Fertility Road Issue 03

INTERVIEW | Toni Weschler
or ovulation tests when they are fertile, this advice
seems dismissive and dumbed down.
“Doctors insult women who chart to get pregnant by
rolling their eyes,” notes Weschler. “Yet no doctor can
know a woman’s body better than she does.”
The charting pioneer, who lives in Seattle, believes that
it’s still the case that not enough of us are fertility-aware,
and this could well be at the root of struggles to conceive,
ironically despite all the high-tech options now on offer. The
low-tech, DIY methods of fertility charting are, Weschler
feels, by contrast a simple and reliable knowledge base.
“Of all of the fertility treatments developed in the past
few decades, IVF has undoubtedly helped more couples
than any other, which is extraordinary. But its appeal as
the end-all, be-all, is also insidious,” she says.
“I have major concerns about women being put through
this incredibly expensive and invasive procedure when they
have not been taught the most fundamental information
necessary to achieve pregnancy: the Fertility Awareness
Method. By charting their cycles, they may be able to conceive
on their own by simply learning how to identify their
most fertile phase, or potential problems that can be easily
rectified before moving onto something as invasive as IVF.”
So at what point should fertility charting take second
place to medical treatment like IVF? “If a couple is officially
diagnosed with a physical problem such as blocked tubes,
then no amount of charting is going to help them to conceive,”
says Weschler. “But in most other cases, charting
works beautifully in conjunction with fertility treatments
to help the couple take control of their medical management,
rather than feeling like it is all being done to them.
“Ultimately, if a couple has actively timed intercourse
perfectly for at least 4-6 cycles (for women 35 and over)
or 6-8 cycles (for women younger than 35), then it is
time to seek medical treatment. But the operative phrase
here is ‘timed perfectly’. That means that they know her
cycle so well that they know if she is ovulating altogether
and they have consistently timed intercourse around ovulation.”
Some women can’t be bothered with charting (“It just makes
me think ‘maths’’’, says Sophie, a 32-year-old photographer, in
horror), and the average man would rather eat his own fist than
check out his wife’s chart. But the practice appeals enormously to
women who like to have a plan.
Still, taking your temperature can too easily become the focal
point of each day. You irrationally find yourself looking at
your chart every few hours in case it tells you you’re pregnant, or
worrying over signs and symptoms.
Weschler stresses that charting should be about seeing “the
big picture, not obsessing over one single temperature or letting
your life get consumed by minutiae.” Still merrily ovulating, and
charting on paper, she sees charting, when done right, as a worthy
object of one’s attention and pride. “I’ve been charting 28 years and
my charts are a thing of beauty - I love showing them to people! Seeing
the patterns of what a woman’s body does is a fascinating privilege.
Still, at a certain point, you do have to get on with everyday life.”
So if she could give one piece of advice to a couple wanting a
baby, what would it be? “It would be to focus on her cervical
fluid,” says Weschler. “She should try to have intercourse every
Doctors insult women who chart
to get pregnant by rolling their eyes,
yet no doctor can know a woman’s
body better than she does.
day that she has wet, slippery cervical fluid at her vaginal
opening - or every other day if the man’s sperm count is low.”
Of course, fertility awareness doesn’t end with pregnancy
achievement. It is an invaluable tool for women dealing with troublesome
or irregular periods, PMS or menopause, and can be used
as a form of natural birth control. Weschler’s second book, Cycle
Savvy, educates teenage girls about the female reproductive system.
Hopefully, with her influence, the next generation of women
will grow up with a greater understanding of their bodies.
Taking Charge of Your Fertility by
Toni Weschler is published by Vermilion
at £20; however this British edition
of 2003 has not been revised like
the American one over the years,
and Weschler, who is currently busy
revising another American edition due
in 2012, recommends British readers
buy the more up-to-date American
version published by Collins in 2006
(available from Amazon.com from $8).
28 fertility road | november - december