BBT & co-sleeping w/ a bf baby?

[mehndi mama]

Anybody know how accurate BBT readings are if you've been nursing a restless baby all thru the wee hours? I work late (4AM usually), and so I don't like to temp until DH gets up (and thus wakes me up) at 8:30......but I kno that I am moving Davey around a lot & nursing him a lot in my half-concious-to-totally-asleep state.

I've been charting temps for about 20 days, and even though I just got a visit from AF yesterday, I don't have any thermal shift evident - just a spike at about 16 days before the end of this cycle.

(Background info - Davey is 15 months, still nurses a lot, including thru the night when I'm working, and this current AF is only my second pp. Cycle length was 37 days this time)

I'm just wondering if I'm wasting my time with the BBTing - it's not like the temps are all over the place or anything - they're actually pretty consistent, aside from that one spike. But no thermal shift.

[True Blue]

Wow your situation is tough. I have a 15 month who nurses a lot through the night still too, but when I temp at 7 or 8 when we get up, I still got a noticable thermal shift. Are you charting cm too? It's possible you haven't actually ovulated yet and that's why there was no thermal shift. Or, it could be that you were too active in your sleep. Maybe try an O kit next month and see if you ovulate and it coincides with any temp changes??

[mehndi mama]

I've been charting fluids, too....but they're difficult to read, too! I ALWAYS have this light creamy stuff, and it did get more creamy & a bit stretchy about the time I had that temp spike....but other than that, it's always light, creamy, & wet. Makes me think that that is my "basic infertile pattern" or something:

I'm thinking of getting the Ovusoft software, just so I can have a "pro" take a look at my charts sometime down the road.....

ARGH! It's so frustrating to try & do this! I'm NEVER not breastfeeding AND not pregnant at the same time - haven't for 11 years now! Seems that I'll never figure out what is "normal" for me....until I'm too old to have periods anymore!

[laurata]

Two possibilities- one, you did not ovulate (your cycles have been anovulatory so far, which isn't totally uncommon in Eco breastfeeding moms) or two, you had a very, very slight shift that wasn't very noticable because of your rough nights. Maybe you could post your temps so we could look at them?

[TracyK]

I've been wondering this myself. I'm very new to FAM, just started charting 1 cycle ago. I co-sleep and bf my 25 month old, I don't even know how many times he nurses since I'm usually mostly asleep LOL. AF returned at 22 months post partum. I have had really crazy temps, cm, and I'm still getting to know my cervical positions. A friend told me that in her experience her cycle took many months to return to normal after AF returned. Maybe this is what's going on??? I'm curious to see responses from other bf mamas!

Tracy

[Mallory]

I co-sleep and nurse two at night. With such different wake up times and nursing and moving and getting up to take them to the bathroom, ect, I don't think I have slept 3 hours in a row since for more then 4 years, and if i do it is sure not at the same time every night- my temps are all over the place. For me all the disturbances and moving that I do makes my temperatures crazy, but I also feel pretty good about reading my fluids.

I would try for a couple more cycles, some women have nice temps even if they are awake or moving before they take them. It takes a few months to get used to what you are seeing. I agree that it is very likely you just didn't ovulate this month. Especially if you didn't notice a lot of cervical mucous- just give it some more time!

[mehndi mama]

I took some time & re-read BF&NCS, and sure enough, I'm following a fairly common trend. Apparently, I can pretty much expect to have spotty to no ovulation for a good while, since I am both nursing frequently AND working funny hours with a lot of stress! They even showed a series of charts from when Shiela Kippley was trying to finish up her book - her baby was still fairly young, and here she is writing a book about using breastfeeding to keep from having periods, and then she gets one! But her temps showed that there was no ovulation going on for MONTHS afterward. And appaently, my temps are showing me the same thing.

I did end up getting the Ovusoft charting software - I love it! It's totally brainless - you just enter in your info, and it draws coverlines & reads your signs and stuff. Much more fun than pencil & paper!