When has fertilility come back for those who CLW? - Page 3

[caroline9]

DD was nursing on demand, and had had about 1 T of mashed potatoes at 7.5months when AF retuned. Then I had a few long cycles and LP defect, but was able to get pg with #2 when DD was 16 months. I nursed all through pregnancy, and now DS is 11 months old and i O'd at 10.5 months and got my pd back 6 days later. And DS nurses all night long. So I am not exaclty fertile in that the nursing is still affecting my luteal phase enough that I probably couldn't hold onto a fertilized egg, but tandem nursing I got my pd back a little later but still earlier than I expected wih the amt. of nursing going on right now.

It all seems to vary so much b/c I hear different numbers all the time. In terms of relatives I have no gage, my mother did not breastfeed any of her children and my sister only bf 2 of her 3 children for a few months.

[Mama Esq.]

AF returned after 29 months. I am a full-time WOHM, but we cosleep. Luckily (since I am considered "advanced maternal age" at 37) we got pregnant again within 2 months of AF returning. I wonder if there is a correlation betwen age of mother and return of AF? I am betting that AF is slower to return for us old folks, but I might be wrong.

[Rockies5]

I usually have a return of fertility within 3-4months of birth (I often have cycles every 4 weeks after birth too). Yes, even co-sleeping, no pacis and nursing at least once and hour

my first 2 are 17mos apart, second 2 are 28mos apart (I used fam to avoid prgnancy until we were ready..we concieved when #2 was 18mos, but then m/c and were pregnant again--still nursing then--a few cycels later) last two are 21mos apart. I've been nursing for nearly 8yrs. Some of the babies have weaned durring later pregnancy, which I don't consider CLW because I think they'd have continued to nurse if their milk hadn't changed.

[4evermom]

AF returned at 6 months with ds nursing CONSTANTLY. My mom had the same 6 month pattern with her 7 babies. My sister had a much longer time with her 3, between 12 and 18 months. All of us nursed on demand.

[Past_VNE]

With babywearing, cosleeping, complete eco. BF to a T and all that, I got my AF back somewhere right around 6 months, and it was probably two cycles until I was fertile again, from my estimate.

[SereneBabe]

Maya was over 2, I think she was closer to 2 and a half when I finally got my period back. My fertility has been returning more slowing (cervical fluid has finally returned, Maya will be three in July)...

--Heather

[krankedyann]

We do CLW/EB, cosleep, no paci, the full bit. Each time my cycles have returned at 9mo pp. I ovulated for the first time at 17 months after my daughter was born, and she was nursing every 2 hours round the clock, eating very little solids. So they're 25 months apart. After my second baby, I ovulated the first time at 10 months, and he was nursing every 4 hours plus a long stretch at night plus my daughter was tandeming. I lost that baby, got pregnant with twins in Dec and lost them as well. But I have a history of miscarriage and hormone issues.

My daughter seems to have weaned at 3y7m, since she hasn't nursed in 2 weeks. My 17mo is still going strong, every 4 hours during the day, and nurses more often at night now.

My mom didn't nurse me, and I have no siblings. I'm overweight.

[coloradoalice]

I had my first period post-partum with dd at 10 months. She was EBF. I got pregnant immediatley with ds. I am now almost 5 month pp with him and I have had one period about 10 weeks pp, and haven't had another. I am assuming I am fertile now, even though he is EBF.

[JJ'sMom]

First PPP was at 19-20 months. We are CLW. He still nurses at night and was nursing about 5 times in a 24 hr period. I did not nap with him every day for his full nap, just the first and last 30 minutes while he sleep-nursed.

DS is not a huge eater though. I got preg with #2 when DS was 21 months and his nursing has increased!!!

I am 5'5" and 140 lbs.

[KarenEMT]

DS#2 was CLW (I only made it 4 mos with DS#1). I got AF back at 7 months when he was still EBF, round the clock, completely on demand. I usually feel myself ovulate, and I felt that with my second AF when he was 8 months old. I went on the minipill at that point because I do not want children spaced too close together (especially with DS#2 being high needs). When I went off the mini-pill, DS was 3 yrs old and still nursing about 4 times a day, and I got pg immediately with baby #3 (first time we tried).

My mother nursed my brother for 12 mos, started solids early (about 2-3 mos) and got no AF the entire time she nursed him. He also slept through the night without nursing from about 2 months on (8 hours at least).

[sphinx]

18 months with both. (nursed first til 2.5, second is 19 mo and still nursing).

[mamajojo]

Hi - I was just lurking here and thought I'd add my experience FWIW...
We did "ecological breastfeeding" but not quite CLW. (We night weaned by mutual consent at 4 1/2 y.o.; the last time dd nursed was when she was about 5 3/4 y.o.). I started giving dd solids at 6 months (but we still nursed on demand day and night, and she nursed much more than she ate for many, many more months). AF came back at about 15.5 mos pp (about 2 weeks after dd had had a cold and wasn't nursing as much as usual). I may have ovulated that time (I think b/c of dd's cold), but then my cycles were erratic/long, some anovulatory, others with short LP over the next several months.

Joanne

[mezzaluna]

ds has been nursing around the clock, on demand except for the occasional hang-on-a-minute followed by my offering as soon as i'm ready. around 16 months he started regularly sleeping a four hour stretch or two at night, and then i ovulated. of course by the time my period arrive he was back to sleeping 1-3 hour stretches... oh well! he eats a decent amount of solids now, but he was slow to start and probably eats more what i see 9 or 10 month olds eating in terms of quantity. the return of my cycles didn't seem to have anything to do with any increased interest in solids, i'm pretty sure it was just due to those nice blocks of sleep!

[firstwomantomars]

My son nursed just about every hour day and night when I was with him (I worked for 10 months when he was 18 months and he always refused expressed milk in any form) until he was 3 1/2. My fertility came back at 8 months.

My daughter is still nursing (3-8 times during the day, 1 to a gazillion times at night ) at almost 17 months and I just got my period back about a month ago. I am charting this time and I know I started ovulating again. I actually was able to predict the exact day of my first postpartum period after almost 2 years (pregnancy + 14 months after birth)!!! I got my second period today and knew it was coming thanks to charting, in spite of a very weird cycle.

Neither had a pacifier or a bottle, etc.

My mom nursed me till age four when she was pregnant with my brother. I don't know when her fertility returned before that ...

[northwoods1995]

I got AF when DS was 12 months. He was still nursing a lot, night and day. He night-weaned around 16mos or so and I got pg right after he night-weaned. My sisters bfed but they didn't do CLW--I'm pretty sure they got AF much earlier than I did.

[Mrstattedup]

DS started sleeping through the nights at 16 months..for about a week or so..AF returned and a month later...yea...we were pregnant..and DS decided he wanted to start night nursing again!

[mosky22]

I got my cycle back 22 months after dd#1 was born. I was working untill she was about 18 months old. I would pump at work and nurse on demand when at home. Once I left my job, it was bf on demand. By the time my cycle came back she was sleeping about 8 hours at night without nursing. She would nurse first thing in the morning, 2-3 times during the day, and again at bed time. She was certainly eating lots of regular food at that time too. We wanted to have another baby, and I thought I would be able to tandum nurse. We started trying to concieve about 4 months later, and we were sucessfull 6 months after my cycle returned. At that time, dd had already cut down her nursing to mornings, nights and 1-2 times during the day. Once I was pregnant, nursing her became very difficult. It is different for everyone, I had a serious aversion to it. I tried for 12 weeks into the pregnancy, but I had to wean dd#1, becuase it was to much for me. I had an almost violent reaction. It was really bad. The weaning was not too hard, a few tears, lots of hugs and cuddles. Then after the baby was born, I offered to let her nurse, she didn't want to. Then just recently I offered again, and she did want to and now she is nursing 1-2 times a day. Obviously the baby nurses on demand. I don't expect to get my cycle back for at least 2 years, and when it does return, I may wait longer to get pregnant again.

[nicandboys]

I breastfed all my kids on demand, including at night. They never received any supplements or pacifiers. All spent a lot of time nursing. The first time, I got my what seemed like a period when ds was 8 wks, but then I didn't get another until he was 4 mos. I got pg again when he was 10 mos. Second bf baby, I didn't get my period back until she was 10 mos. Got pg again when she was 14 mos. Third bf babe I got my period back when he was 4 or 5 mos, can't remember exactly. He is 2 now and still nurses constantly, but I know I am ovulating.

[MotherWhimsey]

Well, my dd was two in april... and I got knocked up in march. No period. And we were using condoms. It was a big surprise, I didn't think I was pregnant cause I wasn't expecting AF.

[nancy926]

DD1 was born Nov 2002. I nightweaned her over a 2-month span (Oct-Dec 2004), right around her second birthday. (She still nurses 0-1x a day, and nurses to sleep.)

I got ONE period in early Nov 2004, DTD, got pregnant and had DD2 last summer.

I have yet to get AF back again. DD2 still nurses round the clock (she does eat solids also).