More on NFP-BOM

From an upskill NFP-Billings Ovulation Method seminar I attended last Sunday, some bullet points:

Correlating the signs and symptoms of fertility

-new CYCLE commences
-HYPOTHALAMUS produces GnRH, tells PITUITARY to produce FSH
-reaching THRESHOLD for a few of the most sensitive FOLLICLES
-these follicles begin their RAPID GROWTH PHASE
-OESTROGEN is produced
-FSH rises to INTERMEDIATE level, follicles continue rapidly growing
-rising oestrogen levels stimulate growth of ENDOMETRIUM (proliferative phase)
-and CERVIX responds (produces mucus)
-36 hours after beginning of LH surge,
-17 hours after LH peak,
-rupture of follicle,
-OVULATION occurs
-ruptured follicle is transformed into the CORPUS LUTEUM
-if fertilisation has not occurred, corpus luteum REGRESSES after 6-7 days
-OESTROGEN and PROGESTERONE levels fall
-suppression of FSH and LH lifted
-MENSTRUATION commences 11-16 days after ovulation


Some more highlights:

-When a young woman is on the pill, her OESTROGEN and PROGESTERONE are flat all
throughout, similar to imposing a menopause on her young body. That is why she is prone to depression, among other things.

-The ovulatory cycle is an intricate system, all occurrences affect other factors in the
body in an amazing complexity of nature-driven cause-and-effect. Thus if you disrupt the
system, you naturally wreak havoc on the body in ways you cannot imagine - besides cancer.

-Q: At what age does a woman produce the healthiest egg?
-A: At around 16 years of age. Interestingly, the NFP expert said that marrying at a young
age for the woman is customary in the olden times. She is married to a man that is considerably older than she is, so the element of financial and moral support is addressed. It is only in modern times that couples tend to marry at a later age due to economic reasons. Nowadays marrying couples also choose a partner within their age range.

-Q: What about the other NFP methods (SDM, Two-Days, BBT)
-A: SDM relies on beads which are NOT part of the woman's body. SDM also considers all
pre-ovulatory days as fertile days. Two-Days method is not compatible with what NFP-BOM
teaches in fertility monitoring, and in fact contradict the concepts. BBT is the only method compatible with BOM, but one needs an accurate digital thermometer which may not be available everytime.

-Some terms equivalence:

-GnRH = Gonadotrophin-releasing hormone
-FSH = Follicle Stimulating Hormone
-LH = luteinizing hormone
-SDM = Standard Days Method
-BBT = Basal Body Temperature
-MP = Manny Pacquiao. Good that the seminar already ended at 1pm, I was still able to catch the telecast at home.

related post
somewhat related post
another somewhat related post