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Infant feeding

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

Original poster

breastfeeding but period has come back

48 replies

lyravoile · 08/03/2015 14:24

DD is four months. Doctor is saying this is highly unusual and am I sure I am EBF? (i.e. implying I am not being truthful!) DD sleeps with me and has nothing else apart from breastmilk, but I am also having heavy periods.

This is possible, right? Did anyone else start menstruating while breastfeeding?

OP posts:
caryam · 08/03/2015 15:21

I read about some research into this which showed when women don't have enough to eat and EBF, then their periods don't come back for a long time. It is the woman's own calorie intake, plus EBF that is needed together. So perfectly possible 100 years ago that many women in Britain who EBF did not have their periods come back for a long time. But for a healthy well fed woman, it is totally different.

Marshy · 08/03/2015 15:22

Yes it was a bugger. I remember going to the gp cos I thought something was wrong. Nope, just period returning....

bluelamp · 08/03/2015 15:23

All three of mine were EBF until 6 months, my periods came back at 7, 4, and 6 months. DD2 (the middle one) was a very efficient feeder, 5-10 minutes every 4 h was typical for her and she STTN at 3 months. The combination of the short feeds and STTN is what I blame for my period coming back. Of course, as soon as I had a period she started waking in the night so I was really grumpy. The good news is that with both DD2 and DS (DC3) my periods weren't regular until they were over a year old (both BF until over 2), I don't know about DD1 because I was pregnant with DD2 when DD1 was 8 months old. Oh, and when I had my 6 week check after DD2 was born the doctor told me EBF was enough to stop you getting pregnant, good thing I knew of people who had got pregnant while EBF including a MW at the same practice!!!

Momagain1 · 08/03/2015 15:32

If your doctor thinks this is highly unusual, they werent taking good notes that day in class. Ovulation and subsequently a mentrual cycle that soon are normal.

Cariad007 · 08/03/2015 15:36

Has anyone whose period has come back while still BFing found that it's lighter and shorter than it used to be? Mine certainly is for the time being, as well as being more irregular.

SoupDragon · 08/03/2015 15:39

Hell no. It was like a bloodbath.

Branleuse · 08/03/2015 15:39

yes I had a light period whilst exclusively breastfeeding when ds2 was 2months old and then got pregnant and had dd before his first birthday. My midwife said its not unusual at all

Cariad007 · 08/03/2015 16:11

SoupDragon that sounds nasty. Mine were reasonably heavy and 21 days apart when I got pregnant but the three or four I've had since they returned were light, lasted 3 days and were between 28 and 36 days apart! No period pain either, which is a bonus. But I'm back to work soon which means I'll only be doing 2-3 feeds a day so I'm sure they'll go back to normal before long Angry

Original poster
lyravoile · 08/03/2015 16:26

Thank you for all your replies.

The doctor sent me this link:

[www.llli.org/nb/nbsepoct06p196.html]

OP posts:
PenguinsandtheTantrumofDoom · 08/03/2015 16:46

There is a whole paragraph in that article about your situation!!

"Some women who follow the seven standards of ecological breastfeeding don't always experience an extended period of amenorrhea. Jennifer Moquin considers herself "unlucky" to be one of those with an early return of menstrual periods. "My first daughter, born in 1997, was the original high need baby," says Moquin:

She never had a pacifier, never had a bottle, never slept off of my body until she was close to a year old, and nursed more than eight to 12 times per day. I got my period back at one day short of six months postpartum. My second daughter, born in 2002, was the carbon copy of her sister. In addition, I was still nursing my first child about a half-dozen times a day. I got my period back at five months. No fair, says I!!"

PenguinsandtheTantrumofDoom · 08/03/2015 16:48

It also says 'almost all' women who EBF go at least six months without periods. I'd say that's pretty representative of the women I know. Doesn't mean earlier isn't possible.

I followed all the tenants of whatsit in that article (except always sharing nap sleep. Not sure what that means. They were certainly frequently fed to sleep when tiny, but also fell asleep in car seats, buggies, etc). All three fed 2 hourly day and night until post solids. Periods came back at 6 and 8 months. No periods yet this time but I went onto long term contraception before they had, so don't know what would have happened otherwise.

madwomanbackintheattic · 08/03/2015 16:55

I actually don't know anyone who EBF that didn't get their period back within a few months of birth. I have three children. Periods started again almost immediately with all of them, including ds1 who fed 24/7 every 2 hours for ten months.

This 'statistic' isn't anything like the norm in the enormous amount of EBF mothers I have known over the last fifteen years. And sadly, neither is the 'EBF and you will lose tons of weight' myth.

In fact, a goodly number of EBF women I have known were pregnant again withing three months, because they believed the GP who told them as long as they were EBF, their periods wouldn't start, and they wouldn't get pg...

Medical 'science' needs to be taken with a pinch of salt sometimes.

MotherOfInsomniacToddlers · 08/03/2015 16:59

That's when my periods started with both my children who were end and one of them fed ALOT as was on the 98th centile and massive. Didn't think it was rare at all

GotToBeInItToWinIt · 08/03/2015 17:33

Mine came back at 4 months too. DD completely EBF at that point, no water/dummy/bottle. She was also a very efficient feeder, approx 5 mins per feed.

Original poster
lyravoile · 08/03/2015 18:29

Thank you for all reassurance. Going to avoid that doctor from now in.

She implied the onset of periods were the "death knell" for milk supply.

OP posts:
PenguinsandtheTantrumofDoom · 08/03/2015 18:39

Supply and periods aren't linked (except I think a few women notice a bit of a dip the day or so before. I never did)

QuietNinjaTardis · 08/03/2015 18:41

Lyra that's crap. My periods cane back at 8 months and I'm still bf now an dd is 15 months. Your periods have nothing to do with how much milk you make!

ohthegoats · 08/03/2015 18:53

Mine came back at 4 months, I was quite happy about it - made me feel I was out of that pregnancy hormone bubble.

SoupDragon · 08/03/2015 18:56

She implied the onset of periods were the "death knell" for milk supply.

All three of mine piled on weight through beast milk alone, despite my periods returning earlier than "normal" :)

SolasEile · 08/03/2015 22:32

How strange - haven't noticed any dip in milk supply since my period came back. Only change I noticed was no PMT this time, maybe due to all the 'happy hormones' from breastfeeding.

Icicleinmyhand · 08/03/2015 23:06

As pp have said, that's rubbish about milk supply! My periods might have come back at 4 months (they were also bloodbaths for a few months), but I EBF for 6 months until DC started having solids, and carried on BF for over two years with no problem at all with supply. I did always have a dip just on the day before my period though it would come back the next day.

MovingOnUpMovingOnOut · 08/03/2015 23:09

Breastfeeding advice and training for GPs is famously shit.

GotToBeInItToWinIt · 09/03/2015 07:48

No change in my milk supply either, DD managed to stay on the 75th centile on breast milk alone despite periods coming back.

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