| Dr E.L.Billings | |||||
| Published with permission from the Bulletin
of the Ovulation Method Research and Reference Centre of
Australia, 27 Alexandra Parade, North Fitzroy,
Victoria 3068, Australia, Volume 26, Number 1, pages
14-15, March 1999. Ó Ovulation Method Research and Reference Centre of Australia
|
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| The
plain yellow stamp is used to record the basic infertile
pattern (BIP) of discharge before the fertile phase
begins. It is used in the luteal phase from the beginning
of the fourth day past the Peak when not dry. The woman
is infertile because the egg is dead and she will not
ovulate again in that cycle. The BIP reflects the cervical response to the hormonal patterns and it is for this reason that teachers and couples are trained to "think in patterns". It is incorrect to judge fertility or infertility by an isolated specimen of mucus. It depends on where the woman is in the hormonal pattern of her cycle. The BIP is a pattern where there is no cervical activity, either of dryness when the oestrogen level is very low or when it is slightly raised there may be a discharge observed which is of vaginal origin and is a common occurrence in those cycles when ovulation is greatly delayed. |
| The
fertile pattern is a changing pattern due to changing
proportions of mucus types in response to the increased
levels of oestrogen which climb to the oestrogen peak
just ahead of ovulation. The mucus Peak reflects the
progesterone rise as the oestrogen falls and thus
identifies the proximity of ovulation. In a cycle of 35 days or less, there is no time for the two BIP's to be observed, so that if dry days occur following menstruation, any change may signal ovarian activity and if conception is to be avoided the rule is "wait and see". Observation of three cycles of unchanging discharge is recommended in order to determine accurately the point of change. The discharge observed in cycles of this length is thought to be due to flakes of G mucus from the lower end of the mucus plug in the cervix which occludes the cervix at this time. |
| In
the long cycle where it is possible to observe 2 weeks or
more in the absence of bleeding, if the discharge is
observed to be unchanging over this time then it can be
declared to be reflecting the level of oestrogen which is
slightly above that level when dryness is observed. There
is no cervical activity. The yellow stamp is then used to
record the same subsequent unchanging pattern of
discharge. The characteristics of the discharge vary
considerably from woman to woman but for each woman will
remain the same from day to day. The origin of this
discharge is from the intermediate cells of the vaginal
epithelium which are large and spherical and are
surrounded by a glycocalyx. Under the influence of a
slight oestrogen rise, these cells slough off, are lysed
and discharged (Odeblad). Because the responsive cervix is the fmal requisite for fertility and must produce the various types of mucus to ensure proper sperm function, the woman will not be fertile no matter how the hormones operate, whether she ovulates or not, unless the cervix responds. When the cervix does not respond the woman will recognize a continuing pattern of infertility day by day. The vaginal wall will respond to a slight oestrogen rise and this will result in a BIP discharge and this will be recorded by the plain yellow stamp because the woman is recognizing her infertility. Days of infertility when the woman feels and sees nothing are marked by a plain green stamp both for the BIP before the fertile phase and in the luteal phase after the egg is dead. The only time when the coloured stamps with the imprint of a baby are used is during the count of 3 following the Peak. This system of recording, which has not changed, is shown in "Teaching the Billings Ovulation Method" Part 2. |
