TTC whilst breastfeeding. Tips, advice and support

No I didn’t have PMT but my skin started to break out and my CM started to change. My skin started to worsen around a month before my period started! I am usually sensitive to progesterone before a period so that all started up again. Do you usually suffer with PMT in a normal cycle?

Ah that is reassuring! Did you have months of feeling like AF was about to arrive but nothing happening? Feel like I'm going a bit mad but definitely feels hormonal... or at least that's what I'm telling myself 😬

Hi @Elfy11 thanks! My little girl is 10 months on Sunday and I have only just had my first period at the end of April so could be any time for you! X

Good luck! Hope it's an easy journey for you 😊

Hi All, we are looking to start TTC ASAP. My first period came back last month and going to start ideally trying in June/July as we have a holiday booked.

My LP is extremely short at 6 days so hoping it will lengthen after a few cycles.

All very exciting but extremely stressful journey all at the same time!! 😬😬

Thanks for your response. Will definitely try a new vitamin routine and see if that helps.
Even if we weren't TTC I'm pretty keen for AF to restart just so I know that's what's making me feel this crap! Forgot how awful my PMT used to be and it's ramping up now. Did you get many symptoms prior to yours starting up again?

Hi everyone! Please can I join in. We've been TTC for about 4 months now I think. DS is 19 months old and still feeds at bed time. Trying to wean him off his morning feed and always hope he won't want a night feed but teething has been preventing that happening a bit recently!

Hi everyone 👋🏻

I’ve not read much of the thread but we are starting TTC this month and I am also currently breastfeeding my 20 month old.

Had coil removed in January and I’ve been doing ovulation tests for the last couple of months so have a pretty good idea of ovulation. AF due Friday.

Hoping I can join you!

Hey everyone,

Sorry I've not been on here in a while. Congratulations @TrudyProud on your BFP, hoping everything goes well in your pregnancy.

My LO is now 16.5 months old and I had my first pp period last month. It is possibly time that made it come back as I read average time of ppp to come back is around 15 months, but I'd been making a fair bit of changes to try and get it to come back. Feel in a positive headspace for when we start TTC in a couple of months time as have been able to pinpoint the time I ovulated prior to period returning and on 2nd cycle after it returned. I think what did it for me was having at least a 12hr window without breastfeeding in the daytime, and then nighttime I just breastfeed whenever needed which feels like all night 😅

I just need to now work on increasing luteal phase as first month it was only 4 days and this month it was 6/7 days. Have been taking vit c and b6 and having a daily mug of raspberry leaf tea to hopefully increase it and wondering whether to try seed cycling maybe next month. Hoping I don't need to night wean to get a good luteal phase 🤞

@Elfy11 I'm not 100% sure what did it for me, but I was trying to calories load, although I did this for a month or so and was trying to only do light exercise/walking but got a bit fed up of this so wasn't eating so much and returned to running the month period returned. I also have been taking a good conception/pregnancy multi vit, iron, b12 and maca root. Out of the vitamins the newest addition was the maca root so may have been that that helped it return. I've not tried Agnus Castus unfortunately.

Hey everyone, hoping this thread becomes active again!

We want to start TTC no 2 but still no periods for me yet. Have been feeling very PMTish for the last couple months on and off but no AF. Our first is nearly 10 months and is almost going the whole night without a feed now.

Anybody have any tips for encouraging AF to return? I read somewhere about Agnus Castus if anybody has any experience with this?

Also congrats to you TrudyProud on your BFP!

Hi ladies, not sure if this thread is still active but I got my BFP this morning. It's still early days but very excited. According to the internet my due date would be 9/1/24.

Keeping everything crossed for the stickiest of beans. Hoping everyone else's TTC journey is going smoothly

How are you all getting on? I'm currently in my TWW (cycle 1) still breastfeeding . We managed to DTD 4 times around my presumed ovulation so keeping my fingers crossed.

@A1b2c3d4e5f6g7 feeling ok actually. Currently 5+1 so period is definitely late now! Keeping up with just the morning feed more for the bond really and I'm sure she'll be fully weaned super soon

@Countingchicks congratulations!!! Lovely news! I'm so sorry for the delay, I missed this message.

How are you feeling?

I reduced our feeds to once a day. Due to allergies she has Koko super milk the rest of the time. Ovulated cd18 and got a very very faint positive at 9dpo yesterday. I tend to have a 10 day luteal phase. Period returned ten days after I ovulated for the first time post partum in December. Increasing calories definitely helped to get it to come back but now I need to not eat so much as we're down to just the one feed a day. Can only hope this sticks as I've seen multiple people on here have early losses while BF.

You conceived while feeding already for your 2nd? That's brilliant! And you mentioned you've a decent luteal phase, so it's hopefully just a matter of time this time around.

I'm getting a bit nervous, as I also don't know if I'd like one more or two, and hoping to at least get one. So my age is feeling a problem as I'll be in my 40s potentially for a third 🤷‍♀️ I ordered some ubiquinol for egg quality and some supplements this morning and hopefully that'll help.

Oof I hope that improves soon and you get some more sleep! I wonder if part of what makes it difficult is the tiredness and stress of lack of sleep and the constant illnesses or teething etc...

Oops sorry I thought you were already 39 - a whole year extra then :). Means a lot in your late 30s I think..

Really sorry you starting spotting :(. It's so disheartening isn't it. I think as you get older it just takes a little more time. It took me 2 months to conceive DD1 at 34 and 7 months to conceive DD2 at 36/7 (I was breastfeeding then too, however). Fingers crossed for next cycle. 💪

Yep, baby is 16 months and still waking up every couple of hours to feed 😫, totally exhausting and def not compatible with SMEP lolol.

@Golaz that's good re the long luteal phase, and hopefully AF doesn't come! That is very tough on you with the night feeding. And tiring. And not compatible with SMEP etc!

I've just started spotting today, so I'm out this month. I actually stopped trying for a bit so this was my first proper cycle again after I stopped feeding as I was just a bit nervous. So a bit let down that it didn't work. But yeah I def gave up feeding earlier than I'd like, and all because of time pressure also as I'll be 39 end of the year. Definitely a sigh to that. Sounds like we have a similar cycle however!

Hey!

Congratulations @Ciaonow . Wishing you a healthy 9 months. <3

Sorry I dropped off the map a bit. Still here, still ttc, still breastfeeding 🙄.

I'm currently 13 dpo, but have ALL the AF symptoms so not hopeful at all this month. I'm trying to convince myself that ravenous hunger might be an early symptom of pregnancy, but really I know I always get that the night before AF :(. On the plus side, I think this is my longest LP to date. Bubba still feeds all night long, we co-sleep and she screams if I refuse. Don't have the heart to resist! Le sigh. I'm 39 like you @A1b2c3d4e5f6g7 so feeling the time pressure, but what can ya do? 💁

@Ciaonow congratulations!! That's so exciting!

Just got my BFP! Sending good luck to everyone else

@AlwaysSwordfish it seems so variable as to when periods and fertility will return. It's so frustrating!

How is everyone getting on?

Hi everyone! Just reading everyone’s tips and experiences, such a helpful thread 😊

We’ve started vaguely TTC, but my periods still aren’t back so nothing’s going to happen for a while. DS is 21 months and only feeds twice a day now so I really thought my periods would have returned by now, hoping I’m not one of the people who need to completely wean as I’m not ready for that yet 😩

Finding it all so stressful already so don’t know how I’m going to make it through the however many months we have ahead of us 😅 but really reassuring to know I’m not alone!

I'm now CD1 and had a 13 day luteal phase on my first cycle stopping feeding. For me it has made a difference- normal cycle like pre-pregnancy, normal length luteal phase, ovulating on about the day I used to, and no ewcm patches randomly throughout the cycle.

Just as a recap for the new people, my baby is 12 months. I did the metabolic loading and vitamins and my period came back at 5-6 months with exclusive breastfeeding, but cycles were wonky with very short luteal phase and ewcm right up to period. My baby still has 600 ml of milk, so was taking a lot from me even after beginning food.

I think I'm one of the people who did need to stop to regain fertility unfortunately - some don't have to

@Golaz how are you?
No period yet here for me, so maybe a longer luteal phase. On plus side, getting some sleep, baby sleeps through 7-6.30am now 🙌