Marquette Method of NFP instruction now available at no cost to couples and single women

By DIANE SCHLINDWEIN
Managing Editor 

The Diocese of Springfield in Illinois is now pleased to offer one-on-one instruction to couples and single women in the Marquette Method of NFP (Natural Family Planning) at no cost.  

It has been a goal of the diocese to find women geographically dispersed in the diocese to act as instructors, so that couples can work with an instructor in their own area, although online instruction remains an option.

Free Marquette Method Instruction

One of the popular NFP methods is the Marquette Method. Currently, there are two instructors who are working through the Marquette certification process, and as part of this, they are offering free instruction to couples either virtually or in person. You will receive a free one-hour session of instruction on the Marquette Method of NFP. After charting for a month, you will receive a 30-minute follow-up session. If you would like to continue meeting with your instructor for support, you may do so at no cost for up to six months, and this is optional. You may also contact your instructor at any time with questions. To sign up or learn more about this opportunity, please reach out directly to:

Nicole Tenegra, MD
[email protected]
or 
Sarah Olson, MSN, RN
Lsarah.bradley@cathy(217) 853-9451

What is NFP? What are the Marquette and Creighton methods?

“A man and woman together can achieve pregnancy approximately six days every cycle,” said Dr. Stephanie Kafie, author of Totally Yours. “A couple is fertile for the day of ovulation and up to five days before that as well. Thus, with NFP, we work at identifying when a woman ovulates as well as the days leading up to ovulation. NFP involves using a woman’s natural signs of fertility also called biomarkers (such as cervical mucus, basal body temperature and/or urinary hormones) to help a couple avoid or achieve pregnancy.”  

The Marquette Method, which has recently been added for couples and single women to learn in our diocese, is a sympto-hormonal method which uses a fertility monitor to observe hormonal changes found in a woman’s urine. A woman uses a test strip to test estrogen and Luteinizing hormone (Lh) in her urine. The test strip is placed into a monitor, which will tell her whether she is fertile or not. Marquette can be a monitor only method or the couple can choose to include cervical mucus and temperature checks. 

In addition to the Marquette Method, the Creighton Method of NFP is also available for couples and single women to learn in our diocese. The Creighton Method is based on observations of cervical mucus. The woman relies on the characteristics of the mucus and there are clear guidelines for charting. 

“Doctors trained in NaPro (Natural Procreative) Technology use the information on a Creighton chart to diagnose and treat a wide variety of reproductive problems,” explains Kate Pruemer, who has been teaching the Creighton Model FertilityCare System for nearly 13 years.

Although many people think of using NFP during marriage, NFP instruction is beneficial to single women, too, which is why NFP is also known as fertility appreciation or fertility awareness. 

Pruemer, who is a certified fertility care practitioner at St. Clare FertilityCare Services and has been charting her cycles for 17 years, says that charting gives single women “a better understanding and appreciation of their body, which allows them to very accurately predict their next menstrual period and provides a lot of information about their reproductive health.”

Anne Marie Williams, a nurse, mom of five, and managing editor of Natural Womanhood, explains that when a girl enters the teen years, she can chart her cycle to learn what is normal for her body.

“Rather than band-aiding painful or heavy periods or other symptoms, which may be signs of endometriosis, with hormonal birth control, she should seek help from a doctor,” Williams said.

“The miracle of what our body goes through each month as women is often not understood fully,” said Marquette instructor Dr. Nicole Tenegra. “As a family medicine physician, I have conversations daily regarding my patient’s menstrual cycle. The understanding of their cycle varies widely.” 

NFP can be practiced by anyone and is based on a scientific approach. “There is a misconception that NFP is only for specific religions,” Tenegra said. “This is a method that can be practiced by anyone. It is a holistic method that gives you insight into your own body no matter what your beliefs. There are no synthetic hormones.” 

It is a myth that NFP is not effective at preventing pregnancy, says Pruemer, who has six children. “Modern NFP is very effective at both avoiding pregnancy and achieving pregnancy. It is not the outdated Calendar or Rhythm method. The effectiveness varies between methods, but most methods are close to 99 percent effective,” she said. “A lot of couples who use NFP have big families, but not because NFP is ineffective. Most NFP users with large families have chosen to have more children because they are regularly discerning God’s plan for their family and their fertility and have come to see that children are an incredible gift from God.” 

Tenegra, who has three children, says that Creighton and Marquette are both popular methods of NFP.  “As a family medical doctor, I liked the concept of tracking hormone levels and having scientific data leading me to be trained as a Marquette instructor. It is a personal decision to determine what fits best for you. We are very blessed to have instructors (for both methods) available through the diocese.” 

Pruemer explains the Church teaching on contraception and the benefits of NFP in a way that is easy to understand. “The Church teaches that using contraception to prevent pregnancy is immoral because it separates the unitive (bonding) and procreative (baby-making) aspects of sex by attempting to prevent conception,” she said. “NFP respects God’s plan for human sexuality because it does nothing to change the act of sex to prevent procreation.  Instead, NFP allows the couples to determine when they are naturally fertile or infertile during a woman’s cycles, so they can decide when to engage in intercourse or abstain.” 

For more information on NFP, please visit www.dio.org/family-life/natural-family-planning/. For further questions contact Gracie Ortiz, director of Marriage and Family Life at (217) 321-1124 or
[email protected].

NFP Providers for the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois

Creighton Providers:

Marquette Providers:

  • Susan Olson, MSN, RN Marquette Model, Decatur [email protected] (217) 853-9451
  • Nicole Tenegra, MD Marquette Model, Decatur [email protected]
  • Melissa Jones, BSN, RN Marquette Model,Jerseyville (618) 946-3262 [email protected] (has not completed training yet)
  • Colleen Maalouf, BSN, Marquette Model, Quincy (619) 395-0625  [email protected] (has not completed training yet)