Breast feeding and started period - confused!

[twinkletwinklepops]

Well, that's it. I am BF my 5.5month DD and today to my total surprise my period started. I was shocked.
My DD started full time creche on 1st Nov. Since then I feed her in the morning and evening and express in the early afternoon (13hrs) and at night (21hrs). So I am BF twice a day and expressing twice a day.
So how come my period started today?? Now looking back all the signs were there; yesterday craving sweet stuff, today very bloated, but it never occurred to me to be the start of my period.
Does anyone know why this has happened? Maybe I am not breastfeeding enough?
Please help.
Thanks.

I know someone who exclusively bf her dd and still got a period at 8 weeks post partum.

5.5 months doesn't sound that unusual, particularly if your dd does not feed during the night.

If it helps, I breastfed round the clock a newborn and two year old and my period came back before my six-week check.

Mine has always tended to come back when my DCs start full time nursery (not sure what's going to happen with DD2 as this time I'm not going back to work). So that's pretty much what I would have expected in your position.

It would be pretty unlikely for your ovulations to be suppressed with just 2 BFs and 2 expressions a day. For some mums they need to totally stop lactating before ovulating but that's rare. I'd be more surprised if your periods hadn't started TBH, so all sounds perfectly good and healthy.

I assume you're mix feeding? 2 Bfs a day and 2 expressed feeds is a small amount of milk :)

I was still exclusively bf dc3 at 5 months when my period returned - seemed to happen around same time with all my dcs.

That sounds normal although anything can be normal.
You are only feeding and expressing twice each a day so that would be unlikely to stop your periods returning.
Mine have returned at different times with all 3 dc and with DS1 he was about 7 or 8 months and had a tummy bug I got a period 2 weeks after that and never had another one until he stopped feeding completely, dd they came back at 6 weeks and DS2 the came back when he started weaning and his feeds had barely dropped.

What organic said.

Anything from under 6 weeks post partum to 42 months is normal.

Mine 'almost' restarted when DS was 13 m.o. and dropped to just 3 feeds a day due to a fortnight-long nursing strike. (I had a week of cramping etc, but it went away when he resumed normal feeding). I think I'm just re-starting ovulating now at 22 months post partum but he does feed at least 8 times per 24 hours, often more.

I was ebf with both of mine, dd is still bf and nearly two both pg my periods returned 6 weeks pp

I ebf my ds and my period returned 6 weeks after i gave birth and every 28 days after that.
I was just unlucky i guess!

Mine started today :( DD is 10 weeks and ebf, feeds every 2-3 hours, or less, day and night. I feel totally cheated!

both my dds were ebf - period came back 6 weeks pp. And that's why bfing is NOT a reliable form of contraception!

Mine came back at 7 months when I stopped bfing at night - seems quite common.

Mine came back four weeks post ELCS! Was very shocked!

Sorry meant to say was breastfeeding..