bf, weaning and ttc

[susiemj]

I'm in a bit of a muddle at the moment about what to do in the latter part of this year on this subject.

I have a 5 month-old DD who I fought very hard to bf (she was slow to gain weight and we had an unsympathetic HV). I am now very emotionally attached to bf her. (I'm not sure how I would have felt if we had been let alone, obviously. I'm not making any special claims) She is now exclusively bf after a period of mixed feeding. She decided to refuse the bottle herself.

She is showing a lot of interest in solid food, but I think we're going to wait to introduce her to it until she's nearly 7 months because we're going away for three weeks at about 6 months and I'm not sure it's a good idea to start solids in that situation. (Ideas on this point would be welcome, but it's a side issue).

We want to start trying for a new baby in December / January. I know it might take a while to conceive even if I'm not bf.

The time frame is there because I was really ill in my first pregnancy and it's likely I will be in my second and we're able to have family help from that time onwards for 6-9 months. I don't think I could cope with DD1 without such help if I get ill.

I'm especially concerned as DD seems so attached to being bf. She's mad for it!

Essentially, I'm wondering what it is sensible to do / expect about bf, weaning dd1 and ttc. I'm loathe to stop very soon but realise my attitude to bf is pretty emotionally charged.

Hi
I can only really give you my experiences !

I'm still bfeeding my 15 month old and I have just had my first period (gutted, I was hoping I'd hold out for longer )

however, he still regularly feeds at night, which is the key time for your body to hormonally make milk. We also co slept so he could snack whenever he felt like it. I have other friends whose babies slept through in their own rooms from a young age, whose periods returned after about 7 months.

By Dec / Jan your LO will be a year old ? Potentially your period will have returned if you get her sleeping through.

With regards to weaning, I BLWd at 6 months and TBH I really wish I'd held out till 7 months plus because with hindsight, he just wasn't really ready and I spent ages stressing about it.

If I were you, I would be in no rush to wean or give up bfing, I would focus on sleep cues and helping her to sleep through the night.

hth

i conceived my second pregnancy whilst still bf my 10 month old ds. though my periods did return at 6 or 8 months. as long as you are having periods again it does not matte whether you are bf or not. i only stopped bf my ds at 13 months because i dried up.

I am TTC and BF at the moment myself. DD is 10 months now.

My periods returned as soon as she started sleeping through at about 5 months I think. I have had 5 periods v irregular and they have been getting more regular the last one was my first 28 day cycle. I also got a positive with an ovulation stick this month for the first time. But unfortunately didn't manage to get pregnant this time round!

So for me it looks like sleeping through was the key and then fertility returns gradually.

On the weaning front my DD really took to solids and has dropped back on the BF a lot, she now usually has a big feed in the morning and that's it. I think it's different with every baby though. At 5 months she was BF all the time like your DD though. It does get less once they start getting some solids usually I think.

I would start TTC when you want to. You might be able to get pg when bf - some people can, some can't, you'll just have to see how it is for you.

Personally, I ex bf until 6m and 1 wk, then started solids - 2 wks after starting solids, my periods came back, even though I was still bf a lot. However, I wasn't ovulating (checked with opk). I then bf until 13 months. 2 mths after stopping bf, I got pg again. I had been TTC for a few months whilst bf, but couldn't get pg until I stopped feeding. This might not be the case for you so just try it and see.

Re the weaning, won't hurt to wait a week or 2 after the 6 months (IMO). To start with, you can just make up baby rice (all that is needed is a packet of baby rice and some boiled water) or you can just mash a banana up, so if you are away, you won't need much equipment. Also, having waited the 6 months, I found my DS quite easy to wean - they can have most things by that age and they are a bit more developed and the first thing my DS had (banana) was mashed, rather than pureed, although I fed him pureed stuff as well.

I really sympathise with the pg illnesses. I had severe hyperemesis plus a liver disorder whilst pg and was unable to look after DS. I relied heavily on my family and had to move in with my mum.

You can conceive while bfing, esp if feeds decrease. Have your periods returned?

Hi all,

Thanks for your reassuring advice. My periods haven't come back yet and DD still feeds once or twice a night.

It sounds like once she starts on solids, she'll cut down on bm and then maybe we'll get going on number two.

I'm wondering how long babies like to have a bit of bm even when they're mainly on solids, but I suppose this varies.

I remember you having hyperemesis Crokky - that's what I had too. I can't believe I'm contempalting going through that again, but really want more Dcs. I think I'm going to try and have them in a short space of time so then I don't have to think about hyperemesis again for the rest of my life!