ovulating with no AF?

[MordecaiAliVanAllenO'Shea]

My DH and I would like to TTC#2 in two months time but I still have not had AF return. I am breastfeeding DS and about a month ago dropped him from about eight feeds a day down to about 4 or 5 to encourage AF return. I had a few very crampy days and got excited, but still nothing.

I have heard people say that you can be ovukating without AF, are they referring just to the first time you ovulate, or is it possible that I am ovulating without AF? I have a few days every month where I have a lot of egg-whitey mucus (:o sorry, I know, TMI) and am moody and feeling hormonal, but it doesn't make sense to me, thinking back to my high school sex ed lessons if you ovulate don't you need AF to clean out the uterus ready for the next egg???

I guess I'm just clutching at straws hoping because I really want to TTC soon but I don't want to drop anymore feeds for DS as I'm hoping to feed till he is 2yrs.

Any advice?
Mel

[MordecaiAliVanAllenO'Shea]

bump, bump....anyone? I really need help with this....

[plumptobump]

Hi there,

I was in your shoes a few months ago...
For some women, their cycle wont return until bfing has stopped completely unfortunately. As for ovulating without af, its not really possible unless youre already pg...but you CAN ovulate the one time before you get your first post-partum af. Does that make sense?? Haha..its late. :) As for the ewcm, thats prob your body trying to readjust hormones, etc. I had quite a few patches of ewcm and I ended up having to get af induced with meds (ds was weaned for 4 months beforehand).

I would take a hpt to make sure you arent already pg again, and if not, I think all you can do is kinda wait since you dont want to stop bfing just yet. There are supplements you can take to get your cycle regulated again, but none are recommended while bfing that Im aware of.

Thats prob not the answer you were wanting...BUT, thats not to say that your cycle wont return on its own shortly...every woman is different. Keep us posted! :)

[Ruby_Jewels]

Hi There,

I don't mean to alarm you but I also was ovulating without AF ( I was TTC and using OPK's) . Upon investigation it turned out that I had developed Asherman's Syndrome from a D&C I had to have for a m/c. Essentially it is where parts of the uterus or in my case cervix stick together when healing and can happen from D&C's on a recently pg uterus, C-sections,or post-partum infection. Symptoms are Oing without bleeding or having lighter periods than normal. In my case as the cervix was scarred shut I had no bleeding at all (called retrogade menstruation and the lining that was shed got flushed back up my fallopian tubes-ouch!) . Other symptoms may be cyclical pains without signs of normal AF. It is worth checking out as I am told it is often under-diagnosed and may be more common than is thought.
I really hope I haven't worried you as perhaps it is just BFing that is holding it back but it is just something to explore if you def. are Oing.
Good luck, let me know how you go!

[plumptobump]

WOW. I learn something new everyday! msmud, Ive never heard of that before...have you had it resolved??

[Ruby_Jewels]

Yes Plumptobump it is now resolved.:smiliedance:

I had an operative hysteroscopy on the 30th November followed by HIDEOUS doses of estrogen which helps to heal and build lining rapidly as well as the standard antibiotic coverage. In most cases it can take 2-6 surgeries to get it sorted and lots of drugs to build the uterine lining back up again and some women will always end up with a lining too think to support a pregnancy as a result of the scarred areas. I feel really lucky as it was impossible to tell the extent of my AS until the operation. All we knew was that the cervix was definetly scarred shut. After the operation I learned that my uterine cavity was scar free and that it was just the upper part of the cervix that had fused together. I only had to do one month of the hormone treatment and after that AF returned normally meaning that my cervix was open etc. I did travel to Sydney for the operation as not many OB/Gyns are experienced in treating AS and it is really delicate surgery. My regular Gyn was very keen to do the surgery but I think he was just excited for the challenge!!! I didnt want to be his guneia pig so paid out of pocket to have the best person do the job and am so,so glad I did.

I am now TTC and will just need to be followed closely in my next pg as I run the risk of icompetent cervix due to the number of previous procedures I have had done coupled with the location of my AS scarring. Placental Previa (low lying placenta) and Accretia (where the placenta starts to grow through the uterine wall) are common complications also but as my cavity was unaffected I will not experience these.

Hee hee hee, bet you didnt expect such a long,boring reply huh?! It is just nice to be able to tell someone about it as no-one has ever heard of it before or has understood why I have been a bloated,emotional she-whale while on all the hormones! :)

[Ruby_Jewels]

Now it is your turn to tell me about PCOS! :)

I have heard of it but really don't know much at all about it.

[plumptobump]

Not boring at all! Very fascinating as I have never heard of it before! Is it a rare condition?

PCOS - geez, I guess the easiest answer is that its a hormonal condition that causes my eggs to start developing, but never reach their full size, so they never release, and then become cysts on the ovary. I have insulin resistance with it as well, so have carried around a lot of extra weight without being able to get it off. Good news is that once its diagnosed, you can start treatment, so am now on a low-GI diet, with insulin sensitising supplements (altho will prob start on meds in March when I see the endocrinologist), and starting to really get into exercising. Its not a fun condition and cant really be cured, but its treatable and as I lose the weight (finally!), the symptoms will lessen or disappear. So am currently on fertility drugs to help me ovulate (I conceived ds "accidentally" without any meds, so didnt know I had PCOS until last Dec!)...

Anyway, sorry Mel to invade your thread!!!

Good luck to both of you!!!

[Ruby_Jewels]

Plumptobump: Thanks for that info. PCOS sounds pretty hardcore! Good luck with the exercising and getting your BFP. Yeah, AS is pretty uncommon although probably under diagnosed. I am like the biggest Gynie freak case ever! I also had a partial molar pregnancy (gestational trophoblastic disease) last year which is 1 in 1500 chance of happening. I am def. a weirdo!!!

Mel: Have you made an appointment to see your Dr? What have you decided to do?

[mummasbubbas]

Hi I just wanted to let you know that I conceived DD#2 before I got my AF once I stopped B/f.

I stopped b/f DD#1 (but was only on 1 or 2 feeds a day at that point). Once I completely stopped b/f, I notice approx. 3 weeks later that I was feeling a little like I was going to O (for me it is tenderness and feeling heavy inside) and so I did an OPK and it came out positive. We bd'ed heaps and heaps and 2 weeks later pregnant. So you can O and fall pregnant before you even get your AF after you stop B/f. I am proof! So watch for the signs of O you may get pregnant before you even get your AF! Goodluck.

[Ruby_Jewels]

Mummasbubbas you are so right! Although my situation wasn't from Bfing , I had Implanon (contraceptive implant) removed and Af just never came back. I conceived the 1st time I o'ed two months later.