BFing and TTC

[Mervs Mum]

Ok perhaps I should know this....

How does BFing affect TTC? We havent decided for sure but we're pretty sure that if we decide we're gonna have another then we'll start TTC after Xmas.

So how exactly can BFing affect your ability to get / not get preggers?
And why???

x

 

[Christine33]

i don't know the answer but just want to congratulate you on planning for another baby! how exciting! i would like another one close in age to Ali but i don't think i would cope very well with 2 very small children so we are leaving it until Ali is at nursery school.



Christine
X

 

[marley2580]

If you're fully BFing you probably won't concieve in the first 6 months, and probably longer. My periods came back about 4 months ago when Kaya was about 8/9 months, but they're still very different - I'm still waiting for my period 35 days after the last one. We're going with not trying, not preventing because my cycle is still haphazard.

 

[Mervs Mum]

Thanks Christine. I'm 34 now so we're either gonna go for it on stick as we are. I'd love to give birth again.

Marley - I think I'll be joining you in the not trying not preventing club.

 

[Ema]

i knew it wouldnt be long.....CONGRATS!!! You wont find me joining you tho NEVER AGAIN!!! X XX

 

[ryder]

It all depends on the individual, some people can and do get pregnant right away, some people BF can prevent ovulation. I know 2 people who got pregnant while BF, one the first month, the other month 4.

So for people relying on BF as contraception, it is not any guarentee.

Good luck with getting pregnant though!

 

[thelilbump]

Congrats on your 'not trying but not preventing' status!! Sorry i don't know the answer to your question though

 

[sam's mum]

How exciting!! I was worried that it would take me forever to get my cycles back to normal while breastfeeding Sam - I'd read so many things that suggested it might happen when he started sleeping through the night, or when he started on solids but I didn't have a period until he was 7 months old (but still feeding him 4 or 5 times a day). We're only on our 2nd cycle of TTC but after temping and getting through a worrying number of opks last cycle I'm pretty sure that I did ovulate - 3 days later than I used to (I had a fairly regular 27/28 day cycle before) but I had a nice strong positive opk and temps behaved exactly as they should, so I think things are almost back to normal except that my first cycle was 31 days

Good luck! x

 

[Miss Duke]

Its all down to the hormones hon!!! Bf causes an increase in progesterone, which makes your body think you are costantly in that phase between ov and af coming. At least I think thats right!!!

Everyones hormones are diff, so you may be fine!!! You aren't meant to rely on bf as contraception, so its defo possible to get preg whilst bf.

Good luck xxxx

 

[Miss Duke]

Meant to add that its fine to bf whilst preg, but that supply drops drastically after 20 weeks due to the colostrom coming in, but many people manage to continue bf, and indeed tandem feed both lo's. By that stage you may or may not be ready to stop bf, so just thot I would mention it!!!

 

[Bec L]

Ok perhaps I should know this....

How does BFing affect TTC? We havent decided for sure but we're pretty sure that if we decide we're gonna have another then we'll start TTC after Xmas.

So how exactly can BFing affect your ability to get / not get preggers?
And why???

x

What a great post! We are sort of thinking about a second already and also want to go with the 'not trying not preventing' thing after christmas. Fingers crossed it happens sooner with the second than the first! Good luck with not trying

 

[Laura1984]

YAY!!! How exciting but you would LOVE to give birth again... you can tell Hebe wasn't born in they countess hey em!!!!

Seriously tho Lise, go for it you know you wanna xxxx

Ps I dont know the answer to your question lol

 

[KandKsMama]

Ok this is as much as I know. Currently I am BFing and we are TTC and it is not sure if I am still pg or not... whole different story.

As long as once your PP bleeding stops and you do not bleed again after that, your baby only receives the breast on demand and takes nothing else by mouth (bottle, solids, paci) you can pretty much consider yourself infertile and not ovulating. Once you get your first PP AF you can almost certainly consider yourself fertile. My first DD was only nursed at bedtime and I got my first PP AF 4 weeks to the day of delivery and TTCed and conceived our second when she was 4 months old. This time around I did not get my first AF until I was almost 7 months PP (a friend of mine did not get her first until almost 19 months PP and did not O because she OPKed and checked for signs). Your best bet is to monitor your cycles (if you have it back) learn the signs of your O and go from there. Every woman is different and with BFing anything goes with your cycles. My first O was on 9/01 and I got first AF only 10 days later. Second AF I Oed on CD19 and got AF on CD33. This cycle I am almost certain I Oed on CD10 and have now gotten 3 faint BFPs but a BFN after that and have been spotting since 12DPO.
Best suggested is learn what your body is telling you during each cycle and be prepared that it might be easy to get pg again or it might take a while.

 

[Margerle]

The condensed answer is:

Prolactin- which allows you to breastfeed is an ovulation inhibitor. It does this to protect the food source of the first child.

Progesterone which is the pregnancy hormone is a PROLACTIN inhibitor which is why you only leaked colostrum during pregnancy and didn't outright make milk.

When a woman is breastfeeding a lot, there is a lot of prolactin coursing through her system. (Prolactin is released in nipple stimulation [sucking] and draining of the breast tissue.) This inhibits fertile hormones and the progesterone which would maintain a pregnancy. Once that baby is old enough to start eating solids, her body doesn't produce quite as much prolactin (baby isn't sucking as often, and might be sleeping through the night) and ovulation becomes possible physiologically.

I track my fertile signs as my method to avoid and achieve pregnancy and after this baby I had my first period 3 weeks or so PP. The next two cycles were anovulatory, and the last two have definitely been fertile. I exclusively breastfeed, but allow pacifier use since about 6 weeks. Baby does sleep at night for one 4-6 hour stretch and then in 2-3 hour stretches.

You can get OPK kits if you are unsure of when you ovulate (or if you are) and you might wish to start temping to see if you ovulate. You can sure try to watch your cervical mucous and position too if you're comfortable with that.

Hope that helps!

 

[Mervs Mum]

thanks ladies

when we were ttc Hebe I checked CP and CM but nothing else. I think if we'd got past a few more cycles I'd have added temping in and possibly OPKs.

Hebe has a dummy/paci sometimes and goes about 8-9 hrs between her last feed and first morning feed ATM so I'm not sure how that affects things.

Thanks again everyone xx

 

[Michy]

I don't have a clue, but so exciting, just wanted to say yay!

 

[jenstar]

The midwife warned me not to use BF as contraception, she said that after approx 4 hours of not BF your body could release an egg.... so if Hebe goes 8 hours maybe you'll have two...TWINS yay!

 

[Jem]

Just want to say, how exciting!!!! Good luck if you do go for it after xmas! x

 

[Margerle]

thanks ladies

when we were ttc Hebe I checked CP and CM but nothing else. I think if we'd got past a few more cycles I'd have added temping in and possibly OPKs.

Hebe has a dummy/paci sometimes and goes about 8-9 hrs between her last feed and first morning feed ATM so I'm not sure how that affects things.

Thanks again everyone xx

Have you noticed any regularity to your CM and/or CP? (Maybe you haven't been tracking it).

I noted with my anovulatory cycles, my body would gear up to ovulate, I would produce more and creamier CM but it would never achieve fertile quality... then it would just dry up and 10-12 days later I'd get AF. (10-11 days is my LP).

My cycle is still a good 10 days longer than it used to be... my body is taking longer to achieve that fertile threshold with this prolactin in my system. But it's getting better and better at is as evidenced by my last two cycles where I've had very normal fertility signs.

Most women have absolutely no idea when they ovulate or what their body signs are for it - so the general consensus from HCP to not use lactational amenorrhea as a birth control method is good.

But physiologically speaking, if you know your body signs, understand the fertile phases of your body, and have not gotten your period back the pearl index for lactational amenorrhea/ ecological breastfeeding is as good as tubal ligation at .5. (For the first 6 months).


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_birth_control_methods