View Full Version : Breastfeeding and TTC
Hi everyone. Anyone heard of there being a problem with BF and TTC? I looked up some stuff in the internet and they said it depends on how much of the hormone thingy (ocytocin?) that you release when BF as to whether it can effect conceiving. Like if there is too much of this hormone it can prevent implantation. BF can also make your CM unreadable to predict when you are Oing. Who is BF and TTC out there? What have you heard? Who is BF and Preggers? Did conceiving make a difference to you BF? Did you give up BF when you fell PG? Thanks in advance:)
Princess_Alisa
31-07-2006, 13:43
My DD is 8 months old and 3 weeks ago I have cut back on BF and have started to replace some of the BF with the bottle. During this time my DH and I had a few times unprotected sex and a few days later I got cramps and nausea.
As I did not get my period back yet, I don't know if I would have been fertile at all at those dates, but because of this weired feeling I thought I was pregnant again. I made 2 home pregancy tests and they both were negative (it might have been to early to test maybe)
Even though we did not TTC when we had unprotected sex, we were both dissapointed, when the tests were negative. So we decided, that we want to start to TTC but we don't know when I ovulate due to the fact, that my period is not back yet.
Sorry, I am not much of a help, but I am at least in the same boat..:hugs:
Please let me know, if you find out more!
I am not sure either. I am still BF DS who is nearly 9 months old and have decided to start TTC now. Last month i got AF back for the first time since having DS, so i am not sure how it will affect our chances of pregnancy, so i too would like to know what other's experiences are as i am hoping to fall preggers soon too :)
wantagirl
01-08-2006, 06:28
Breastfeeding causes ovulation to stop, it can resume without you ever having a period. Some women never ovulate until they quit breast feeding, while others can ovulate and concieve with no problems. All depends on if you are ovulating yet or not.
Hi I was BFing when I concieved. My DD was15mths and I had my periods back and I had just stopped giving overnight feeds when we concieved.
I found I could tell when I was ovulating by the CM changes, my body temp and also I would feel an increase in libido.
I also did some research when TTC and I read that BFing can shorten the luteal phase of your menstrual cycle - that is the time between ovulation and menstruation. This needs to be at least 10-12 days long for implantation of the fertilized egg to occur so that the pregnancy can start.
Milliner
04-09-2006, 16:02
How is everyone going TTc while B/F. I got my first real AF about 2 weeks ago so we will see how I go. :fingerscrossed: I have o'ed and all is good.
bel_aiden
04-09-2006, 16:30
i got my first AF 38 days ago.... still no 2nd AF, i used OPKs uo to day 23 and didnt get a positive so thought id wait til next cycle to see how long my cycles were going to be.... still nothing. if no Af next week il do a test. Has any-one else found that wen there AFs returned they were longer to start with??
SilverStarfish
04-09-2006, 16:37
I think I'll be in this boat next year too...
I have two BFing friends who both conceived when their #1 was 6 months old and even my doctor says that LAM method is less reliable after the 6 month mark (she said she fell pregnant then too!) so :fingerscrossed:
Milliner
04-09-2006, 16:38
Yes my AF went for at least a week, before I had DS they went for about 4-5 days. I still had really bad cramps so nothing changed there.
Milliner
12-09-2006, 10:14
So is anyone preg yet????? I am waiting to do a test in a week or so. :fingerscrossed:
Will have to wait and see I am not getting my hopes up.
bel_aiden
12-09-2006, 13:06
well im not :( but i still havent got af back.... its been 47 days since she visited... i did a test 3 days ago and it was a negative:banghead:
Hi guys, we're thinking about trying to conceive #2 and I was wondering about BF & TTC and apparently just because you're BF doesn't mean you won't ovulate. You might ovulate then conceive without ever having AF! Good luck everyone and keep us posted! :fingerscrossed:
Luckily I am now pregnant, but I found it quite hard to conciieve while BF. In the end I got DS down to 2 feeds per day, my cycle got back to normal and I got pregnant immediately. The cutting down process, or time it took to concieve was a looooong, depressing 6 months. So, everyone is different, and it will happen in its own time:banghead: .:yes:
Milliner
13-09-2006, 11:47
I am glad to hear that someone had a BFP!!
Samantha83
13-09-2006, 12:18
Hi, :wave:
Have any of you who have had problems trying to concieve while breastfeeding had AF? My DS is 4 months and we are TTC and this post has got me a little worried as i BF and am not planning on stopping in the next few months at least, saying that i had my AF for 6 weeks after DS was born and semi regulaly (as regular as before DS) since then. does this mean that BF isn't effecting my Oing?
Milliner
13-09-2006, 12:46
I can't help you there samantha, but my AF had not been regular since I had DS I have only had 1 real one (real being like before I had DS). I think that I will just have to :fingerscrossed: and see what happens.
Samantha83
13-09-2006, 12:53
I'll keep my :fingerscrossed: for both of us then.
doin'mybest
13-09-2006, 13:11
My DS is 17months and is still bf up to 5 times a day. My af didn't start til he was 13 months and have been regular as clockwork since. We have been ttc for 2 months and AF is now 2 days late, so things are looking pretty good:smiliedance:
lukaelmo
13-09-2006, 13:22
I was BFing when I got pregnant, but only about 3 times a day. The dude self weaned a few months later. I never got my AF back, but obviously something was happening...
DP thinks he has got super sperm:laughing: .
Well Eliza is only waking for 15mins a night now for a few weeks and she has dropped one feed a day so we shall see, guess I better start doing something to help actually make a baby lol:o
GL everyone hope we can continue to BF and have our dreams happen!!
Milliner
13-09-2006, 14:43
My DS is 17months and is still bf up to 5 times a day. My af didn't start til he was 13 months and have been regular as clockwork since. We have been ttc for 2 months and AF is now 2 days late, so things are looking pretty good:smiliedance:
OOOHH good luck!!!!!! :smiliedance: :smiliedance:
Still nothing here too, only onto the second month of TTC, it feels like ages already! lol. Getting a bit more serious about this baby making business now, so we shall see how we go. DS is still being BF, and it changes the amount day to day. :fingerscrossed: for us all anyways!
bel_aiden
13-09-2006, 15:15
Aiden is BF 4 times a day, ang has been on 4 feeds a day since bit before 5 months. hasnt had night feeds since 14 weeks.... so im wondering if its not going to happenen til i cut bac to 3 or less... i really dont want to have to wean him, but i really want another baby! just hav to wait for AF to chow her ugly face again so we can start over:banghead:
Milliner
14-09-2006, 11:06
Well I tested this morning and it was a BFN There is always next month :crying:
doin'mybest
15-09-2006, 14:22
Well i can now confirm you can get pregnant while bf! Did a test yesterday and got a BFP!:yelclap:
mum2bailey - Best of luck for next month :fingerscrossed:
Good luck to everyone else ttc too:fingerscrossed:
Milliner
15-09-2006, 14:43
Congrats Doinmybest!!!! :yelclap:
Congratulations Doinmybest :D That's great news! Goodluck with it, are you going to continue BF throughout pregnancy?
Rainbowbrite
15-09-2006, 15:55
Well i can now confirm you can get pregnant while bf! Did a test yesterday and got a BFP!:yelclap:
mum2bailey - Best of luck for next month :fingerscrossed:
Good luck to everyone else ttc too:fingerscrossed:
Can I ask, how many times a day are you bf?
Congrats btw, thats great news :smiliedance:
doin'mybest
16-09-2006, 12:55
Thanks everyone.
Proudmumma: Yes i do plan to keep bf while pregnant and afterwards too if he hasn't self weaned by then. I think my supply may have dropped a little already though, as he has still been looking for more after he has both sides.
Rainbowbrite: His feeds range from 2 to 5 a day (and night:( ) I thought it might have taken me alot longer to get pregnant as he is such a big bf.
blessedmummy
16-09-2006, 17:53
hmmm.. when i was bf my 1dd my AF came back when she was 6months old, and then (without even trying..:o) got pregnant two months later with 2dd! so, i gave up bf her, and gave her the bottle instead, she was fine, and the doctor even advised it too! cause i was pg with 2dd. anyhow, hope you all get your BFP really soon! :fingerscrossed:
bel_aiden
17-09-2006, 10:54
well afta a cycle with 51 days af showed today.. lets hope this months its back to normal:fingerscrossed:
Bel_aiden, i think after bubs it takes a while for your cycle to get shorter and more regular, my last cycle was about 6 weeks long, not sure how many days exactly. This is my second month of trying, and will find out later in the month how long this cycle was. I'll be happy if i am pregnant by the end of the year, it will happen when it's meant to happen. :D
Milliner
25-09-2006, 14:30
I have had 3 BFN and now waiting for my AF to return again I have started temping now so we will see how things go I hope everyone else is doing ok
:fingerscrossed: for us ladies we need to see some BFP'S!
I am so tired but DP is crazy for another baby, he has the bug worse than me anyone else going through this?!!
Eliza's feeding went a little haywire the past week back to normal now, I am hoping something happens soon!!
To give you a bit of something to go on from someone who has charted when TTC and breastfeeding, here goes:
When I'm not b/f my cycles are 27 days and I ovulate on Day 14.
I breastfed all my children until at least 9 months.
With DS1 I got my period back when he was 4 months. We started TTC immediately. My cycles started at around 35 days and eventually went down to 28 days after 4 months. I found I ovulated only 1 week or so before AF at the beginning and as my cycles became shorter, my ovulation occurred earlier. But it wasn't until I had a full cycle without any breastfeeding that I conceived my DD1.
With breastfeeding, I have read that in addition to a possible short luteal phase (time between ovulation and your period- you need at least 11 days for the fertilised egg to implant), the hormone prolactin which is released through breastfeeding can surpress ovulation or fertilisation or implantation. This can vary from woman to woman and the suppression of each can lessen with each subsequent cycle.
I know that I do ovulate when b/f, but I must have fertilisation or implantation surpressed as I've never gotten pregnant when b/f.
But I've had 3 friends who conceived when breastfeeding. 1 when her DD was about 18 months old. 1 after her 1st period when her DS was 6 months old and the other before she even got a period, when her DS was 7 months. So there is hope.
(Personally I'm weaning DS2 because his 7 teeth and my nipples are no longer friendly, we're TTC#4 but I feel that because I will have been b/f this cycle the chances are not great)
R
Just to add to this I have been ttc for 4 months now. With DD we fell pg immediately. I am bf'ing 5-7 times a day now and have had AF back since DD was 5 weeks old. My last cycle was 27 days, it was 29 days before that. I have a feeling I will have to fully wean before falling pg. Before that my cycle was short (21-24 days).
Good luck everyone!
Girls
There is hope. I got a positive test this morning!!! Admittedly, I weaned #3 5 days ago, but I was still b/f when I would have ovulated, which is when all the b/f hormones would have had a chance to mess up fertlisation or implantation, etc.
So don't give up hope.
R
P.S. Had heaps of signs, but the biggest give away was tender nipples, not usually a sign of weaning.
Milliner
30-09-2006, 15:34
:yelclap: congrats ruthk!!!!! Thats great news!!! There is hope for us yet!!!!
I am still waiting for AF and I know that I am not preg have done 3 hpt and 1 bt and all -
Mel
I knew I was this time. All the signs were there that you couldn't explain away with PMT. Best of luck! Remember a good sign to look out for is aching nipples as opposed to just aching breasts.
R
HI,
I am still breastfeeding my daughter who is almost 3 years old.
and i am just over 3 months pregnant .....
i didnt find it a problm to concive .....
hope this helps .....
bel_aiden
10-11-2006, 15:43
:wave: how are we doing ladies???? im up to day 55 on this cycle and debating on whether to do a test or not... no real preg syptoms, been more tired then usual. but with aiden i didnt have any signs at all either.... might just wait another week.
any news from fellow TTCers??
bel_aiden
10-11-2006, 16:14
ok so i couldnt help myself
:bfp: :bfp: :bfp: :bfp:
in less then a minute... it came straight up.. no ifs or buts.. omg!!!!!!!!
cheezelkat
10-11-2006, 16:23
yay!! congrats
Milliner
10-11-2006, 19:18
Oh Congrats :hugs: :yelclap: We are not doing to well Af has just about gone home. Last cycle was 34 days. Lets hope santa brings me a :bfp:
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