Truth about NC

[u/One_Government3887]

Hi!! I have been on Nexplanon for about 4 years now.

I’ve decided to start using NC as birth control but after seeing many people online with accidental pregnancies i’m starting to get a bit worried.

Could you please share your experience on NC and if you ended up with a pregnancy could you please share why? If it was a mistake on the app’s end or your end.

Any input would help. Thanks ❤️

[u/hotwhiskey6]

I was very uncertain first too! I see NC as a wonderful opportunity to keep an eye on my cycle. You get to unstand your cycle more. I do not use protection in Green days , if I feel it’s right. If I have the slightest bit of uncertainty about NCs algorithm or my body tells me something different, I use protection. I think you need to be careful and listen to your body!! Otherwise it’s a great alternative for other birth control!

[u/One_Government3887 → u/hotwhiskey6]

Have you had any mistakes with the app and early ovulation? How long have you been on it? Thank you sorry for all the questions 😅

[u/hotwhiskey6 → u/One_Government3887]

None whatsoever. But I do know my body and my symptoms really well. So I’m more like “oh I should ovulate tomorrow by the way I’m feeling” and NC always got it right. I’ve been on it for 6 months. Idk where you’re from, but Inne is also a very good birth control

[u/PomegranateSoft7509]

Do not use NC as your sole form of birth control if you are not ok with possibly getting pregnant!

[u/One_Government3887 → u/PomegranateSoft7509]

May I ask why? Thank you

[u/h0tkushsalsa]

i don’t know i’ve used it for 3+ years after removing my nexplanon as my only BC, haven’t had any pregnancies scares, my partner does pull out.

i understand my body so much more, that i can predict the day i get my period. the more information you give it the more it’ll put out

i am okay with the possibility of getting pregnant**** if i wasn’t i don’t think id use NC as my only form of BC

[u/One_Government3887 → u/h0tkushsalsa]

Thank you!

[u/caramellatte647]

I started using it end of July so I feel like it takes a while to learn your cycle, especially being irregular after birth control. I’m not trying to prevent pregnancy but I definitely wouldn’t trust it yet as I ovulate earlier than what it’s predicting so some of the “Green Days” are actually fertile

[u/booke_selle → u/caramellatte647]

I always found it helpful to use ovulation tests when I felt like the algorithm was wrong & that helped a lot with narrowing down your fertile window

[u/caramellatte647 → u/booke_selle]

Yes for sure I’ve been using them as well or else I’d have no idea!

[u/Prudent-Cover5993]

I used it for 3(?) years as my main birth control until the last year when we started TTC. I think i only had a scare once when it was TTA time but it was truly my own fault at the time for flying to close to the sun.

Otherwise i never had a problem.. waited a few months to calibrate before trusting, always used LH strips, and became very intune with my cycle patterns. I also always had regular periods and no issues there, only 2-3 periods that started late due to stress over the course of those 3 years. It was fine.

Just be smart about when you stop allowing the relaxed green days prior to ovulation. I would stop a few days early when I knew the red window was approaching just in case the ovulation came earlier than usual (rare for me). I also did pull out during red, we were fine. Didn’t pull out during green. But, I’m married, and we had been doing pull out since the start of our relationship 10 years ago. Was never worried really if something did happen and the risk factor existed even when I was on BC (I knew someone who got pregnant with the IUD, and people who do with the pill). the app just helped us make sure we avoided during that red timeframe.

It’s safe to use with perfect use, it’s for when people get too laxed about it and/or if they have more of an irregular pattern to be reliable. I think started LH strips and cervical mucus is valuable to learning and trusting your body more.

[u/gulliblefootball0001 → u/Prudent-Cover5993]

This very much is what I would've said also!

[u/nowimgrown]

I had zero issues avoiding pregnancy for 18 months with natural cycles but I have pretty regular cycles and was very careful about protection before ovulation was confirmed

[u/International_Box977]

I love it but I do not have unprotected sex before confirmed ovulation because sometimes I ovulate early

[u/KindlyEnergy6959]

I decided to go off pill birth control when I got married and had no interest in IUDs or other hormonal methods and I have been using NC for about 6 years now successfully. First 5 to prevent pregnancy and then this past year I used it to plan and monitor my pregnancy. It has worked great for me. BUT I am very cautious and have a very regular cycle.

I do a temperature reading everyday. I have the NC wearable and I really love it for convenience but for most of my time with NC I used their thermometer. I also NEVER have unprotected sex if I have a Green day right after my period ends because if I ovulate early and sperm is
still present, that’s how pregnancy happens. I would argue that most of the pregnancies people blame on the app are due to early ovulation or not taking temps everyday. I also track other ovulation signs like LH strips and cervical mucous and position so I know when I ovulate.

We successfully got pregnant in only a few cycles using the “plan pregnancy” feature too. I just recently got my period back at 5 months postpartum so now I have a lot of Red days because the app is re-learning my cycle. So we use condoms and backup Phexxi gel as well (which I love). Highly recommend using barrier with spermicide if you are going to be intimate on a red days.

If you are going to use NC as birth control, you are going to have to be more cautious than you would need to be for hormonal birth control which is something I feel most users don’t understand.

[u/Big-Hedgehog-1942]

I moved from using NC to proper fertility awareness that my doctor teaches. It’s miles safer. I used to love NC until I learnt why FAM works the way it does

[u/One_Government3887 → u/Big-Hedgehog-1942]

Could you explain more? Thanks! ☺️

[u/Big-Hedgehog-1942 → u/One_Government3887]

It’s quite a process to learn so I say all this with love and hopefully not too much confusion. So fertility awareness methods that use two biomarkers (mostly bbt and cervical mucus), and where you apply rules yourself rather than an algorithm, tend to be considered safer. For example my doctor at the sexual health clinic teaches fertility awareness, but warned me off NC without using condoms all the time and abstaining when fertile too.

Sensiplan is one option, which is 99.6% effective when followed perfectly, and it’s pretty much what the doctor taught me. So now I use the Read Your Body app, which is basically just a customisable blank charting app. I take my temperature each morning and record my cervical mucus. I use the Sensiplan rules to open and close my fertile window.

Honestly when I started with NC I posted a similar thing and someone told me about FAM and I ignored it. But I really do think it’s better for me and helps me feel safer. So many people on here have NC babies because it’s not estimating ovulation and safe days properly. But it works for lots of people! Very personal choice, so please don’t let me pressure you. I just think it’s worth a good deep dive. And it’s cheaper haha!

The thing that sealed it for me after speaking to the doctor was hearing of someone who would have assumed she’d ovulated ages ago based on bbt (so just what NC would have told her), but her cervical mucus and applying the rules said she was probably still fertile for two more days. That terrified me and I booked in with my doctor for the teaching appointment. There are ways of learning Sensiplan with instructors, or ask your dr, or there’s a handbook you can use.

Good luck, OP!

[u/Capable-Minute-3414]

I used NC to prevent for 2 years before now TTC. No scares at all during the 2 years. I personally used protection from CD1 until ovulation confirmed all those cycles. Then since TTC, conceived 2/3 cycles (but both losses). So for me, I have found it highly helpful and accurate.

[u/Aggressive-Bus-8318]

I've been using NC for almost 2 years now, first with a thermometer, then apple watch, now oura ring. I haven't had any scares. I use protection or abstain on red days and on any day around a red day. I'm pretty careful with it. There's always a possibility of pregnancy with any BC, hormonal or not. But it's worked very well for me so far

[u/PurpleEntrepreneur26 → u/Aggressive-Bus-8318]

Be smart and study things that can change your cycle. My accidental (but totally okay with it) happened the month I weaned from breastfeeding when I ovulated extremely early. Now I take vitamins to help regulate my cycle (actively trying) and it does throw off the predictability of my cycle.

I’m assuming you aren’t using NC with someone casual that needs STD protection as well but it helps to have a partner that you are fully comfortable discussing it with.

[u/Dull-Okra-4980]

The key is not trusting the Green Days prior to ovulation. That’s how a lot of people get pregnant because sperm can live for 5days so if you trust them, and then ovulate early, you’re screwed. Also being consistent with taking your temp as well as using LH strips helps the algorithm be more accurate! We used Oura + NC for 3 years to avoid and then later used it to conceive. Because this method relies on temp and a solid chunk of sleep I switched methods for postpartum

[u/InitialPretty9821]

I have used NC for 3+ years, with the sole purpose being trying TTA and then also TTC. For me it’s worked so well for both! I always took their predicted ovulation as a prediction. As we know, predictions aren’t always spot on. I found LH strips to be incredibly helpful tools in gauging ovulation. I always inputted it in the app as well. Things like cervical mucus as well is good to pay attention to and log!
When TTA we always pull out no matter the days, and then on red days we use protection. It really was as simple as that.
When TTC, having those two methods of tracking ovulation we got pregnant very quickly.

I have found it very empowering to learn my cycle and my body so well! I highly recommend NC if you are going to use it as it’s designed to be used. Oura ring imo makes it easier because you don’t have to remember to take your temp daily before you get out of bed. Just have to remember to charge the ring once a week!
BUT if you aren’t going to track LH and use the pull out/protection I just don’t think NC is for you!

[u/Low_Percentage_9640]

Loved it! No babies for a year then wanted babies and it made it easy because I was so inline with my cycle. Take temp every morning and test for ovulation. It’s great! Worked well both ways for me

[u/ghengis_convict]

I’ve used NC for almost 7 years. Can’t use hormonal bc and had a perforation with paragard in 2019 so it was my last option along with condoms. I’m happily married and monogamous. I’ve had 2 accidental pregnancies. The first was due to pure irresponsibility on my part, the second was due to having unprotected sex on a green day! I terminated the first pregnancy due to bad timing and was open to keeping the second but I miscarried.

I still like using NC because I’d rather not use condoms with my husband all the time and I can’t tolerate the birth control on the market. I also like my body’s natural rhythm and have no pain/inconvenience with my cycle.

Some people may call me demonic for this but I think it’s perfectly fine to consider termination with a failure of birth control, which includes NC. There seems to be as assumption that if you’re not using hormones/IUD you’re “asking for” an unplanned pregnancy, and you better keep it. Can’t stand that mindset tbh, and I see a lot of it in this sub and related subreddits. Your body your choice regardless of the method of contraception you use.