Services
Introductory Sessions
The Introductory Session is a 90-minute presentation that introduces the couple to the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System, in a small group setting. Introductory Sessions are held regularly on the 2nd Thursday of the month at Queen of Heaven in Albuquerque and 4th Thursdays of every month, at St. Thomas Aquinas in Rio Rancho, from 7-9pm. The fee is $30 per couple, and registration is required. Private sessions are available on other days and times, by appointment only, for a fee of $60. Register by calling (505) 263-3509.
Long-Distance Virtual Teaching is also available.
Follow-Up Sessions
Learning the Creighton Model System requires attending an Introductory Session and a series of private follow-up teaching sessions. The reason for this is fairly simple. The system is tailor-made for use by each individual couple. These follow-up sessions are conducted by a FertilityCare™ Practitioner or FertilityCare™ Practitioner Intern, who are trained in a 13-month Allied Health Education Program, designed to help them meet the client’s basic and advanced needs.
Follow-ups are scheduled for days, evenings and weekends, as coordinated by the teacher and the woman/couple. The follow-up schedule begins with 4 follow-ups, 2-weeks apart, and then 4 more follow-ups are spread through the rest of the year. Each private follow-up session is $60, and lasts 1-1.5 hours. The Archdiocese of Santa Fe provides the program with assistance for low income women/couples, so some will qualify for a reduced fee.
Scheduled at regular intervals, attendance is essential so that the woman/couple may quickly develop confidence and proficiency, for maximum effectiveness. After the first year of instruction follow-ups are recommended every six to 12 months to ensure continued proficiency and eliminate complacency. Your FertilityCare™ Practitioner is also available for additional follow-ups or consultation between sessions should questions or need arise.
Materials are $45.
Long-Distance Teaching
Due to the specialized focus of our care, many women/couples seeking our services come from other cities, states and countries. While some long-distance clients choose to attend their appointments in person, appointments may also be arranged by www.skype.com. Contact us for additional information.
St. Joseph FertilityCare™ Center has 4 couples available to promote NFP to various groups. These couples not only use the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System for their own personal family planning, but they are also professionally trained to teach the System to couples. Presentations are available to speak to married & engaged programs, High School groups, confirmation classes, & RCIA programs. These presentations are approved by the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, and include the following topics:
- The Catholic Church’s teachings regarding married love.
- The spiritual, physical, intellectual, communicative, & emotional benefits of Natural Family Planning.
- The spiritual, physical, intellectual, communicative & emotional dangers of contraception.
- Elements of St. Pope John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body.”
- Elements of Blessed Pope Paul VI’s encyclical “Humanae Vitae.”
- Presenters personal journey to NFP.
What Can We Help With?
Infertility
The condition of” infertility” is not a diagnosis. It is a symptom of an underlying disease process. The Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System & NaProTechnology® work together to identify the cause of the infertility and to treat the problems.
Learning the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System is the first step in identifying the abnormalities in a woman’s cycle, and then NaProTechnology® is used by our physicians to evaluate and correct those abnormalities. The aim is to identify the underlying problems, treat them, and restore normal fertility, so couples can conceive…naturally.
The most important tool in this process is the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ chart. The woman is taught to monitor her signs of fertility, and the man records the most fertile sign of the day on the chart. The chart becomes a reflection of the couples times of fertility and infertility, and is an important a diagnostic tool. Just as a cardiologist understands an ECG and treats accordingly, so do the Medical Consultant and the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ Practitioner. The Creighton Model FertilityCare™ chart enables the physician & couple to precisely time hormone levels, and treatments. The chart gives the couple the ability to have intercourse during the times of optimal fertility, which we call “fertility-focused intercourse.” The Creighton Model FertilityCare™ chart enables the couple to understand what is happening, and to actively monitor and participate in their own gynecologic and reproductive health. The Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System is natural, low cost, and without harmful side-effects. In the treatment of infertility, it is the ethical and more effective alternative to artificial reproductive technologies, like IVF or artificial insemination….. and up to 80% of couples achieve a pregnancy within 12 months of treatment.
When you are ready to begin the journey of discovering the reason for your infertility, contact us, at (505) 263-3509.
Listen to “Made for Love” Episode 9: Love that is Fruitful in Infertility
Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) & Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD)
These are the 10 most common symptoms occurring in women the week or so BEFORE their period begins:
• Irritability (Anger)
• Breast Tenderness
• Bloating
• Weight Gain (water retention)
• Carbohydrate cravings
• Crying easily
• Depression
• Headaches
• Fatigue
• Insomnia
Most women have some premenstrual symptoms but 1, 2 or 3 days of mild symptoms can be normal, as your progesterone levels drop at the end of your cycle, before your period (menses) starts. Only if you have 4 or more days of 1 or more symptoms, do you officially have the medical condition of PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME (PMS), 4 or more days of PMS are an indication of low progesterone levels.
Depending on the symptoms and the severity, PMS can be debilitating and affect everyday life for women and their families. Severe PMS can be diagnosed as premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), which is described as a group of emotional and physical symptoms that start 7-14 days before your period starts. The emotional symptoms can be extremely disruptive to the woman’s relationships and job.
PMDD can include the list of PMS symptoms above, but also these additional emotional symptoms:
• Crying spells
• Agitation or nervousness
• Feeling out of control
• Forgetfulness
• Loss of interest in activities and relationships
• Panic attacks
• Paranoia
• Sadness
• Thoughts of suicide
Treatment of PMS and PMDD typically involves Progesterone replacement therapy during the luteal phase of a woman’s cycle. This is difficult for most doctors to provide, because they do not know how to identify this phase of the cycle. With the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System, the woman’s progesterone deficiency can be identified, and the progesterone treatment can be timed precisely in the woman’s cycle.
The Creighton Model FertilityCare™ chart records the woman’s most fertile sign of the day, and becomes a critical diagnostic & treatment tool, for both the Practitioner and the Medical Consultant. Just as a cardiologist understands an ECG and treats accordingly, so do the Medical Consultant and the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ Practitioner.
The Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System & NaProTechnology® can correct 95% of all PMS and PMDD, which is a miracle for those who suffer from it. When you’re ready to begin a life without PMS or PMDD, contact us at (505) 263-3509.
Long, Irregular Cycles
The most common reason for long, irregular cycles is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome – PCOS. This is a complex syndrome and it often is associated with infertility. In PCOS, ovulation occurs irregularly and if it does occur, it is often abnormal, thus decreasing fertility. This condition also increases a woman’s risk of endometrial cancer, diabetes, lipid abnormalities, cardiovascular risks and obstructive sleep apnea.
PCOS is an “estrogen dominant” condition, due to the multiple immature follicles created each cycle. This estrogen is left uncontrolled because the ovary is not producing enough progesterone. The Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System and NaProTechnology® can correct PCOS, regulate the woman’s cycles, optimize her ovulation, and restore fertility, so the couple can conceive naturally.
Even if you are not looking to conceive, the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System and NaProTechnology®, can correct your hormonal imbalance, regulate your cycles now, and prevent the risk of endometrial cancer, diabetes, lipid abnormalities, cardiovascular risks and obstructive sleep apnea.
When you are ready to correct your long, irregular cycles, and restore your fertility, contact us at (505) 263-3509.
Red Bird Ministries
Red Bird Ministries is a Catholic, pro-life/pro-family grief support ministry that focuses on bereaved families who have experienced child loss of any age and circumstance, including pregnancy loss through miscarriage and stillbirth, and after birth as an infant, child, adolescent, or adult. While we operate as Catholics our ministry serves anyone who has experienced the loss of a child. Learn more about them on their website here.
Recurrent Miscarriage
One miscarriage is too many, and typically the underlying cause of miscarriage is ignored until three babies are lost. Even then, the evaluation is minimal and the treatment is often insufficient.
The Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System & the NaProTechnology® approach to recurrent miscarriage is like no other.
We begin by tracking the woman’s cycle with the the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System. The Creighton Model FertilityCare™ chart records the woman’s most fertile sign of the day, and is a critical diagnostic tool, for both the Practitioner and the Medical Consultant. Just as a cardiologist understands an ECG and treats accordingly, so do the Medical Consultant and the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ Practitioner.
The woman’s charting patterns reveal the underlying cause(s), while the couple use the system to effectively avoid pregnancy. We then use NaProTechnology® to evaluate and correct the woman’s progesterone levels BEFORE the couple conceive again. This PRE-conceptional treatment provides the baby with an environment able to carry it to term. We also help the woman to maintain the pregnancy by monitoring progesterone levels and supplementing as needed during pregnancy.
When you’re ready to begin the journey of preparing your body in order to have the best outcome for your next pregnancy, contact us at (505) 263-3509.
Painful Periods
Mild to moderate menstrual “cramps” are the only “normal” pain you should experience during your cycles. Experiencing pain during your menstrual flow or mid-cycle is not normal and is usually symptomatic of something an underlying problem. Typically pains are only “treated” with chemical contraceptives, but not with us.
The Creighton Model FertilityCare™ chart records the menstrual flow quality, pains, time of fertility, and becomes a critical diagnostic & treatment tool, for both the Practitioner and the Medical Consultant.
When you are ready to find the cause and solution to your painful periods, contact us, at (505) 263-3509.
Avoiding Pregnancy Naturally
A woman’s menstrual cycle is an amazing event.
Each menstrual cycle has naturally occurring times of fertility and infertility, which can be easily identified when charting your cycle with the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System.
The Creighton Model FertilityCare™ chart enables a woman or couple to know if they are fertile or infertile on any given day. When using this system to avoid pregnancy, couples do not have sexual intercourse on the fertile days. Simple.
During the fertile time of the cycle, couples using the Creighton Model, find that their respect for each other, tenderness, affection and their communication improve. Relationships grow and become stronger when couples learn new ways of communicating and expressing their love for each other. Tenderness and affection are expressed during the fertile time, to maintain bonds of love, but intercourse is saved for the infertile times.
Couples work together to mutually decide when they will have intercourse. If it is a fertile day and you decide to have intercourse, there is a 76% possibility that you will achieve a pregnancy. If it is a time of infertility, the effectiveness of the system to avoid pregnancy is 99.5%.
When you are ready to learn how to avoid pregnancy naturally, contact us, at (505) 263-3509.