Can PP/bfeeding hormones cause your cervix to open? Or did I ovulate?

[zjande]

Sorry for the cross post. This is me trying not to obsess. I know you all know how that goes.

I'm only 5 mos PP. EBF & co-sleeping, tandem nursing, no PPAF at all yet, and didn't begin ovulating after my last 2 babies until they were over 12 mos. old. Plus I'm 36! All these things lead me to believe that I'm being totally ridiculous even entertaining the idea that I just ovulated.

But. Five days ago, I do my usual check in the shower & happen to notice what looks like EWCM. I've seen that before while breastfeeding & didn't take it very seriously (because of everything I mentioned in the paragraph above). That night husband & I DTD. We haven't bothered with BC yet as I think I'm protected with the LAM.

The next day I suddenly recalled the EWCM from the night before & spontaneously decided to check my cervix. It was way soft. WAY. I obsessively checked over the next 10 hours or so, & I swear, it was as open & soft as a cervix gets. I've charted for yrs, often going entirely by cervical position & CM because my kids are thermometer thieves. I've TTC & been successful just by reading my cervical position!

Ack. I'm sorry to be so wordy.

To summarize: Could I have seen obvious EWCM & then a very open & soft cervix the next day & it just been PP & breastfeeding hormones? I mean, does that happen?? Or is a wide open cervix (that lasted less than 24 hours, then quickly closed right up again) an unmistakable sign of ovulation?

I mean, with my EBF & fertility history & such, I'd just be so shocked if I just ovulated.

Thanks for any words or thoughts or advice or just for reading & secretly thinking I'm dumb for relying on LAM!!

[zjande]

Really? No one has a magical answer for me? I was really hoping for an exact explanation as to why my cervix did what it did, when it did!!

And now this is me trying not to go crazy. Is it working?

[gumblossom]

I'm not an expert, but it could go either way. It isn't impossible, even when exclusively breastfeeding, to ovulate. I know of a few women who were caught out.Oh - and your age is pretty irrelevant. I had my last baby at 41. 36 is young to me!

However, I notice, in myself, that my cervix has done alot of what you described, and I still haven't had a ppaf and my son is 19 months old, so I think the fluctuation of hormones can cause your body to "think" about ovulating many times before it actually happens.

I hope whatever happens, you are happy with the outcome.

[lesliesara63]

You're brave! But after both of my kids AF was back between 9-12 weeks. I didn't often check my cervix before dd2 was a year old & never with dd1. But I did get huge amounts of mucous before AF came back. Way more than a normal EWCM type amount. Hopefully your cervical position was nothing - if thats what you want.

[zjande]

gumblossum, I hope I didn't offend by my age comment. I only meant that with my history (not being fertile until at least 12 mos PP), I would think that my fertility would be returning later & later after each baby as I age, not coming sooner. YKWIM? But anyway, thanks so much for sharing your experience! How crazy that you too have experienced cervical changes but no ovulation. I had always thought that I could totally rely on my cervical changes to tell me exactly when I was fertile... now I feel completely thrown off! (Assuming that I didn't just ovulate). And thanks. I will be happy with either outcome. Although I would prefer not to have babies so close!

lesliesara, wow your fertility comes back soon! The only reason I decided to just follow the LAM was because historically I don't see the return of mine for over a yr. At least, not with my last 2 babies. And I always felt that my cervical position was so telling. The very 1st time it softened/opened after my 4th baby, I got pregnant. That's why I stopped even bothering to temp a few yrs ago. Now I'm all thrown off & confused.

thanks, guys!