I’ve been using the Kindara menstrual charting app now for over a year and absolutely love it. I had stopped recording my temperature because the basal body thermometers I used in the past were, in my opinion, a pain in the butt. They took too long to read my temperature (1-5 minutes), they beeped obnoxiously, the syncing application was clunky and the batteries were constantly dying.
I received the Wink thermometer last month, so I thought, what the heck, I’ll start recording my temperature again. I can’t get over how fast and easy to use the Wink is! What I like about Wink is that it takes my temperature within 10 seconds, it vibrates instead of beeps and it automatically syncs my data to the Kindara app on my iphone. Wink doesn’t require you to have your phone on while using it, which is nice since I sleep with my phone off. As soon as the Wink gets near the phone, when the phone is on, it automatically adds the data to my chart. It even sends me an email when the battery is getting low! You can recharge the battery with the included charging cable.
Don’t let the name Fertility Awareness Method fool you, it could also be called Menstrual Awareness Method because of the vital information you will learn about your body. You don’t have to be trying to conceive or trying to avoid pregnancy to benefit from using this method. Charting your cycle will alert you to hormonal imbalances and reveal vital overall health information. No one system of the body works in isolation. It’s important to know whether you’re ovulating or not, but not just for fertility reasons, but regular ovulation is associated with bone, heart, brain and breast health. The body makes progesterone and estradiol via ovulation. Both estradiol and progesterone are essential for skin, hair, thyroid, libido, insulin response, mood, metabolism and bone health. Don’t assume that just because you have a monthly bleed that you’re ovulating! If you’re not seeing a temperature shift at the right time you could have anovulatory cycles (not ovulating). Charting your cycle by recording your temperature will alert you to other important hormonal imbalances. For instance, seeing a short luteal phase (the second half of your cycle after ovulation) could indicate low progesterone. Seeing consistent low temperatures below 96.8 can indicate a low thyroid condition.
If you are trying to conceive or trying to avoid pregnancy, the Fertility Awareness Method, when used correctly, has a 99.6% efficacy rate!
Useful Links:
Get Wink
I love the Fertility Friday podcast. Lisa, the creator of the Fertility Friday blog and podcast, does an amazing job educating women about the fertility awareness method.
A comprehensive book on Fertility Awareness: Taking Charge of Your Fertility. Very thorough with great pics.
The Period Repair Manual by Dr. Lara Briden is a well organized and easy to understand guide to healthier periods.
