Survey re: ovulation / menstruation

This topic came up in another post, but I would like to address it head-on.

Females among us:

Do you have a period? Is it regular?

Do you ovulate? How do you know - temperature charts, observations of mucus, "just a feeling," etc. -? (Note: having a period does not mean you are ovulating)

Have you gotten pregnant while eating any variation of a raw or low-fat diet?

This is very important to me, as we would like to have children in the near future and I have not had a period in over a year - coincidentally (?) since I started eating high raw. I didn't start with LFRV, and at first I was undereating and lost a fair amount of weight. I've gained some back, but maybe not enough. It's been about 5 months now since I started gaining weight back.

I am almost positive I am not ovulating, because I think I would have gotten pregnant by now if so. I should chart my cycles more regularly, but I stopped doing it after a couple of months with no changes in temp or mucus.

So - I would be very grateful to you for sharing your experience! Please share, no matter how long you've been raw / 811.

Thank you!

Tags: infertility, menstruation, ovulation

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Permalink Reply by Kristie on September 8, 2010 at 4:29am

Hi guys, I don't want to skew the focus of this thread but I think my query is in the same field...

I'm not fully raw, high raw most of the time but trying!

I have been getting depo-ralovera shots for abot 2 1/2 years (once every three months as a contraceptive). I started this long before I found 811, and now the more I think about it the more it worries me. I don't want to mess with my hormones....

I have had 2 condoms break in the past and it scares me to rely on it solely.

My mum had scarring from an IUD which caused big problems (that was a long time ago so perhaps they have advanced...?)

I don't get my period with the injections, although for the first time, in the last few weeks, I have been 'spot bleeding'. It is more mucussy than normal period flow and is a bit darker. I am going to see the doctor in a few days to see what she says but I have wondered if it is due to diet? A clean out or perhaps interference? Not sure if it is my body disagreeing when I fail to stay 100% raw, or it agreeing with my efforts?

My issue is that I do not want to get pregnant but do not want to interfere with my chances in the future.

(please let me know if you want me to start a new thread =D)

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Permalink Reply by Sara on September 8, 2010 at 12:24pm

Hi Kristie,

I'm not sure what would have caused the spotting; but I just wanted to recommend you look into the fertility awareness method as a form of birth control.

I really believe it is the safest, most natural method because you work with your body's fertility instead of against it. Plus you get to learn about your body, which I think is really cool! To me, it seems like the only way truly compatible with a raw vegan lifestyle.

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Permalink Reply by Kristie on September 8, 2010 at 7:59pm

Thanks sara, I will have a look. Everyone in 30BAD has such wonderful resources, its such a fantastic place to learn about everything natural.

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Permalink Reply by Raw Kiwi on September 8, 2010 at 8:08pm

I have been raw since Jan 09 and mostly low fat for 10mths. I have never missed a period, always regular and last about 3 days (they have always been short). I have ovulated every month, charted by mucus (the most reliable method) and am currently 5 months pregnant. I am 38 and this will be our 4th child

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Permalink Reply by Sara on September 9, 2010 at 12:53pm

That's wonderful, congratulations! Would you recommend getting a little more fat than is the norm around here? I have been considering making an effort to eat more avocado, nuts, and seeds. I would love your opinion.

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Permalink Reply by Raw Kiwi on September 9, 2010 at 1:17pm

Given your history I'd say for sure. Do not under eat, I think this is the most important thing. You may need to increase your fat intake to at least 15% for awhile. Keep in mind that many, many couples take a year to get pregnant. It is also really important to relax and not focus too much on trying to conceive (hard to do I know but maybe hatha yoga could help there).

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Permalink Reply by Sara on September 11, 2010 at 5:09am

Thanks Kiwi, I appreciate the tips =)

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Permalink Reply by M. Lee on May 3, 2012 at 1:14am

Long before I was raw, when I was trying to conceive my second child, this was key. I charted religiously because I had not received a period yet due to extended breastfeeding of my first. I finally got pregnant when I ditched the temps and went on vacation to Mexico. Came home with a pregnancy as a souvenir! So relaxing is a big part of it. Our bodies don't want to get pregnant when they are stressed. Good luck!

I just got off the pill and am looking for a reliable, less hormone method. My boyfriend is not too keen on fertility awareness. So I either need to educate myself a lot more on it or try to get an IUD through family planning (I don't have insurance and can't afford one through the OB/GYN).

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Permalink Reply by Noa Mati on September 11, 2010 at 8:42am

Hi Sara,
All the food advices are great and valuable and you will probably benefit from it.
I just wanted to add that the power of our MINDS is not something to take lightly... If you keep focusing on how much you want to conceive, you basically putting your attention on the fact you haven't conceived yet which puts an emphasis on what you are lacking right now rather than having.
First of all, you need to know that you can trust your body. It can feel the slightest doubt...
I didn't have my period for almost a year after getting off the pill and transitioning to the LFRV. You definitely feel freaked out at first (especially if wanting to get pregnant), but I kept telling my self that my body is strong, healthy and knows EXACTLY what to do. Once you let go of the pressure and allow your self to relax and trust, you create the space for your body to find more balance and harmony.
One of the challenges is to block other people's opinions... And people love to tell you what you are doing is crazy! Listen to your inner self... It knows.
Focus on what you have rather on what you lack with the vision of what you want to achieve...
If you haven't heard about Abraham-Hicks yet, I would highly recommend listening to some of their stuff. It
has changed my life...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqAznpwsXPU&feature=related

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Permalink Reply by Melanie Bouffard on September 16, 2010 at 6:25pm

Hi, I am very interested in this discussion too. I have been raw vegan for over a month now, and even though I kept some cooked vegan items (brown rice or cooked plain apples) to start with, I now dont. I am not 100% as stil eat nuts (ah these damn pasteurised almonds from california) but as near as is realistic in todays world I think .. I had a period one or two weeks ago, completeletly normal and for the first time in months PAIN FREE too. I am not sure what the future holds though as I remain on this diet/way of life. I read theories that periods are merely releasing toxins from the body, and that the blood flow is therefore an "abnormal" reaction of the body clearing up toxicity. What do you all think of this ? melanie

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Permalink Reply by Sara on September 17, 2010 at 4:59am

Hi Melanie,

I am very skeptical of the "menstruation = toxicity" theory. For me specifically, I am confident that I'm not menstruating because I'm not ovulating, not because I am so "pure." And I think the most likely explanation of why I'm not ovulating is that my body fat percentage is too low.

I don't want anyone to get the wrong idea - I love eating fruit, and I feel so great with this diet that I am very reluctant to change the fundamentals of it. My challenge is just to eat enough calories. Recently I've been aiming to really pack in the dates, and also eating more avocados (need to find a good source of nuts, I'm suspicious of the ones at the store).

But, I do believe that a lot of women following this diet have a similar issue. Eating such a low fat diet, plus getting a lot of exercise, does lead to a low body fat %. This is true of many athletes. This causes the menstrual cycle to cease - the entire cycle, not just menstruation - and I think the whole "toxicity" theory is an attempt to explain away that effect.

Now, I don't know if not having a menstrual cycle is a problem in and of itself, or only if you are trying to conceive. That would require some more research on my part.

I've been meaning to make a whole new post about this because I'd like to hear everyone's thoughts, as well. I recently read "Female Fertility and the Body Fat Connection," by Rose Frisch, which gave me a lot of things to think about.

Thanks for your contribution! If you don't mind, could you share your BMI? I'm just interested in seeing if my theory is true.

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Permalink Reply by Sandy on November 6, 2010 at 9:02am

hey Survey

great topic. i belive that like all animals we should not be bleeding. in the wild primates do not bleed and still ovulate and the moment they are in captivity they do as they are fed suboptimal foods. menstrual blood is the purest and anticeptic, it serves to remove the toxins from the uterus to protect the egg. i know many women who don't bleed and ovulate and have fallen pregnant. if you are worried about not ovulating there are ovulation monitors. my friend used one to fall pregnant, it tells you exactly when you ovulate by testing hormones in your saliva. it is like a lipstic that you lick. i have no idea where to get these things but i was told that they are very accurate.

i don't bleed either and i was aware that this was going to happen on a lfrv diet. i was very happy to have lost burden. i feel that i ovulate. a year and a half ago i travelled and developed a bread addiction, after a few months i had a persiod, i was devastated as i knew my body was cleansing from the poisoning i forced upon it.

so my view is that we definitly do not and should not bleed if we are eating clean, human foods and live a blalanced lifestyle.

thank you for letting me share

with love and peace

Sandy :)