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

[eagle2010]

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.

Seeing as I filled up the old thread I thought I should start the new one!

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). I hope I've worked the links properly.

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

Hide ~ the only thing good with a short cycle is your next chance comes around quicker

Pear I'm not sure I'm quite ready to cut down yet. Maybe another few months of trying. Any news on your cbfm today?

Also put in a pad and now just have very dark brown blood which has slowed. Never seen anything like it almost black. (Tmi) Maybe it's implantation! I think I just panicked earlier and assumed AF. Could still be though!

Take if back...I'll have to cut out the morning feed. The night feed would never work!

Hide ~ yup still no change on the cbfm. Still showing low fertility

Dark brown blood...hmm. A lot? Or just spotting?

No I think it is AF. Let's hope next month is our lucky one! October is a lovely month to have a birthday

Bugger! Totally agree. October is a lovely month however at this rate I would be closer to an early November baby. How did that happen? I'm sure it was only yesterday that I was avoiding an August baby!

Hallo ye maidens of breastfeeding! Many fertile wishes to you, and good luck with the decisions to cut down.
I was wondering how people physically felt when their hormones started returning to pre-pg states after cutting down. Last night was the third night of no bf-ing between 8pm and 4am, and last night DC seemes to finally be happy with the bottle for night-feeds. Also dropped a day-feed yesterday.
Yesterday I felt a bit dizzy, which I just glossed over, but last night when I got up to prepare the bottle I felt really out of it, and this morning I've been terribly dizzy and nauseous. No other environmental factors I can discern, so wondering if this is to do with the cutting back? Anyone else had any similar symptoms when they tried to kickstart their cycles?

Ooooooo sheesh kebab! My AF CbFm has shown me this morning that I've peaked! Ahhhhhhhh! Why has that happened???? I'm meant to get 2 days warning!! The cheapie OPK is also confirming this plus the pain in my left ovary. Crap!! I haven't DTD because I was saving it all up. DH won't be home until tonight. I've missed my chance of having a girl or any chance at all haven't I? Someone calms me down!!!

Ha ha I'm so panicked I called it AF CbFM!! What have we learnt from this ladies??? Listen to your downstairs department. Don't depend on the stupid sticks

Pear make your DH come home early! Or if not as soon as he gets home. Don't panic there is still hope...

Austra I remember feeling dizzy and nauseous before my AF returned. Have you POAS just in case you've caught before?!

Hello ladies! Finally i find you again as I think this is the thread for me.

Info:
1 DD, 19 months old now, still BFing although finally (finally, thank the lord) we've night weaned so now down to around three feeds a day (morning, when i get in from work, bedtime) although even those she is starting to shorten.

Got my AF back about February last year, which at the time I was appaulled by - DD 8 months, I'd just gone back to work in a new job (after moving house when DD was 4 months and me being very ill requiring a week long stay in hospital at 5 months) and felt in no way able to have another, i was shocked my body was suggesting otherwise.

Now I feel like we are ready, or certainly ready to get ready for another. I'm on day three of my cycle and have started charting (any good iphone app recommendations for this).

My cycle came back regularly from the start but has been on the short side for me (23-25 days) with spotting at the start. I'm pretty sure I ovulate (get the stretchy whites). When we conceived DD one i had a compromised luteal phase following a mini pill that disagreed with me (also short cycles and horrible brown discharge before AF arrived). Sorted easily with the help of a private gynecologist (who gave me some hormones to help boost that phase of my cycle, though i think not clomid).

My just gone cycle has been a more normal length for me (27 days), though 6 days of spotting bright red before AF started proper.

I'm reading 'Taking Charge of Your Fertility' for info on charting and understanding my cycle.

My info to share: I learned that for me the ovulation kits were predicting ahead of time. The clear blue kits gave me a smile face fertile on the wednesday. I saw the gynecologist that friday, she gave me the hormone, scanned me and said 'you will ovulate tonight, go home and DTD lots this weekend.' We did, and lo DD one is here. there were definitely cycles before when, struggling to fit things in, we probably DTD too early.

Things I'd love to hear your thoughts on:
What to eat / drink / supplement to support the luteal phase (as i think the until now short cycle and spotting days before AF suggest I may this)?
What timing is best to increase the chances of having a boy?

Looking forward to getting to know you all, good luck and baby dust all round for BFPs in January!

Hello everyone!

Wow this thread got busy!

Just had a quick read through... sorry for mega post!!
Pear I TOTALLY know what you mean. I feel like my life is on hold and oscillate between feeling quite down about the whole thing to feeling that I should be enjoying the time I have to concentrate on DD before we have another one. It is really hard. In one of the weekend papers (I think it is the times) they have a cartoon which is supposed to be "inside the mind of {insert celebrity name}" and then they have things like "I'm thinking 60% how beautiful i am, 20% how amazing my next film will be" etc. Well, I think if I did that of me it would be 90% TTC / DC2 and 10% everything else. Actually quite boring to be honest. Especially since I have felt like this for 12 long months! Bring on the AF!!!

And definitely agree with your point about listening to your body and not to a stick. They CAN be wrong - whether it's OPK or HPT. fingers crossed if you DTD ASAP you can still catch the egg. And who knows, perhaps even a girl - I don't think it's guaranteed that DTD after ovulation is definitely going to produce a boy.

Hide that is rubbish!! If I were you I would probably POAS in a couple of days just in case it was a v heavy implantation bleed... although I admit it doesn't sound likely if it is quite heavy. Fingers crossed you will be in for a better go next month.

Austral can't help on the hormones front as you know I haven't had AF back yet but it does sound like it could be connected. Or you could be pg... or of course it could be a virus (funny how when you're TTC you assume everything is related to that isn't it? Or is that just me?!)

Dougal welcome! I don't know much about the luteal phase I am afraid but I have heard that if you want to TTC a boy you should orgasm AFTER DTD and try to DTD as close to ovulation as possible because the boy swimmers are faster but not as long-lived as the girl swimmers so they can only "win" if the egg is already around. Otherwise they die off and slow and steady girl sperm wins the race. But who knows!? Probably all an old wives tale! Good luck anyway!

Nothing to report in frazzled-land. Still on 1 feed a day. It's been over a week now and still no ovulation that I can tell (have been doing OPKs and only got the faintest of faintest line). CM all over the place with the odd bit of what might be heading-towards EW but not really anything to get excited about. If it takes 4 weeks to get things moving then I guess I just need to be patient. Which is REALLY not my strong suit.

Also, I am sick of this miserable weather. Please can we have summer now? And / or some kind of windfall so that we could afford a holiday somewhere warm and sunny??

Please can we have summer now?
This made laugh! Which I needed! You know February is still coming, right?!

Posted too soon!
Haven't POAS, because it seems really unlikely. We are not exactly DTD every day at the moment. More like sleeping whenever possible! I hope it is like you say though, hormones preceding AF. I might ask DP to pick up a cheapie test if this happens again tonight/tomorrow morning.

Hi ladies,
Just checking in with you all. Now on CD 36, no sign of AF but also no pregnancy symptoms either, so am in no man's land. Going to test a week, but not feeling very confident.
DS is barely feeding now, just once in the morning. austra think it was you who was asking about how soon AF returned after stopping bf. For me, I had AF within a few weeks of night weaning, so I think that was what made the difference to me.

Wow this thread is moving so fast! Love it :-)

Hide ~ I have done just that. FX!!

Dougal ~ Hello! Welcome :-) My DS is also 19 months. I recommend the My Days App. So, I always thought that your chances for having a boy increases if you DtD as close to ovulation as possible...you clearly did that first time round and got a girl so that is not very helpful advice!

Frazzled ~ That's me too. 90% TTC and toddler minded :-) GMTA huh?!!

Newtoall - Have you done any extra feeding to delay AF? Anything out of the ordinary that you can think of? You must be going potty

P.S sorry if I missed anyone in my last post. Currently swinging legs in air and have cramp in my hands from holding phone and typing at weird angle

Oooo Frazzled I don't want to get your hopes up but I got the faintest of faintest line on OPK 3-4 days a go and then nothing and then today 2 strong lines so maybe...just maybe you're getting close

Ooh that would be exciting pear!! DH and I are going to aim to DTD every other day for the foreseeable future (meaning we will probably manage every 3-4 days) just in case something happens out of the blue! LOL at you with your legs in the air! I was doing that earlier then got bored and gave up - didn't seem worth it as I am almost certainly not ovulating quite yet!!

Austral ugh don't remind me! I would be quite happy to skip straight into May now.... Wish I could at least book a holiday but neither me not DH have job security at the moment so not a good time to spend a lot of money but obviously a brilliant time to TTC

New I have POAS with much less reason but then I think I might be slightly addicted...

Right, must go to bed now to get my ovulation beauty sleep!

Hi all... was hoping I could (re)join you on this thread I have 2 DDs, 27m and nearly 8m and am ttc no 3. I was on this thread a couple of years back and was lucky enough to conceive my 2nd DD while bf my eldest, so hoping for some more good vibes again

I haven't actually got AF back yet, so it's still all rather theoretical, but am hoping it'll happen soon. After DD1 I got AF back at 7m, but haven't had so much of a whisper of fertile signs yet this time, so starting to get a bit antsy DD2 hasn't fed at night for ages (she doesn't sleep all night, just rarely wakes up hungry!) but she has dropped 2 feeds in the past month so I've got my fingers and toes crossed that AF can't be too far away It took me over 2 years ttc DD1 so I've still got that worry that my fertility is pretty crap in the back of my mind though.

Quick wave out to madrigals if you're still lurking out there? You must be either just about to or have just popped iirc? Hope things are great either way

Hi all... was hoping I could (re)join you on this thread I have 2 DDs, 27m and nearly 8m and am ttc no 3. I was on this thread a couple of years back and was lucky enough to conceive my 2nd DD while bf my eldest, so hoping for some more good vibes again

I haven't actually got AF back yet, so it's still all rather theoretical, but am hoping it'll happen soon. After DD1 I got AF back at 7m, but haven't had so much of a whisper of fertile signs yet this time, so starting to get a bit antsy DD2 hasn't fed at night for ages (she doesn't sleep all night, just rarely wakes up hungry!) but she has dropped 2 feeds in the past month so I've got my fingers and toes crossed that AF can't be too far away It took me over 2 years ttc DD1 so I've still got that worry that my fertility is pretty crap in the back of my mind though.

Quick wave out to madrigals if you're still lurking out there? You must be either just about to or have just popped iirc? Hope things are great either way

Hmmm apologies for the double post! My internet connection is dodgy as at the moment and it cut out half way through!

No dizziness or nausea today. So probably not a lucky break on the pg front , but still holding out hope the previous two days' feeling rubbish was AF related.
DC almost slept through last night for only the second time in whole 9 months of existence! 9pm-4.30am (with a wake-up but no feed at 2.30am.) Only those with lousy day and night time sleepers will understand how amazing this event was! :)
Hallo eggs!

pear - no, don't think I've been doing any extra feeding. I've only had 3 AFs since August so my cycles are crazily long atm. Would love it if I was pg, but don't think I am. Will def be POAS next week though!

frazzled - think DH and I will have to dtd every other day for about 3 months, just in case.

It's all so annoying, isn't it? DS seems to naturally be self- weaning - think I might need to wean completely.

Ladies using ok sticks, do you just use them once a day, everyday? I have the cheap Amazon ones but have just been a bit ad hoc with them!