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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Original poster

When did your period return if breastfeeding?

35 replies

choceyes · 15/05/2011 20:43

My DD is 9 months old now and I'm pretty sure that I'm about to get my period (all the signs are there).
Is this about the average time for it?

I've read that if you are exclusively breastfeeding your baby, including nightfeeds then you might not get your period back till after a year? I am baby led weaning DD and she eats very little and hasn't dropped any feeds at all yet, so I'm rather suprised to get my period back so quickly.

I've also read that if you are co-sleepign and slinging (which I suppose increases the amount of breastfeeding you do) it's unlikely to happen this early either. I do these too.

I got my period back with DS when he was 8 months, but altough he was also BLW, he ate much more than DD, and had dropped a feed at this point, and also cut out a nightfeed, so I kind of expected it.

Anyway just a bit surprised, but would like to know what other's experiences are?

OP posts:
galois · 15/05/2011 20:44

28 bloody days later. Than the birth, that is. Sometimes, life is sodding unfair.

Original poster
choceyes · 15/05/2011 20:45

oh no galois! were you ebf??

OP posts:
juneau · 15/05/2011 20:45

I can't really remember, but I think it was around 18 months. It's different for everyone though and some people EBF and get their period back after a couple of months.

hellymelly · 15/05/2011 20:46

a year for me each time. I was breastfeeding and co-sleeping too.

hotcrossSES · 15/05/2011 20:46

I EBF DS and we did BLW and I got my period back when he was 12mo.

He did take to BLW quite well and we dropped down to just 3 feeds when he was 9mo and 2 feeds at around 11mo.

FWIW I think everyone is different and there are no hard and fast rules. I'm sorry that probably doesn't help you though!

KD0706 · 15/05/2011 20:49

My DD is BLW, and is 12mo.
She probably still feeds 4-5 times in a 24 hour period, with 1-2 night feeds.
Still no sign of my period.

SherbetDibDab · 15/05/2011 20:52

Never until four weeks after I stopped, even when I was only doing a night feed at 11 months.
I've got three, with the other 2, finished feeding when they were 6 or 7 months and then 4 weeks later.

littlemisslozza · 15/05/2011 20:54

Soon after I stopped bf, which was approx 9 months with each one.

PavlovtheCat · 15/05/2011 20:56

8 months or so with DS who breastfed til he was 17 months. 6/7 months with DD who stopped at 9 months.

IwishIwasmoreorganised · 15/05/2011 20:57

9 months for me both times.

I bf ds1 for 7 months and ds2 for 12 months.

sageygirl · 15/05/2011 20:59

At about 9 months for DD, who I bf til 13 months - but she loved solids and dropped night feeds altogether at 8 months and was really only having a first thing in the morning / last thing before bed feed by 9 months.

6 months for DS who was largely bottle fed. I think I was lucky!

MaresyTotes · 15/05/2011 21:01

About 5 months I think - ebf, co slept etc. Bloody nuisance!

ginmakesitallok · 15/05/2011 21:02

After about 3 months with both DDs - ebf both of them. Pish

seeksnewnamewithgsoh · 15/05/2011 21:02

No sign here, DD is almost 12mo.

We don't cosleep, use a sling, she eats like a horse (BLW) and I'm back at work. We do maybe 3-4 feeds a day, no night feeds for a month. I'm starting to wonder if will ever come back.

galois · 15/05/2011 21:02

yes, OP, I was ebf and it still came back a month later. That was with DS1. With DS2 it was about 6 months and with DD it was 4 months. All ebf.

WoTmania · 15/05/2011 21:03

I only got mine back after DC3 at 19 months
The others woul dhave been 9 and 12 months though.

seeksnewnamewithgsoh · 15/05/2011 21:03

Sorry, we don't cosleep or use a sling...

SometimesIAmABirdbrain · 15/05/2011 21:10

i still havent got mine back yet and DS is nearly 7 months old. he's breastfed and baby led weaned, and we co-sleep. have not dropped feeds yet. in no rush for period to return, to be honest.

funnily enough, with both my older DDs, my period returned within 8 weeks of births. in both cases, i was breast feeding and co-sleeping as well. no idea why its so late this time. did ask health visitor and she gave me the 'oh, everyone's different, don't worry' statement.

MummyBerryJuice · 15/05/2011 21:49

12 months for me. DS was (and probably is still) feeding about 2-3 times at night. At least 4times during the day at 12 months

TheSecondComing · 15/05/2011 21:55

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Southwestwhippet · 15/05/2011 22:02

9 months for me. Dd was EBF, BLW and we co-slept.

I was told it was down to babies sleeping through better which did tie in as DD was bloody awful until about 8 months.

AngelDog · 15/05/2011 22:04

It varies a lot both in when they return, and in what it takes to trigger the return. The average is 14 months. The longest I've heard of is 31 months.

Kellymom has some info.

MrsTittleMouse · 15/05/2011 22:07

Mine came back really early both times. Even though I was exclusively BF and the little darlings wouldn't sleep through the night. Gah!

When they are teenagers I will stop moaning about unfair it was. Grin

Notanexcitingname · 15/05/2011 22:29

DS1 excl bf, no dummy, much slinging, fed on demand, slept separately-16 weeks

DS2 excl bf, no dummy, even more slining, fed on cue, co-slept-16 weeks Angry

sometimes, life really ain't fair

(and for a more evidenced-based answer, use kellymom!)

attachedmummy · 15/05/2011 23:17

My son is 9mo and we are still breastfeeding. I haven't had a period yet.