218 Family Planning
Natural
Methods of
Family
Planning
There are also 3 methods to avoid pregnancy that do not
require any devices or chemicals (as with barrier methods) or
medicines (as with hormonal methods). The methods are:
• breastfeeding for the first 6 months
• the mucus method
• the counting days method
IMPORTANT Natural methods of family planning do not
protect against STIs, including HIV. If you use any of the natural
methods listed in these pages, you still need to think about ways to
protect yourself from these diseases.
Breastfeeding for the first 6 months
(Lactational Amenorrhea Method, LAM)
Breastfeeding under certain conditions can prevent the
ovaries from releasing an egg. This method does not cost
anything, but it is most effective for only the first 6 months after
childbir th.
How to use breastfeeding to prevent pregnancy:
Breastfeeding is an effective method of family planning only when
these 3 conditions are true:
1. Your baby
is less than
6 months
old.
2. You have not had your
monthly bleeding since
giving birth.
3. You are giving your baby only breast milk, and feeding it
whenever it is hungry, day and night, with no more than
6 hours between feedings. Your baby does not sleep
through the night without feeding.
Use another method of family planning that is safe with
breastfeeding as soon as any of the following things happen:
• Your baby is more than 6 months old, or
• Your monthly bleeding starts, or
• Your baby starts taking other kinds of milk or other foods, or starts sleeping
for more than 6 hours during the night, or
• You must be away from the baby for more than 6 hours and cannot
remove milk from your breasts during that time.
Where Women Have No Doctor 2012