Anyone breastfeeding and ttc?

[dinosaur2010]

I know there's the mega sticky thread for ttc/tandem feeding etc, just thought I'd start a thread and chat to a few others in my situation.
Did this last time and loved hearing about everyone getting their bfp then pregnancy chats!
As you can see from my sig, my second dd is only 6 months and I'm still exclusively bf although starting to introduce little tastes of solids every so often.
No period back yet although been getting a lot of ewcm and then the odd twinge and achey legs which makes me think my body is gearing up to do something!
With dd1 my periods returned around the 7 month mark when my LO was sleeping through the night and on regular solids. I managed to get pg by the time dd1 was 12 months (hoping for the same again)

I'd like to hear from some others in the same boat of ttc while breastfeeding and keep each other updated!!

 

[ready4num2]

I am!!! DD2 is only 9 weeks and we were initially NTNP and decided just to actively try. I surprisingly got my first AF last week. I'm going to just track my CM for now I guess.

 

[bcos21]

My son just turned a year and he is still nursing. No period yet but oh and I have been ntnp the entire time. Excited at the thought of conceiving #2

 

[pinkpassion]

We are ttc now, no pp period yet... still exclusively bf, DD is 4.5 months old! I'm worried I won't get my period back for a while, DD has been sleeping through the night for 8 weeks now (11.5-12 hours) and I only pump twice daily and nurse her once and that provides enough to feed her all day.. I would think with only stimulating myself three times daily, I'd get my af back already!

 

[LunarSpoon]

We are! My period did reappear postpartum despite EBF (only very very occasionally supplementing with a bottle,) but my cycles have been really weird and short. Still nursing every couple of hours at night and during the day, so I'm no super optimistic about our chances . Our son is a little over 15 weeks now and we would love to conceive by the time he is 9 months!

 

[Snufflepop]

Me!! My dd is just coming up to 7 months and we are aiming for an 18-20 month age gap. She still bf's around 8 times a day and I am blw so starting solids but she isn't really 'eating' much at all.

I had my first pp AF at 6 months and just waiting on AF now. Looks like my cycles are still pretty messed up though as I used to be 28 days and v regular before dd but now cd 31 and no AF (and no bfp!) so looks like it's still a bit crazy.

Hopefully things will level out soon enough. I really hope to get a bfp before I go back to work in March so that I only go back for a short time- they are gonna love me!!

Will be good to chat to everybody and get our bfps together!

 

[dinosaur2010]

For those who are waiting for af to regulate- I reccommend vitamin B6 ( do a bit of googling about it) it's for hormone balance- I got my bfp the month I started taking it- I think it lengthened my luteal phase!

 

[dinosaur2010]

We would like an 18-24 month age gap too
There's 21 months between. My girls and it's perfect!!

 

[AliKitts]

i would like to follow this thread

 

[SarahBear]

I conceived the first month I tried, while breastfeeding but Violet was 20 months old. Six months is still pretty early in terms of it forcing your current nursling to be weaned prematurely. It also doesn't give your body a full chance at recovering between pregnancies. I understand that most people don't let their children wean naturally, but in terms of your own body, I'd still wait a bit longer. Part of the reason conceiving is difficult while you're nursing is that both pregnancy and nursing take a lot out of your body. The body needs some time to replenish its stores of vitamins and minerals.

 

[pinkpassion]

Just because you get pregnant during nursing doesn't mean you have to wean, there are plenty of women who nurse and are pregnant and then go on to tandem breast feed!! As far as waiting, that's an individual choice, I eat very healthy, lots of fresh home grown veggies and fruits and fresh meat/eggs.. my baby is healthy and so am I... like I said it's happened before and all been fine, I trust my body!!

 

[SarahBear]

Just because you get pregnant during nursing doesn't mean you have to wean, there are plenty of women who nurse and are pregnant and then go on to tandem breast feed!! As far as waiting, that's an individual choice, I eat very healthy, lots of fresh home grown veggies and fruits and fresh meat/eggs.. my baby is healthy and so am I... like I said it's happened before and all been fine, I trust my body!!

If you notice my ticker, you'll see that I am one of those who is choosing to nurse through pregnancy . I suppose in a way you're right about not weaning, but it does dry up half way though. A baby or young toddler still needs milk. So if it's drying up, you're essentially weaning them. The baby/toddler can still return to nursing, but there's a period of "weaning" regardless of whether or not the baby/toddler returns to nursing afterward.

This was actually the biggest factor in me NOT aiming for an 18-24 month age gap. I didn't want to interfere with my daughter's nursing, especially in the first year and a half of her life. My pregnancy is interfering with her nursing at this point and I feel a little bad about it, but she's more emotionally and physically ready for that sort of a change than a baby or young toddler would be.

Disclaimer: I'm not saying you can't wean or that you're a bad person for doing it or something. I'm just saying it's something to consider.

 

[dinosaur2010]

Personally I did not enjoy bf after one year so plan on weaning in April regardless of being pregnant or not!
If I'm not pg by then I have a wedding in May and I'm looking forward to not being pregnant or breastfeeding for the first time in 3.5 years!! Yey bring on the champers!!

 

[pinkpassion]

But I don't understand why you are saying it WILL dry up, like it's a fact that it happens to everyone?! There are plenty of women who continue to nurse all the way through, doesn't mean mine won't dry up , just means There's a chance either way!
I think anyone who decides ttc while nursing a baby has considered all the possible pros/cons, I at least know I have, and I have still chosen to ttc.... Im glad you got pregnant after the first month trying, but it's not the case for me, I tried for 3 years with 3 losses before getting my DD.. and I may have a lot of struggles this time around too... so Thank you for your concern, but Ive made up my mind and Ive considered every possibility!!

 

[Ganton]

I'm breastfeeding my 8 minth old and am very tentatively ntnp at the moment. I think we will actively TTC in a couple of months as I'd ideally like a gap of 20 months plus. There are 20.5 months between my 2 boys and the idea of a significantly shorter gap than that scares me slightly.

I stopped feeding my DS1 at 8 months, then got my first AF 6 weeks later, then became pregnant on my second pp cycle (first month trying). I'd like to feed DS2 until more like 10-12 months, so there could be a slightly larger gap if I don't ovulate until after completely stopping breastfeeding again.

 

[dinosaur2010]

I'm breastfeeding my 8 minth old and am very tentatively ntnp at the moment. I think we will actively TTC in a couple of months as I'd ideally like a gap of 20 months plus. There are 20.5 months between my 2 boys and the idea of a significantly shorter gap than that scares me slightly.

I stopped feeding my DS1 at 8 months, then got my first AF 6 weeks later, then became pregnant on my second pp cycle (first month trying). I'd like to feed DS2 until more like 10-12 months, so there could be a slightly larger gap if I don't ovulate until after completely stopping breastfeeding again.

I know what you mean about the age gap thing, but then I think to myself - will a couple of months less really make that much of a difference?!

 

[Ganton]

I'm breastfeeding my 8 minth old and am very tentatively ntnp at the moment. I think we will actively TTC in a couple of months as I'd ideally like a gap of 20 months plus. There are 20.5 months between my 2 boys and the idea of a significantly shorter gap than that scares me slightly.

I stopped feeding my DS1 at 8 months, then got my first AF 6 weeks later, then became pregnant on my second pp cycle (first month trying). I'd like to feed DS2 until more like 10-12 months, so there could be a slightly larger gap if I don't ovulate until after completely stopping breastfeeding again.

I know what you mean about the age gap thing, but then I think to myself - will a couple of months less really make that much of a difference?!

Possibly not, I suppose I just feel more comfortable with what I know. When DS2 was born, DS1 wasn't really talking much and was only just starting to follow instructions. I found the first couple of months quite tough and wondered if we'd made a 'mistake' with the age gap. After 2-3 months though, I felt like everything was really settling down and I put that down to the fact that DS1 was becoming more independent and more capable of making his wishes known. However, it could just be the case that the first few months with 2 kids is tough, no matter what the gap, and things would have settled down even if we'd had a shorter gap. Or maybe it was having another baby that made DS1 have to become more independent. I like the idea of a slightly longer gap as I feel like an extra couple of months around the 18-24 month mark are quite significant in terms of development, but I also want to keep my kids close in age. With the first 2 pretty close, I don't want a significantly longer gap to the third.

If I were to become pregnant now, the gap would be less than 17 months, which seems just a bit too short. Once over 18 months, I think I'd feel much more comfortable.

 

[dinosaur2010]

I actually feel exactly the same! I think once the gap gets passed 18 months we are safe! I definitely don't want my 2 girls growing up close and then a third being left out!
Im quite up for having another baby next year (I'll be 30) and then by 31-32 being done with the baby stage and enjoying the children.

 

[Ganton]

Likewise, if I have a baby at the end of next year, I'll be 31 and it's nice to think about watching my young family settle down and have fun with them through my 30s. I think I change my mind daily about whether I'd be happy to get pregnant next month or whether I'd rather wait another 6 months or so. I don't think there's ever a perfect gap so I'd definitely look at the positives of whatever gap we may end up with. One thing that I keep thinking about is that if we had a similar gap again (or maybe a month longer) then the baby would be due at Christmas. I'm not sure whether I like that idea or not. Both of my boys were spring/early dinner babies, which was lovely for early maternity leave, so I don't know what it would be like to have a winter baby.

Sorry for taking over your thread with my rambling thoughts, but it sounds like you may be thinking through some of the same things. Whatever we end up with, I know we'll make it work.

 

[kayleigh_jane]

We've just started TTC, and I'm still breastfeeding my 14 month old. Am a little bit concerned though as my period hasn't returned since giving birth... Am really hoping I don't have to stop bf-ing in order to conceive!