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Creighton Model

When you know how your body normally functions, you can better understand when something isn't working right. With the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System, you can take charge of your reproductive health – with support from compassionate professionals at OSF HealthCare.

What is the Creighton Model?

The Creighton Model is an easy-to-use charting system that helps you track the different stages of your menstrual cycle. Looking at cues like cervical mucus can help you understand what's happening in your body.

Why choose the Creighton Model for natural family planning?

This system helps you better understand your body, identify health issues and plan your family.

When used to prevent pregnancy, the Creighton Model has an effectiveness rate of 96.8%. It helps you avoid pregnancy naturally without disrupting your hormones like other forms of birth control. It can also help with health before pregnancy, during pregnancy, after having a baby, while breastfeeding and before menopause.

The Creighton Model aligns with the Catholic faith.

How it Works

The Creighton Model teaches you to observe and chart specific biological signs, such as cervical mucus patterns, that indicate when you are fertile or infertile throughout your cycle.

After charting around six menstrual cycles, your provider will work with you to help you understand what those signs indicate, whether it's recognizing issues or knowing when you and your spouse are most likely to conceive.

How it Can Help

When you understand your menstrual cycle, providers can provide care personalized to your needs. It provides natural and practical options for managing your health, including:

  • Breastfeeding and care after having a baby
  • Finding out if there are problems with your cycle
  • Helping with infertility
  • Keeping track of hormonal health
  • Managing gynecological issues
  • Managing perimenopause
  • Natural ways to plan your family
  • Overall health information
  • Preventing miscarriages

It also helps trained NaProTECHNOLOGY™ providers find and treat issues related to women's health and infertility. Some of these issues include:

How NaPro Works with the Creighton Model

These two systems work together to help you manage your reproductive health. The Creighton Model gives you information about your fertility, helping you understand your body. NaPro uses the information collected from your Creighton Model charting to identify difficult-to-diagnose gynecological issues and offers advanced medical and surgical treatments.

The treatments are designed to correct your body and return it to its natural state. Together, they create a solid foundation for you and your health care provider to identify and correct reproductive health concerns.

What to Expect

You will meet with one of our qualified fertility care practitioners – a specially trained health care provider – for an introductory session. Your spouse is invited to attend, too.

The first appointment can last up to an hour and a half. You don't need to bring anything; you'll receive the necessary materials at the appointment. After that, you'll meet for an hour every other week until appointments are reduced to once a month. Appointments are flexible to accommodate your schedule.

After six months, you’ll be trained to track on your own, and the regular appointments will end. Our providers prefer to have six months of tracking before attempting to diagnose any issues.

FAQ

I am a single woman in my 20s, 30s or 40s. Can I learn to chart my cycle using the Creighton Model?

Yes! The Creighton Model is a great way to understand how your body works. It allows you to monitor your reproductive and gynecologic health.

Can my teenage daughter learn to chart her cycle using the Creighton Model?

Yes! The Creighton Model can be taught to any girl who has started her period. We ask that you bring along a parent or guardian for participants younger than 18 while learning this method.

Is the Creighton Model the same thing as the Calendar Method?

No. The Creighton Model is not just for tracking periods. It enhances your understanding of reproductive health. Unlike basic calendar methods, it considers various body signs, such as cervical mucus patterns, to determine fertility. This is particularly beneficial for those with irregular cycles, PCOS or hormone issues, as it can show ovulation and potential health concerns, regardless of period regularity.

Do I need to be Catholic to learn the Creighton Model?

No. The Creighton Model is available to all women and married couples regardless of faith.

I am married. Does my husband need to attend the introductory session?

For family planning, husbands are encouraged to participate in as many sessions as possible. However, their attendance is not required for couples to use the method for fertility or gynecological reasons.

Can this method predict when I will be fertile?

Yes, the Creighton Model involves tracking biological markers (bio-markers) necessary to understand a woman’s health and fertility. Days of fertility and infertility are easily identified, giving the method a 96.8% effective use rating to avoid pregnancy.

Can this method help diagnose other problems that I am having with my cycle?

Yes. The Creighton Model is a helpful diagnostic tool for a NaProTechnology™ trained physician. Creighton Model can help diagnose and treat many gynecologic problems, such as painful periods, hormone imbalances, heavy bleeding, ovarian cysts, premenstrual syndrome and others.  

Can I still chart my cycle using this method while I am breastfeeding?

Absolutely! We encourage nursing mothers to chart. Fertility (ovulation) can often occur before your first period after childbirth, making this method very useful for married couples who wish to plan time between children.    

I currently take birth control pills, and I am considering going off them. Can I still learn to use this method?

Yes. You can begin charting as soon as you stop using birth control pills.

How do I begin learning to chart using this method?

Contact a fertility care practitioner. OSF FertilityCare Centers are in Peoria, Bloomington, Ottawa, Galesburg and Rockford. Contact one of our offices and speak with one of our providers, or make an appointment to get started. You can begin charting after the first session.

Get Started

Ready to learn more about your reproductive health? Schedule an appointment with one of our Creighton-certified providers below—no referral needed.