I first met Chris in 2014 when I was a missionary at the University of Florida. One of my female teammates got engaged, and had scheduled an introductory session with Chris as part of marriage preparation. She invited me and our other female teammate to join her, even though neither of us were engaged yet. We all had a fairly surface-level understanding of NFP, even as trained Catholic missionaries, so we thought it would be good to know what we were talking about if we ever got into a conversation with students about family planning.

The introductory session rocked my socks. My eyes were opened to the magical intricacy of our reproductive cycles, and I kept thinking, “How have I never heard of this?!” I asked question after question and by the end of the session, with neither a boyfriend nor even the certainty that I was called to marriage, I was signing up for one-on-one sessions with Chris to learn more.

Chris’s passion for NFP was contagious and I looked forward to each meeting with her. Each time I learned more about the way God made my body to work perfectly in sync with a man’s body, and my respect for myself and the beauty with which I was made rose to a level I had never experienced before. Learning NFP transformed what used to be the worst time of my month to a fascinating re-discovery of the mystery of my reproductive cycle, and a true appreciation for the power of my female body.

I also learned that many of the symptoms that I had long-since come to accept as “normal-for-me” were in fact not normal for anybody! The clouds seemed to part in a Hallelujah chorus as for the first time I saw the potential of a pain-free cycle.

Charting with Chris’s help exposed irregularities in my cycles and highlighted some issues that could potentially affect my future fertility. By addressing the issues with supplements – really, just vitamins! – I was helping to heal my cycle so that if I were called to marry one day, I would hopefully not have to suffer the heavy cross of what appears to be infertility in so many women.

Addressing those issues had an immediate effect on my life. I had struggled with cyclical anxiety, depression and crippling cramps for over a decade thinking that it was normal. After the first month on the supplements that Chris recommended, I was shocked when my period came, because I hadn’t turned into a crazy person and for the first time, no cramps! I learned that so many of my symptoms were due to hormonal imbalances which could easily be treated with diet, exercise and supplements. My life was literally changed.

The impact that NFP had on the quality of my life, along with the absolute genius I discovered in how our reproductive cycles work made me the biggest NFP geek there probably has ever been. Every chance I had, I would tell someone about it. I shared my enthusiasm with the girls I mentored in FOCUS, and I have since learned that many of them decided to learn NFP from Chris as well!

Learning with Chris was amazing. I appreciated how firm she was with the standards, always encouraging that 100% score on the observational routine. I am now married, and am so very grateful for all that I learned from Chris as a single woman. I went into NFP with my husband with three years of charting under my belt and an intimate understanding of how my cycle works. We now go to a local practitioner in Michigan, but I am forever grateful for the foundation that I received from Chris Pampo.

I 100% encourage single women to learn to chart! Whether or not you ever get married, you will benefit from knowing your body so intimately. This is knowledge of the true power of femininity and it’s so beautiful!

– Afton B. –