BF and AF seem at odds with each other...

[entropygirl]

Am I being mental or is my milk supply really massively depressed during menstruation?

It is driving me CRAZY! Just when I am at my most physically shattered, pastey and migrainey, DD starts waking me up for an extra feed in the middle of the night and I can't express any where near as much milk during the day at work.

If this is indeed the problem is there anything I can do about it? Would going on the pill make things better or make them worse all the time?

No not mental. Apparently the drop in blood calcium leads to a drop in supply in some mothers (I found this to be the case with DD1 as my periods returned very early - 9 weeks but not with DD2/3 but then my periods returned at 11m with them).

Information and possible 'treatment' here - about 1/3 of the page down.

Going on the pill (assuming you mean the combined pill not the mini pill) might well stop milk production in it's tracks. The rising level of progesterone in pg inhibits milk production and gets the breast ready for starting lactating again and the combined pill contains oestrogen and progesterone.....

grrrrrrr.

thanks for the sanity check :) and the info. I'm already on multivitamins...sighs

have this problem aswell! DS fed SEVEN TIMES a night when I've got mine!

No. You are not mental. I have the same problem. It happened first time with DD and now again with DS.

The only solution I found was to up the expressing during the early part of the cycle when flow is plentiful and freeze to use when flow is low just before and during AF.

I realise this is a PITA.

It's very annoying and disrupts routines and sleep.

And if there are other ideas, I am keen to hear.