TTC and still Breastfeeding? You are not alone - come to our bf-friendly cafe for a chat and some cake!

[MisterSafetyCatchIsNotOn]

Over here all breastfeeding ttcers! Welcome to our thread - a place for us to come for support, information and to talk about the extra challenges of ttc while still breastfeeding (or expressing like myself).

I thought I should go ahead and start the new thread as the old one is about to fill up and I didn't want anyone to get lost (hope that's ok Waiting and that you haven't already done this and I just missed it!)

For anyone who is new to the thread or needs a reminder, here are a few links to some useful websites (thanks Waiting for putting these together)

kellymom.com/bf/normal/ttc-while-bf/

kellymom.com/bf/normal/fertility/

www.llli.org/nb/nbmayjune04p114.html

www.fertilityfriend.com/Faqs/Fertility-charting-while-breastfeeding.html

Hi, I usually just lurk but I have a query and I'm sure you lovely helpful people could help me? I'm 34, still breast feeding my 16 month old and have been trying to conceive no 2 since my DD was 6 months old. I've been using cheapie ov sticks for the last month ( af has yet to return...) and as I had a couple of dark-ish lines both yesterday and today I used my clear blue fertility test which showed a static smiley. I am just concerned whether it's accurate as I ejected and reinserted the stick to check it was in right ( stupid I know) and can the results be skewed if I'm still breast feeding? Sorry for the long first post....

Eagle and zoo I hope your DSs are feeling better and you can enjoy the bank holiday.

Hello Ava I don't think you would have got a static smiley without an LH surge so I would count it as a positive OPK! Ovulation doesn't always follow an LH surge, (if you have PCOS it doesn't always, for example) but I would assume it probably did. Did you dtd anyway? Fingers crossed for you.

Oh and I wouldn't worry about ejecting/reinserting stick, would have thought you would get error message if it affected things.

Thanks so much Gunpowder! We didn't DTD, I'm afraid. By the time we finally got DD off to sleep we were soooo tired. I had another static smiley yesterday evening so there may still be time?

I'm no expert on OPKs, Ava (see my post above about my fail using them for the first time!!) but two smileys in a row sound very promising :)
DS is a good bit better but still very snotty and didn't sleep until almost midnight last night. Yawn.
No Bank Holiday here (I live in Ireland) but just about to collect DS from a half day at nursery.
Symptom spotting for ovulation like crazy at the mo - so tempted to buy the expensive CB ovulation test for next month ...
Hope you're all enjoying a nice Bank Holiday!

I agree with Eagle that two smileys sound very positive. Definitely worth a shot if you have a moment!

eagle the temptation is dreadful isn't it? Still no AF here so have spent a fortune buying lots of different hpts to wee on 'just in case' as well as another dual fertility opk kit for the coming month.

Posting on this thread has made me want to buy all the Judy Blume books on my kindle!

Ps does anyone else squirrel away all their ttc paraphernalia from their DH?

I am forever hiding opks in drawers and stashing egg cups of wee round the place like Howard Hughes so DH thinks I am only seducing him because he is irresistible

Haha gunpowder, I am your twin!!! I was hovering nervously for the postman to bring the OPKs I bought off the Internet so that DH wouldn't see the package and wonder what I was up to.

I secretly bring CB tests to the bin under cover of night .

And I've also felt the urge to splurge on Kindle Judy Blumes since you mentioned it! I might just do it.

Thank you both so much for your messages, much appreciated.

TMI alert - noticed EWCM today for the first time in what seems like forever! Been crazy busy doing up our new house we bought recently (well, six months ago but time is whizzing by) so constantly super tired (what's new, eh?) but really need to DTD ASAP methinks...

Also been searching high and low for my ancient copy of 'Starring Sally J Freedman as Herself' since you guys brought up Judy Blume - loved that book...

Re squirrelling away opks- I think I'm the opposite! I have the tendency to over share... My DH always seems really interested in my daily updates re my possible return to fertility. But today I thought I'd test him and repeat back to me what I'd just said and he just made something up! I have no idea why he doesn't find it as fascinating as I do! Hehe!

I have also sent the odd pic of my cheap opk sticks to my sister to ask for a second opinion on the depth of colour on the second line, and when I bumped into my cousin the other day, and she asked if I had any recent pics of my DD! I happily scrolled through my phone to show her. Unfortunately, when it got to a couple of pics of my opks, instead of keeping schtum I went into details, rambling on... on a quiet, packed train...oops! Wish I had an 'off' switch sometimes...

eagle I am glad I am not the only one. It's even worse when we are expecting PILs. Have to bury the evidence at the bottom of the bin.

Ava I LOVE that you tested your DH! I don't think mine would have a clue either.

Well, I peed on one of the many sticks I bought this morning and looks like Eagle was right last week and I caught the first egg! Not feeling at all pregnant except for tiredness so not convinced just yet, but good to know it can happen anyway and hope it is encouraging.

gunpowder, that's amazing! Hurrah! Great news. And well done for catching that first egg, it must have been an extra good one. A May baby (is that right) - how lovely.

ava, my DH thinks that I'll get pg when he just "puts his mind to it " so that's how much attention he pays to my ramblings about fertility. Hopefully you'll cash in on your smileys anyway!

On CD21 here so have another 12 days to wait judging by my last cycle. Didn't catch a smiley with the OPKs but I'm hoping that the day I got the error message should have been the day of the smiley.

Oh and does this mean that you won't be drinking your witch herbs

Hello ladies, not sure if anyone remembers me as haven't posted for a while after BFP (work went mad, which was hard to manage with MS, then we were away on hols twice). Very sadly we had bad news at 12 week scan - scan on Tues showed moving baby with strong heartbeat but sonographer spotted issues (big cystic mypoma for those interested), went back for second scan on Thursday by which point baby's heart had stopped. Heartbroken. Had op on Saturday. now working on putting body and mind back together. Thankfully general anaesthetic only meant no BF for 24 hours so DD still feeding, which is a great comfort.

Haven't really told people in RL so just needed to say it somewhere. Sorry to dump on you all!

Planning a week of cheese, drink and seafood then will focus on getting body as fit and ready as possible for restarting this whole crazy rollercoaster. This group was so supportive and showed, through all the lovely positive stories, that you can get BFP while BF, so keep on all you ladies, it will happen
x

{{{ MrsConfusion }}} What a horrible shock. Im so sorry. Don't think you are dumping at all. Like you said, ttc and pregnancy are such a roller coaster and we are all here to listen to and support each other. Hope you are looking after yourself and I like your plan of a week of wine, cheese and seafood.

Thank you eagle and yes, witches herbs are off the menu as apparently tiny chance not good in pregnancy (thank goodness!)

Oh, and maybe your LH surge was so huge you caused the error message?!

mrsconfusion, so very sorry to read your post. Condolences on your loss Im glad to hear you're taking comfort in your LO and enjoying close bf time.
I'm sure the days and weeks ahead will be tough. This is the perfect place to unload - sometimes in RL it can be too difficult.

I like the idea that my LH surge was so powerful it broke the test! Maybe I released a super egg .

Hello everyone,

I have been lurking since I said hello a few weeks (months?) ago. 20 month old DD who is massive boob monster has meant I still haven't had AF so I have been trying not to get too excited and thought I would join properly if when AF comes back.

However, just read through and couldn't just leave without offering my condolences to mrsconfusion - so sad. I really feel for you and think your week of wine and cheese sounds great.

I was also slightly encouraged by your news gunpowder (congrats) - so it IS possible to catch the first egg! I have been struggling a bit because with no cycle there is no time to really go for it and DTD and no AF to let you know for sure one way or the other.

I have been beating myself up recently as I went out on Friday and had quite a few too many vinos at my best mates hen do and now I am paranoid that I might be very early pregnant and have pickled the embryo. Plus DD woke up unexpectedly when I got home and demanded a feed so she also got a dose of it. Feeling like such a crap mum.

Anyway, hard to talk to anyone in RL about any of this so I hope you don't mind my posting!

Nice to meet you all!

ThankGoodness I found it really tricky to know without AF too. Things that helped me were charting cm and moods to get in idea of when I thought my cycle wanted to be so I could do opks, (didn't temp as DD is still a terrible sleeper) and telling DD she could only feed in my bed (we went from 10+ feeds a day to 2 or 3).

Oh and wouldn't worry about a pickled embryo/DD. Sure most of us have done at least one of those!

Thanks gunpowder!!!

I have been monitoring CM - and taking swift action upon any sign of EWCM - but not properly charting it or my moods so I might try that and then get hold of some internet cheapie OPKs. I also love the idea of saying to DD that she can only feed in our bed. I honestly don't know how many feeds we do in a day but I invariably wake up every morning with her cemented to my boob.

I have done some reading around the embryo pickling (and the effect of alcohol on fertility in general) and have decided to stop drinking for a while - although it does get a bit depressing when you don't even get the release of having AF when you know you aren't upduffed for sure. I have been feeling so horrifically guilty and imagining poor pickled embryo who almost certainly doesn't exist that it isn't worth it!

*waves to everyone else

Thank you ladies for being so lovely. Pregnancy hormones definitely dropped off sharply now - able to feed without pain for first time in ages, so there's a silver lining. Now trying to enjoy the feeds without worrying (too much....) about whether feeding lots will delay return of AF post-MC. Wish I could turn my head off sometimes and stop thinking.

Physically I'm getting there I think, did a couple of walks today, which is starting to make my body feel like my own again and seemed to help with cramps. Wiped out tonight though so stamina not up to much yet. Determined to get fit (ha ha) and healthy (after the wine-and-cheese fest) so body is in best possible shape once AF does reappear post-MC. And also am totally paranoid that people at work will ask if I'm pregnant when I go back on Monday as I've still got the bulge. Any tips for re-firming tummy in 3 days??

Hope you ladies have nice treats planned for weekend, whether lots of DTD or distracting yourselves during 2ww. We're currently putting up photos from holiday to remind us and DD of lovely times before all this happened.

Thankgoodness don't worry about drinking, we all do it - we went away for major anniversary when I was just preg with DD, didn't know yet and had convinced self I wasn't so I drank, ate cheese, had seafood.... got home, tested and was totally paranoid until GP laughed at my worries. Don't undo all the good of the night out by worrying!