TTC while nursing?

441 Views 10 Replies 10 Participants Last post by BlueStateMama, Jun 17, 2004

RaRoo

Discussion Starter · Jun 16, 2004

Hello all, I'm new here, having just stumbled across these boards today....and already I have a burning question to ask you all

. (I apologize if it's an overly-discussed topic -- just point me to the appropriate thread or forum). Anyway, my 12 month old DD is exclusively breastfed, we'd like to start TTC #2, but I haven't gotten my period yet. DD is down to about 4 nursings a day, none at night.....what do I have to do to regain fertility? I don't want to wean her -- we're both loving it and doing great. I have friends who are in the same position and starting to wean b/c they want to get pg. What are my other options besides weaning?

I know it's possible to get pg while nursing. Many of you seem to be living proof. How did it happen? Did you get your period back, and when?

TIA for any advice, stories, links, articles....much appreciated!

Peace,
Sarah

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1 - 11 of 11 Posts

TiredX2

· #2 · Jun 16, 2004

Quote:

TTC while nursing?

No offense, but I'd go ahead and unlatch before you start.

I got AF back with DD around 12 months. We were pg before she turned 2. My cycles were really freakish, but started to regulate after a while. With DS he was already over 2 before I got AF back, but they were more regular. Both of them were still steady (around the clock) nursers.

Good luck,
Kay

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Satori

· #3 · Jun 16, 2004

I believe the avg time to get your period back is 14 months I believe. I know thats when I got mine back, just give it a couple months and see what happens. Your body is probably already getting ready with mood swings, little twinges, cramps, "ghost periods" (feels like your on it but not).

Parker'smommy

· #4 · Jun 16, 2004

Pregnant and nursing here!

I got af back at 9 months pp and we started trying when ds was like 19 months old and we just got pregnant! It took 8 cycles.

THere is an awesome sub-forum here called- Trying to Conceive in the Fertility forum. Lots of mamas there trying to concieve while nursing. Pop your head in and say hi!

ANd weaning might help some, but I found that I didnt want to wean as my ds was too young. But that is a personal choice. I did find that nightweaning was effective and there is some research to support that if you nightwean your prolactin levels are better for conceiving than if you are still night nursing. Just a thought.

My good friend weaned her 20 month old because she wants to get pregnant and was very adamant with me that I would NEVER get pregnant while nursing. We started ttc at the same time. I am pregnant, she is not. I'm not saying that this will happen to you, but weaning doesnt mean that it will make it easier for you to get pregnant!

Good luck in your ttc journey!

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my2girlz

· #5 · Jun 16, 2004

I got pregnant while nursing too. I got my period back 10 months pp, but like someone else said, they were freakish. I would get one every few months. My dd was about 19 months old and I had only had about 3 periods from 10 months to 19 months. There was nothing regular about them. When I got my first period back we decided to not prevent anything from happening. When it happened, it happened. So it took about 9 months of not preventing anything to actually conceive. My dd self weaned at one week after her 2nd birthday so I'm taking a break before the new one arrives in less than 2 months.

Good Luck!

mamabutterfly

· #6 · Jun 16, 2004

Hi Sarah! Welcome to MDC.

Everyone is so different of course. Because you aren't nursing at night, your fertility may return sooner. My little girl is a nurse-a-holic and always was, lol, so I didn't get my period back til 25 months!

That was great with me, though! I have loved nursing a toddler, and I've loved being one-on-one with her. I know myself and I would've hated nursing while pg (painful) and juggling a newborn with the 'terrific twos' (

) would have exceeded my abilities. But every family is different. I do think it's worth considering how hard a one-year-old nurser and a pg would be. It's a little sad I think when the only reason for weaning an otherwise happy nurser is pregnancy.

BUT I totally get that everyone's situation is different, so a lot of mamas feel differently, I just wanted to share my perspective on my own 'delayed fertility'... I think Mother Nature knew what she was doing in my case!

I have made sure to have many a few close friends her same age to take that 'age-mate' place, and hope to have another when she's about 3-4.

There are many threads on these topics, which hopefully will help too. And a book always recommended on fertility issues is "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" (often referred to in threads as TCOYF).

Good luck!

mb

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6

applejuice

· #7 · Jun 16, 2004

DD was eighteen months and bf'ing when DH and I started to try for #2.

I already started my monthly periods again when DD was eight months but they were not regular yet;

even so I conceived within two months.

- DD was twenty months old.

I continued to nurse through the pregnancy.

DS was born when DD was twenty-nine months, and so I tandem nursed for another seven months.

DD weaned at three years old.

DS continued to nurse until he was a year.

Then I was pregnant with #3!

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mom2threenurslings

· #8 · Jun 16, 2004

Welcome!
I recommend "Adventures in Tandem Nursing" by Hilary Flower, "Mothering Your Nursing Toddler" by Norma Jane Bumgarner and "Nursing Thorugh Pregnancy and Beyond" (don't know the author...it's available through LLLI) and also searching the LLL website for info.

I got pg w/ #2 when #1 was 9 months old (after two looong cycles). I nursed through pregnancy and tandem nursed. I then got pg with #3 when #2 was 14 months old (after two looong cycles!). I then tandem nursed through that pregnancy and triandem nursed until my oldest self-weaned on his fifth birthday.

KirstenMary

· #9 · Jun 16, 2004

I am in the same situation. Jordan and I co-sleep, and she is an all-night night nurser. As long as she wants her booboo, I refuse to take it away from her. Alas, she is 11 months and I still have no AF. All in good time, though, is what I believe. Sooner or later, she'll show herself, and when she does, we'll be ready.

RaRoo

Discussion Starter · #10 · Jun 17, 2004

Thanks for all your replies, ladies!

Already, just from reading your posts and some of the other threads here, I'm able to take a deep breath and realize, like KirstenMary said, "all in good time". I have been feeling some physical and emotional weirdness -- major mood swings, twinges, random cramping -- so maybe my body is getting ready to menstruate, who knows?

And maybe some of the pressure DH and I feel to start trying again comes from the bittersweetness of having our baby turn one year old. It's such a milestone and so wonderful to have made it this far on the parenthood journey, but our little baby is a baby no longer! Anyway, all I know is that neither DD or I are ready to wean. So if it takes longer for AF to come back, so be it.

Thanks again, this is a fabulous forum!

Sarah

BlueStateMama

· #11 · Jun 17, 2004

Hugs Sarah - I can empathize with where you are right now! DS is 10 1/2 months and I really want to conceive again. (I'm 33 and want 3-4 kids, so the clock is ticking!) I'm battling low body fat and lack of AF to date. I can't imagine weaning DS, my dream is to nurse through pg and tandem, and I hope I can do that! Some hope recently, though....I have been paying attention to my CM and noticed something *like* EWCM (right consistency, wrong color) and just on a hunch I took an OPK (I used them to conceive DS) - it was POSITIVE!!!!!!!!! I'm now hoping I caught the first post-partum egg...

We'll see in about two weeks - but I'm not sure if I'd sustain a pg at this point even if I managed to get that egg fertilized (only half the battle, apparently)

Anyways - I'll see you "around" - good luck to you!!!!

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