How to avoid pregnancy without condoms or pills

If you’re looking for a way to avoid pregnancy without relying on condoms or birth control pills, there is a method that could work for you.

You have to calculate your safe and unsafe days based on your menstrual cycle. This method, also known as the calendar method or fertility awareness, involves tracking your menstrual cycle to determine when it’s safe to have unprotected sex without the risk of pregnancy.

But before you try this, there's an important disclaimer: this method is only effective for people who have regular menstrual cycles. If your cycle is irregular, this approach will not work accurately, and you risk an unplanned pregnancy.

To use this method effectively, you need to know your cycle length, and a normal cycle ranges from 21 to 35 days and can vary slightly from month to month.

How to calculate your cycle length:

• Day 1 is the first day of your period.

• Count up to the day before your next period starts.

• That number is your cycle length.

Example: If your period starts on July 1 and your next period starts on July 30, your cycle length is 29 days.

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Ovulation is the time during your cycle when an egg is released from the ovary. This is when you are most fertile and likely to get pregnant if you have unprotected sex.

To estimate your ovulation day:

• Subtract 14 from your total cycle length.

• The result is your ovulation day.

Example: For a 29-day cycle, 29 - 14 = Day 15. So, ovulation happens on Day 15.

Sperm can live inside the female body for up to 5 days, and the egg lives for about 24 hours after ovulation. This creates what's called a fertile window.

Your fertile window includes:

• 5 days before ovulation

• The day of ovulation

• 1 day after ovulation

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Using our 29-day cycle example, ovulation is on Day 15, and the fertile window is Day 10 to Day 16. During this time, skin-to-skin or unprotected sex is very likely to lead to pregnancy.

Once you’ve determined your fertile window, the rest of your cycle can be considered safe days for unprotected sex, if you have a regular cycle and have tracked it accurately.

Safe days include:

• Your period days

• The days after your period and before your fertile window

• The days after ovulation have passed

For a 29-day cycle, safe days are: Day 1 to Day 9 and Day 17 to Day 29. But keep in mind, this only works if your cycle is consistent every month.

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• Track your cycle for at least 3 to 6 months before relying on this method.

• Use a calendar, fertility tracking app, or journal to log your cycle days.

• Avoid unprotected sex during your fertile window.

• Be disciplined and honest with yourself, because miscalculations can lead to pregnancy.

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If your period comes early one month, late the next, or your cycle varies significantly each month, this method is not reliable for you.

People with irregular cycles often:

• Ovulate on different days each month

• Have unpredictable fertile windows

• Cannot calculate their safe or unsafe days accurately

In this case, you may want to explore other natural birth control methods, such as:

• Basal Body Temperature tracking (measuring your body temperature daily to detect ovulation)

• Cervical Mucus method (checking changes in vaginal discharge)

• Withdrawal method (less effective, and still risky)

• Non-hormonal IUDs (if you're open to medical intervention without hormones)

Remember, no natural method is 100% foolproof, but with discipline and proper knowledge, you can reduce the risk significantly.

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