The first step to basal body temperature (BBT) tracking is to buy a specific basal thermometer. They are relatively cheap and can be found in pharmacies or online stores like Amazon. This thermometer is more sensitive than a regular thermometer and can detect slight changes in body temperature. You should use it to check your temperature first thing in the morning, before getting up to go to the bathroom. Your BBT is the temperature of your body at complete rest, hence it is important to take it as soon as you wake up, before getting out of bed or doing anything else. Try to take your temperature at the same time every morning as your BBT can vary if you sleep in or get up earlier than usual. You want to record your temperature daily on a paper chart or in a fertility tracking app. Before ovulation, your BBT will be generally lower. After ovulation, there will be a slight increase, typically 0.5 to 1 degrees Fahrenheit (0.3 to 0.6 degrees Celsius) and it will stay elevated until your next period. Your most fertile days are the days just before your temperature rises. Over time, you’ll notice a pattern in your temperature changes. Keep in mind that things like illness, stress, alcohol, or disturbed sleep can affect your BBT. Consider any of these factors if you notice an unusual temperature spike. By charting your BBT for a few months, you’ll have a clearer picture of your fertility patterns which can help with both pregnancy achievement and avoidance.

Cervical mucus appears before ovulation. Estrogen levels rise in the days before ovulation and peak right before ovulation. The estrogen stimulates the production of mucus in the cervix. This mucus becomes clear, stretchy, and lubricative. This clear, stretchy, lubricative mucus is called Peak Type mucus, and any mucus that is not clear, stretchy, or lubricative is called Non-Peak Type mucus. Cervical mucus allows sperm to live longer. When there isn’t cervical mucus present in the vagina, the sperm are not bathed in the mucus and they die within an hour. After ovulation, estrogen levels drop and progesterone levels rise since sperm survival is no longer needed. Progesterone is important for maintaining a healthy pregnancy. 

Another option is to do a self-examination of your cervix. The changes you notice in your cervix can be noted along the BBT, cervical mucus days, and dry days. The cervix is closed, firm like the tip of your nose, and tilted toward the rectum on infertile days. As estrogen levels rise, cervical mucus is produced and the cervix opens slightly, becomes soft like your lips, and the position shifts straighter toward the opening of the vagina. These are subtle changes of the cervix in position, texture, and opening. When combined with BBT and tracking cervical mucus, they can help track fertile and infertile days. Cervical changes can be incredibly helpful for breastfeeding women or women who experience continuous mucus. 

I used Inito and found it to be a very helpful tool along with the Justisse method for tracking fertility windows. Using these tools allowed me to conceive in the first two months of trying! If you’re interested in getting started with fertility awareness, begin by tracking your BBT and cervical mucus. Many apps can help you track the data, but it’s always beneficial to seek guidance from an educated practitioner. These methods foster a natural, holistic connection with the body and provide long-term benefits.

Fertility awareness is more than just birth control. It is a path to understanding your own body. Whether you’re aiming to conceive or prevent pregnancy naturally, now is the time to take control of your reproductive health!



If you would like more guidance and evidence-based integrative medicine
to help with fertility or learn about your cycles, book a visit
with me. I would love to meet you and guide you on your journey. 

- Dr. Sushma Sadula

Ovulation test strips or ovulation predictor kits (OPK) can also add a layer of prediction. They detect a surge in Luteinizing Hormone (LH). LH is a hormone that spikes just before ovulation. It usually spikes 24-36 hours before an egg is released from the ovary. Detecting the LH surge indicates that ovulation is imminent and pinpoints the two most fertile days in a woman’s cycle. These two days are the best times to have intercourse and maximize the chances of conception. They are about 99% accurate in detecting the LH surge but they do not confirm that ovulation has occurred, only that it is likely to happen soon. 
Apps like Mira and Inito are advanced fertility tracking tools that help women optimize their chances of conception by tracking key fertility hormone levels like LH, estrogen, progesterone, and HCG in urine. They give a detailed breakdown of hormone levels which offer personalized insights into fertility patterns. They use AI Algorithms to predict the best days for conception. The more you use the app, the more accurate it becomes. They can confirm if ovulation has occurred and Inito can also confirm early pregnancy in some cases. You can download the monthly data and share it with your provider. They also allow you to log BBT and cervical mucus.

This is a guide for fertility awareness and natural family planning.