenagers know what NFP is and the process of it or is it something best left until Marriage? What’s people’s thoughts?

I think every young woman should start learning about her monthly cycles and the gift of her fertility using NFP. It takes many cycles to figure out the natural patterns of her monthly cycles, sometimes years if there are health issues. It may even help her and her doctor detect health issues that need to be addressed and treated promptly. The only thing different is that she wouldn’t share this information with a current boyfriend as there is no need. Certainly she should share this information with an NFP instructor to see if she is charting and determining signs correctly. Also a doctor if she suspects issues.

 

[pensmama87]

I think it depends on the teen.

I do remember feeling “ripped off” when I learned some of the details of my biology that had been left out of health class, and it wasn’t, “Oh, I could have had all this sex but I didn’t because I was scared to get pregnant!” I think the benefit is more that girls are often taught that our bodies are bad, inconvenient and incomprehensible, rather than fearfully and wonderfully made.

 

[Lea101]

Of course!

Side note: if two catholic teenagers were going to have pre marital sex, it’s very likely that they will use contraception instead of NFP to avoid pregnancy. It’ll be weird if they were like “we can’t use condoms! It’s wrong!”

 

[Lorelei12]

I think it would be helpful for them to at least know what it is, that there are different methods, and what those methods are, and to be given some resources in case they are interested in learning how to chart.

I agree with what Pensmama said about feeling “ripped off”- that’s exactly how I felt too. How is it possible that I could have reached college before knowing that you cannot become pregnant during your entire cycle? Why did I have to learn these things on my own?

I definitely don’t think it’s something that should wait until marriage. The human body doesn’t need to be a mystery.

 

[1ke]

I’m wondering, in accordance to the question that should Teenagers know what NFP is and the process of it or is it something best left until Marriage? What’s people’s thoughts?

Theology of the body for teens covers the moral aspects. There are dioceses that teach fertility awareness programs, a course for girls and their moms, teaches about puberty, how to observe fertility signs, and health care appropriate for a teen.

Learning how to chart for marital intimacy would be proximate preparation for marriage.

 

[SusanneT]

I’m wondering, in accordance to the question that should Teenagers know what NFP is and the process of it or is it something best left until Marriage? What’s people’s thoughts?

I think that girls should be taught about all aspects of fertility, motherhood, pregnancy and nursing but in an age appropriate way, with a firm Catholic moral framework and without undue detail with regard to anything beyond the basic biology of intimacy.

Knowledge of one’s cycle is useful and most easily learned before it is complicated by pregnancy etc after marriage. However if NFP is to be taught outside of marriage it needs to be taught within an absolutely consistent moral framework stating clearly that it is only relevant in marriage and then only when the couple have mutually agreed prayerfully based serious reason to avoid. Especially that it is not an alternative to contraception and that in marriage we vow to be open to children.

 

[EasterJoy]

Of course they should. Why would they not be taught this information? In an ideal world, a Catholic teen would learn about all aspects of marriage and adult life, from mortgages and consumer credit through an adult understanding of the sacramental life and all the way to fertility awareness, within the framework of Catholic moral and spiritual teaching.

If not by age 18, then when? Ignorance of these things can exact heavy consequences.

 

[Bruised_Reed]

I didn’t learn NFP but my doctor had me take my BBT for a while when I was 19 - 20 to confirm that I was ovulating since my periods were so irregular (typical range 30-45 days, but no period at all the summer my best friend got married). I also had an obvious change in mucous that I learned was associated with ovulation, which was awesome, so I was rarely surprised by the commencement of shark week even with a very irregular cycle.

If I had been able to learn the Creighton method and the PPVI Institute had been around, it might have been interesting to find out if there was more to my long cycles besides stress. And it might have been very good for someone to acknowledge that stress affects my body in significant ways: losing hair, developing GERD, insomnia, anxiety, depression. That last one has been chronic; were there indicators that tracking my cycle might have pointed to?

 

[Kelfa28]

I think teenagers should but I still have a very difficult time with this topic.

I have three daughters and I don’t want them to be lied to. I want them to know the pros and cons of everything…including the cons and drawbacks of NFP.

I was lied to. I was lied to by CCL and it left an extraordinarily bad taste in my mouth.

I also don’t want them to be lied to about breastfeeding either. I was lied to about breastfeeding as well.

The Church itself did not lie but the laymen who are represented by the Church lied.

I want them to know that nursing is not for everyone, it’s not even for every child. It’s not a reliable method for spacing pregnancies.

The secular world has lied to us about contraception…that is undeniably true.

But being lied to about NFP is wrong too.

It has a high failure rate and it’s not a one-size-fits-all method.

I really, really hope I can achieve acceptance and peace with this teaching and learn to either get over my anxiety with it or learn to handle it.

Maybe I will by the time they reach puberty.

 

[chaplainmom]

Yes! Most certainly young teenage girls should be taught NFP.

Despite all the abuse I experienced as a young Catholic mother by a Catholic priest who used NFP in a very abusive way. (Asking women like myself in the church parking lot after I dropped my kids off at catechism class if I had to confess sins of masturbation or use of birth control) I still believe NFP has a great deal of value and should be taught.

However, I would never scare or shame my married daughter into using NFP with the fear of damnation if she didn’t do it perfectly. This is what happened to me.

 

[Hawkmaid]

I think that girls should be taught about all aspects of fertility, motherhood, pregnancy and nursing but in an age appropriate way, with a firm Catholic moral framework and without undue detail with regard to anything beyond the basic biology of intimacy.

Knowledge of one’s cycle is useful and most easily learned before it is complicated by pregnancy etc after marriage. However if NFP is to be taught outside of marriage it needs to be taught within an absolutely consistent moral framework stating clearly that it is only relevant in marriage and then only when the couple have mutually agreed prayerfully based serious reason to avoid. Especially that it is not an alternative to contraception and that in marriage we vow to be open to children.

As a teenager myself, I agree with Susanne. It’s a God-given cycle, and as long as it’s taught and used that way, all will be well. Better the parents teach it than society, which tends to twist and ruin things…

 

[Mary_Gail_36]

I think that adolescent girls should have knowledge of how their bodies work. All of us woman should.

 

[Rau]

I think teenagers should but I still have a very difficult time with this topic.

I have three daughters and I don’t want them to be lied to. I want them to know the pros and cons of everything…including the cons and drawbacks of NFP.

I was lied to. I was lied to by CCL and it left an extraordinarily bad taste in my mouth.

I also don’t want them to be lied to about breastfeeding either. I was lied to about breastfeeding as well.

The Church itself did not lie but the laymen who are represented by the Church lied.

I want them to know that nursing is not for everyone, it’s not even for every child. It’s not a reliable method for spacing pregnancies.

The secular world has lied to us about contraception…that is undeniably true.

But being lied to about NFP is wrong too.

It has a high failure rate and it’s not a one-size-fits-all method.

I really, really hope I can achieve acceptance and peace with this teaching and learn to either get over my anxiety with it or learn to handle it.

Maybe I will by the time they reach puberty.

Regarding failure rate of NFP and other methods to avoid pregnancy:

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_birth_control_methods

The average failure rate of NFP is not particularly high. Individual experiences can vary due to failure to apply it properly, or due to individual differences.

 

[Kelfa28]

Regarding failure rate of NFP and other methods to avoid pregnancy:

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_birth_control_methods

The average failure rate of NFP is not particularly high. Individual experiences can vary due to failure to apply it properly, or due to individual differences.

Compared to the widely touted failure rate of 2% you regularly see around here?

24% is astronomical. It’s huge compared to typical use of the IUD and surgery and it’s over 3 times higher then the pill…for typical use.
That is massive.

The margin of error is even bigger because every couple using NFP is different. Some couples are more open to having another baby then others. Some couples are more likely to call another baby a “bonus” or a “what the heck” baby. Cycles vary widely between everyone…some can use NFP without any issue and without help. Others have all kinds of issues and need loads of help…some have easy cycles one month and difficult cycles other months.

I doubt there is any way to actually find a true “failure rate” because NFP is all over the map…including couples who loosely use NFP and would never call another baby a “method failure” to begin with.

The truth is that one can achieve perfect use far more easily and on a more consistent basis with the pill.
The gap, in terms of failure, is closed, in a big way, between people who took the pill perfectly and people who didn’t.

You take it at the same time every single day. You aren’t interpreting anything. Every month is the same.
If you follow the instructions and are cautious…especially if you are taking antibiotics or other meds that can adversely effect the pill.

Just like antibiotics adversely effect the pill…and patients aren’t told about it…it’s not universally taught that antihistamines greatly effect mucus readings and alcohol can effect temp readings…enough to effect the temp cover line.

Every method has a failure rate. The truth is that the NFP user failure rate is rarely mentioned.

I had no idea there was an actual failure rate. The literature I had never mentioned it. It did say you could achieve a 98% success rate with perfect use.

But there is such a massive margin of error with NFP that I doubt perfect use is even achievable…for anyone.

 

[LongingSoul]

Well maybe not taught natural Family Planning but definitely awareness of the bodies fertility cycle and its effects on you physically and emotionally.

 

[E_7]

I believe they should know about it once they hit puberty, but I would change the words NFP to Fertility Awareness.

 

[EasterJoy]

Theology of the body for teens covers the moral aspects. There are dioceses that teach fertility awareness programs, a course for girls and their moms, teaches about puberty, how to observe fertility signs, and health care appropriate for a teen.

Learning how to chart for marital intimacy would be proximate preparation for marriage.

I agree. Someone who plans to remain single for the foreseeable future does not need to go through an in-depth NFP course. A woman ought to know the basics, but as the science and technology are still developing even now, I’d encourage people to take the in-depth course closer to the time they marry, even if they think they’ve learned this all in the past.

Teaching this to young women is the bare minimum. Young men ought to know the basics of this information by the time they go off to college, too. Yes, I would think it is appropriate to teach this differently at different times. The amount of information appropriate for a 12 year old starting puberty and in need of an understanding of her own body is not nearly enough to carry a young woman capable of 9th-12th grade science courses into independent adulthood.

By the way, NFP is something that even married couples who see no need to limit their family size ought to know. Gynecological self-awareness is important in tending to one’s health, and NFP is a good vehicle for developing that awareness and even for documenting it in a systematic way. Married couples ought to know there is a way to maintain that level of self-awareness of their fertility. (Whether or not they decide to actually do the work of documenting it is another question.)

 

[Bruised_Reed]

I believe they should know about it once they hit puberty, but I would change the words NFP to Fertility Awareness.

Too close to Fertility Awareness Method (FAM) which advises couples to uses condoms during fertile times.

 

[Kelfa28]

Too close to Fertility Awareness Method (FAM) which advises couples to uses condoms during fertile times.

Actually…they say you can but don’t recommend it because if it fails…the chances you’ll get pregnant is significantly higher then typical condom use.

That’s what I read in FAM-based Taking Charge of Your Fertility.

They said if you are really serious about avoiding then abstinence is best and recommended.