We know that many people think about what is the "best" way to chart their menstrual cycle if they do not want to take birth control pills or other hormonal contraceptives to avoid pregnancy or want to get pregnant. Charting the menstrual cycle is, in addition to this, a fantastic tool for gaining a greater understanding of yourself and your body. Today you will learn about the justisse method, which is a tool to get a handle on your menstrual cycle.
In which situations can I benefit from the Justisse method?
So, the justisse method is simply a tool you can use to chart your menstrual cycle according to your own needs. There are many different reasons why you might want to start charting your menstrual cycle, but the most common reasons are as follows:
- That you want to get pregnant
- That you want to avoid pregnancy
- Keeping track of your health (use it as an indicator of your health status)
- Avoiding hormonal preparations (either for your body or for the sake of the environment)
In the Justisse method, a so-called "sympto-thermal" method is used, which means that you map your menstrual cycle using a calendar (paper or app), you look at your secretions and measure your basal body temperature . The Justisse Method was founded in 1987 by Geraldine Matus who aimed to spread fertility understanding to anyone who was interested in understanding their own fertility and body better.
What does fertility understanding really mean?
Fertility understanding means that you read your body and start from fertility signs, i.e. signs that show whether you can potentially get pregnant or not day by day. There are several different types of fertility understanding methods such as the Billing method, Sensiplan and the calendar method. What all these methods have in common is that they are about studying different kinds of fertility signs to keep track of your menstrual cycle.
The different methods of understanding fertility apply different rules about how to chart your menstrual cycle to know when your fertile window opens. The fertile window characterizes the days of the month when you can get pregnant. When it comes to learning fertility understanding methods, a good first step is to start reading about the menstrual cycle and fertility understanding and to start noting your own observations of what happens in your body during the month. If you want to fully learn any method, such as the Justisse method described below, and be able to apply it to your own goals, it is best to go to a tutor who will help you interpret and chart your signs.
Secretion
Part of charting where you are in your menstrual cycle involves looking at the absence and presence of discharge . In the Justisse method, secretions are looked at in two different ways. One is the "feeling" ("sensation") and the other is "secretion" ("mucus"). This routine needs to be done both before and after toilet visits or shower visits.
So how do I get a handle on my secretions in practical terms? Well, you get that by:
– Take a piece of toilet paper, fold the paper flat and wipe yourself from the vulva (front) to the anus (back). The paper will move over an area called the "perineum" or better known as the "middle yard" (area between the vulva and the anus). You will get to decide if you have a dry feeling, a creamy/lotion-like feeling or a slippery feeling.
– After you determine the feeling, observe what you have on the paper and try to pick up secretions with your fingers and look at it.
The closer you are to ovulation, the more secretions you tend to produce. There are different kinds of secretions where both amount, color and texture vary and can indicate different things (to read more about secretions, read link here).
Basal Body Temperature (BBT)
Another part of charting where you are in your menstrual cycle involves measuring your basal body temperature. How does this actually work? Well, when you wake up after at least 5 hours of sleep in your body, you can measure your basal body temperature with a thermometer. To get the most accurate results possible, take the temperature every day for one to two menstrual cycles to get an idea of how your temperature usually varies during the course of the menstrual cycle.
What you do at night and the night before can affect the result, so it is important to keep track of things that play a role in the form of whether you slept poorly, woke up often, urinated or drank alcohol. All these factors have an effect on your temperature. Allergies/diet/diseases can also affect your temperature, which is important to know. For example, many people can discover that they have problems with their thyroid gland via this route. Here you can read more about how to measure your body temperature correctly,
Cervix position
The third part of charting your menstrual cycle is about getting to know your cervix, which is your cervix and is located at the top of the vagina. The Cervix moves and opens during different parts of the bike, which is a good addition to keep track of where you are in your bike. You can read more about the cervix here.
The mapping
If you choose to take a basic course in the Justisse method, you will get access to paper maps where you map your cycle by writing down all your observations during the menstrual cycle such as your basal body temperature, the absence or presence of secretions and whether the cervix is open or closed if you are also tracking the. Some people find it easier to use an app and then we usually suggest Read Your Body.
So to make it extra clear for you: when you chart your menstrual cycle through the Justisse method, you do it by: charting the cycle in an app or paper chart, observing your secretions and measuring your body temperature.
All bodies are different
An important aspect to keep in mind is that your menstrual cycle is unique to you and is affected by a variety of factors such as your lifestyle and living situation. All mapping, patterns, secretions and temperatures are different from body to body. It can also look different in different phases of life, therefore it is important to look at everything that happens in real time . What is my body reacting to right now? How is it that?
Understanding your own body also provides a wealth of information on how you may need to support your body. Elements such as stress, dietary changes, exercise, sleep and mental health will make an impression on your menstrual cycle. By understanding fertility, you can gain a better insight into how your hormones work and what they signal. This means that you can tailor your own mapping to your own needs.
This is a guest post by Selma Allerbo, who is a trained HRHP in the Justisse method and a teacher of biology and English. You can find her on Instagram @fertil.energi and at fertil.energi@gmail.com . If you are interested in learning the Justisse method, a course starts at the beginning of November for those who are interested. Any opinions expressed are the writer's own.
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Understand your menstrual cycle - understand your secretions
Understand your menstrual cycle - track body temperature
Understanding your menstrual cycle - cervix
How do I track my menstrual cycle after birth control pills?
