Natural Family Planning

Natural Family Planning is a term for natural methods used to achieve or avoid pregnancies based on the naturally occurring signs and symptoms of the fertile and infertile phases of a woman’s menstrual cycle. It can also be used to monitor a woman’s cycle for health. Learn more here: What is Natural Family Planning?

Each method focuses on one or more signs of female fertility. These signs include cervical mucus, basal body temperature and hormones. The methods are broken into categories based off the signs they focus on. 

• Sympto-Thermal Methods 
  • These methods combine charting of basal body temperature, cervical mucus and other signs to determine the stage of your cycle.

• Mucus Only Methods
  • These methods observe changes in cervical mucus throughout the cycle. 

• Sympto-Hormonal Methods
  •  These methods observe several signs of fertility and add the use of a fertility monitor that measures the hormone levels in urine. 

The Bismarck Diocese offers multiple NFP methods to choose from to complete the diocesan requirement. The cost for the engaged couple varies, depending on method chosen. 
  
You must take a class with an approved Bismarck Diocese instructor to fulfill your pre-marriage requirement. Each method takes approximately three months to learn and needs to be completed at least a month prior to your wedding date.  Please plan ahead and sign up for your NFP classes early, as the classes can fill up quickly. 

Diocesan Approved List of NFP Instructors:

Below are the methods of NFP our Diocese offers.    

This method is a Mucus Only Method Learn more about Billings Ovulation Method	This method primarily observes cervical mucus but can also incorporate basal body temperature and hormone testing strips. Learn more about Chart Your Cycle Engaged.
This method is a Sympto-Thermal Method. Learn more about the Couple to Couple League.	This method is a Sympto-Hormonal Method.  Learn more about the Marquette Model.

 Read the diocesan NFP policy here.