After 11m BF my period has just started (today!) - very sad and need advice

[Tarkwa]

My little boy is almost 11 months now and has been breastfeeding since he was born. We had supplemented with some formula in the past (when he got teeth at 5.5m had started biting my nips!) until we discovered he was allergic to dairy (he is not lactose intolerant). We went straight back to 100% BF. We got referred to the hospital and were given some special formula if we needed it. As my milk production was lower we gave the formula to him in his breakfast cereal and everything was fine until last week when he was poorly. He was suffering from vomiting and diaohrea and barely ate or drank anything during that time. He'd been ill before and we;d had no problems with booby juice levels but when he got his appetite back I didn't seem to be able to give him enough . He'd jump from one boob to another and then back again like he was deperate for milk. We started supplementing with the new formula and then give him some boob to help him to sleep. After he was in bed I would pump to help get my milk flow back up but the results haven't been great (compared to what I used to be able to express). Well, last night just before I went to bed I visited the bathroom and after wiping there was...TMI ALERT...some darker discharge on the tissue. I instantly realised it was the start of my period and went to bed hoping I was wrong. When I went to the bathroom first thing this morning there it was; bright red all over the tissue. I feel really sad that my peroiods have returned; I haven't had one since Jan/Feb 2011! I don't feel ready to stop BF - I really enjoy doing it, but DH doesn't think I should really BF after he turns one but I have said I only want to stop when we are both ready, but I'm not...yet. I'm not taking any contraception so that's not to blame. I did have a smear a few weeks ago now, but don't think that is related. I tried calling the BfN helpline at the weekend for some advice but they couldn't put me through to anybody so I gave up on that. I have a couple of questions, some are probably very stupid but I just want some answers.
1. Now that my periods have returned does this mean the end of BF? Extreme I know, but my friends that were BF and got their periods back no longer BF. 2. Did anyone else struggle to BF once their periods returned?
3. Will pumping after my milk has stopped flowing help to up my levels again? I managed to get about 40/50ml last night after my son had some boob and went to sleep but he had just drunk nearly 200ml of formula!
4. Has anyone else got a babe with a dairy allergy and had the same problem; if so what worked for you?
5. Does lying on your front, squashing your boobs into the mattress not help either? One friend said she would squash her boobs flat to prevent leakage when her LO was younger. She's now FF and I just can't help thinking there's a correlation.
I'm not returning to work or putting him into nursery so I'm with him all day long. He currently has boob after breakfast when he's just about to go down for his morning nap, early afternoon, just before his afternoon nap, bedtime and whenever he wakes in the night so a minimum of three times, up to about five times if he wakes in the night).
Thanks for reading this Any advice would be appreciated
xxx

 

[lynnikins]

hun relax ive had my period back since AJ was 6 months and he continued to BF fine , its normal for supply to dip a bit prior and during your period just keep feeding , the feeds will probably be longer but if you keep up your fluids and dont change anything and keep offering breast first then after your period ends your supply will recover.

I have a friend whos son is CMP intolerant and she bf till he was 2 alongside using oat milk or goat milk as he is also soya intollerant there is no reason to stop bf till you and your LO are both ready, normally at a yr old children are weaned onto cows milk so since that isnt really an option for you then id stick with BF if your happy with that.

 

[RaspberryK]

I can't do a long reply but there's no need to stop bf due to af return. Some people find they have a slight decrease in supply around af but just keep well hydrated and eat well.
Best way to increase supply is put baby to the breast, how much you can express is not an indication of supply. If you want to increase you can express at the same time of day for a few minutes after your milk has stopped flowing.
There should be a cmpi thread somewhere around here.
Xx

 

[SarahP13]

In my experience AF had no effect on the amount of milk I produced. My period came back when my DD was 4/5 months old, I fed her until she was 14 months old and always had a great supply. It doesnt meant the end of breast feeding for you!

Not sure if there is any science behind lying on your front/squashing your boobs and milk production either. Pressure helps it to stop flowing but can't imagine it would effect your supply- I always slept on my front.

Lastly, I had to top up with formula when DD was newborn as my milk didn't come in until day 8 (following emcs & massive blood loss). I pumped regularly to encourage the milk to come under the midwives direction, I believe the more you feed/pump the more milk your body will produce.

Hang in there and don't give up too soon!

 

[KerryGold]

Anecdotally I have heard that the first couple of AFs hit your supply the hardest then the issues ease off some. This is definitely true for me. The first AF I had (when LO was 8/9 months) my supply really took a beating and she got mad and bit me when the milk ran out but now it doesn't even seem to be noticable.

My LO is 16.5 months and has a feed or 2 a day. My hubby used to think she should stop when she turned 1 but now he sees that she's still little and she still needs it and all the good it does (she's been ill recently and booby juice was all she wanted and I loved being able to make her feel better and help her get better!) I think people have 'set' ideas ahead of time but when the time comes they see it's a gradual process and LO is no bigger the day they turn 1.

So, you definitely don't need to stop BFing but you may see some impact on your supply. Feed, feed, feed is the best advice and hopefully the impact will diminish as you get more AFs.

A LOT of BF mums would be jealous you got so far with no AF!

xXx

 

[roomaloo]

Don't worry mine came back at 7 months and my baby still feeds fine. And I'm pregnant now too so double bonus!! My girl has cmpi and on the odd occasion I'm out and she needs a bottle we have prescribed cow and gate pepti junior which doesn't cause the rash or vomiting that normal formula does. Good luck with it all

 

[summer rain]

Same here, my period came back while BF 3 out of 4 times and had no effect on feeding, I have even got pregnant while BF twice, with my second eldest he didn't like the slight change in taste and it seemed to dramatically reduce my supply overnight but I'm 9 weeks pregnant now and my 21 month old seems to be BF more than usual xx

 

[Tarkwa]

Thanks ladies, it's been really helpful seeing your replies and hearing that BF after AF has returned doesn't really matter. What's helped the most is hearing how it does affect your supply - I'm hopeful that things will return to normal very very soon! Thanks again ladies
xxx

 

[Rigi.kun]

I got my period back when my babe was a month old. He's now almost 4 months old and no problem with BF. It's supply and demand system. If babe demands you can supply

 

[Tarkwa]

I got my period back when my babe was a month old. He's now almost 4 months old and no problem with BF. It's supply and demand system. If babe demands you can supply

Oh, he demands LOL!