The Appeal of Organic and Natural

Organic! Natural! No preservatives! Buy local!

It's everywhere we look today. It's in the grocery stores, on TV, all over Facebook. Everyone wants to live a natural life as much as possible. Hormone-free meats and diary, less processed junk, no GMOs, etc., etc. The list can get pretty long.

But there is one area of people's lives in which they seem okay with adding hormones to their bodies or using unnatural devises in their bodies. It's rather mind boggling really. How can you be so picky about your food and other chemicals you and your family come in contact with, but be okay with these other things?

I am, of course, talking about the pill, IUDs, and any other devise that is used as birth control by millions of people every day. 

Courtesy of iusenfp.com

I find it confusing when I see friends of mine post things on Facebook about GMOs in food or any other unnatural, food additives that are illegal in other countries but okay with our FDA here in the US. I'm confused because often these are the same people I happen to know also use some form of unnatural contraceptives in their bodies.

I'm not saying that we shouldn't be concerned about the food that we eat and serve our families. We should, absolutely!! I want my family to eat healthy foods, to not be ingesting hormones they don't need or chemicals that are bad for them. I share those same concerns.

And it is because of those same concerns, among other reasons, that I don't take the pill or use some unnatural devise to prevent pregnancy. Yes, one of my main reasons is the teachings of the Catholic Church, but this other stuff plays into it as well.

Here's the thing. The pill contains hormones your body doesn't need. You are adding more hormones into your body with regular consumption of the pill than you would ever get from a steak that came from a cow who was given extra hormones. So if you're so concerned about your food, you really should be more concerned about the pill.

I saw some recent discussions in which friends of mine shared that they had seen the copper IUD held up as a "natural" form of birth control. Seriously? Inserting a devise made of copper into your ... is "natural." I'm no science expert, never took anatomy in school, but I'm pretty sure copper is not a natural part of our bodies. Anyone??

All those devises that can be inserted for long periods of time, they also have hormones in them. How do you think they work?? Again, it's not natural for our bodies to be getting more hormones than we need. And long term, they can cause all sorts of problems, from infertility to cancer to who knows what else. Why take that risk??

Okay, so you see the point, maybe? Or at least you have something to think about? Do some research yourself and read a bit more if you think I'm crazy or smoking something. Regardless, maybe you're thinking that this is something to be rethought. Maybe you'll just use condoms or something in the meantime. No hormones there, right?

True, no hormones there. But condoms are one of the most unreliable forms of birth control there is. Take your chances if you want. But remember this, when you give yourself to your spouse you should be doing it totally and completely, giving him ALL of you, holding nothing back. It is about you and him (and God) and no one, or nothing, else. How does a piece of rubber fit into that equation?

Courtesy of the Couple to Couple League

While you chew on that for a bit, let me introduce a new concept to you: Natural Family Planning, or NFP for short. 

Whoa, whoa, whoa!!! you say!! STOP! Don't close up this window. Hear me out and keep reading.

Natural Family Planning is NOT the Rhythm Method. It does not assume that every woman has cycles the same length or that individual women have the same cycle time after time. NFP is a series of different methods that work WITH your body's natural processes. You learn to observe the fertility signs your body naturally goes through, chart those, and then identify your fertile and infertile times. It's really very simple once you learn it.

I won't go into the various methods here. But I do want to leave you with a list of resources. Keep an open mind and check them out. Remember, this is all natural. You like it when your food says "All Natural, No Preservatives" on it. Shouldn't other aspects of your life also be "All Natural?"

I Use NFP

Live-The-Love

One More Soul (resource with medical information, articles, and ability to find an NFP doctor in your area)

Taking Charge of Your Fertility (a non-religious site on fertility awareness)

NFP and More 

Various NFP methods include:

Symto-Thermal Method, taught by the Couple to Couple League: http://www.ccli.org/

Creighton Model: http://www.creightonmodel.com/ and Creighton Fertility Care: http://www.fertilitycare.org/

Marquette Method: http://nfpstudy.marquette.edu/

Billings Method: http://www.woomb.org/

Serena: http://www.serena.ca/ (based in Canada)

This post was written and inspired by this week's NFP Awareness Week (many more resources available at this website). This post is also part of the "7 posts in 7 days" challenge.
I've also linked this post up to an NFP Week Linkup at NFPandMe.blogspot.com.