TTC whilst breastfeeding - cycle 4

[ThatNimbleOP]

Hello,

Is there anyone who’d like to join me…

Currently on cycle 4, CD11. Still breastfeeding my nearly 2 year old and co-sleeping, wondering if it’s having an effect on fertility as we conceived in a blink of an eye the first time…trying not to overthink it all.

Anyone welcome to join, don’t have to be breastfeeding, just any support welcome!

Thought last month was the month but here we are again… :/

@Strongbrewplease oh 3 months is rubbish to get it back when your in the thick of it! I had hoped it would come back by now - I'm back to work from maternity leave tomorrow 😭 but maybe extra time away in the day time may bring it back?

Don't feel ready to fully weaning him as much as nights can be brutal! Plus its so easy to get them back to sleep

@OneKookyPinkShaker my periods returned around 14 months but they took a while to regulate, probably another 6 months more.

Tbh they are still a bit random now, they’ll regulate then be longer, this month feels like a super short one…my cycles were pretty much on the money before DD so think the breastfeeding can make it go dodgy based on how much they feed/stress levels in the month - body thinks a tigers going to eat me so no baby here this month 🤣

@Strongbrewplease are you still not testing! I actually found testing early helped because by the time I reached 11DPO I knew to expect my period so mentally prepared. Everyone’s different though!

Has anyone tried insemination? Is it twoplus..,thinking of giving it a go to get more chances in!

Hi all
Welcome to the newbies!
I'm cd13 today and test3d positive for ovulation using cb tests today. It's the first cycle after my mc so taking a positive that I'm ovulating at least and dtd 3 times already. Going to aim to keep going the next couple of days then the dreaded tww. How are you all getting on?

@OneKookyPinkShakeryou could try metabolic load theory to get your period back when breastfeeding, which is basically just eating a lot of extra calories for a month so your body feels there’s enough energy to restart periods. I think it worked for me twice, without trying. Period came back at six months with my first (coinciding with a month travelling and eating out all the time) and at about three months with my second (also after a month travelling and eating out all the time)

I’m hopeful I can rejoin you in a month or so. The broodiness hasn’t gone away and so we are re-discussing another 🤞

@january1244 I have been trying to up calories as read a few articles and just seem to be gaining weight but we'll see how it goes!

I also read about the progesterone challenge so I'm on day 6 of the mini pill and will stop on Thursday.

My cycle came back at 16 months with my second and it coincided with Xmas and a holiday in Jan where I was eating loads so definitely think that signaled something to my body! My cycles are taking time to regulate though, they are bag in 28 days (as they were for pregnancy) but I’m ovulating around CD18, so my luteal phase is short. It’s getting longer each month though as ovulation shifts forward by a day. I think my luteal phase was 11 days when I was still breastfeeding my first and got pregnant with my second.
Im CD2 now, first month of TTC was unsuccessful (as I expected), on to the next cycle 😊

Hi everyone,

How are we all?

Small update for this cycle, thought I ovulated early and in fact looks like I ovulated CD18 in the end! Just goes to show, breastfeeding while TTC makes your cycle all over the place and my bodies signals are so quiet - before pregnancy I just “knew” also fancied every man in sight, no the case now haha!

Also interesting, I had a private fertility check and they mentioned my endometrium lining was on the thinner side (CD 16). I’ve read on another thread how breastfeeding can keep your lining thin and sounds like it might just be the case for me! Could be why nothings happening.

Also phoned the doctor again and they’ve told me for the third time it’s the breastfeeding and I need to stop if I’m serious about a second! Thanks docs…

So there we go, some thoughts for you ladies. Either way, weaning is fast approaching. Mid-July, we shall see after that 😊

Hi @ThatNimbleOP, that's what kept happening to me. I kept ovulating day 18 or 19 when breastfeeding. The docs said the same about stopping breastfeeding to me and were of no use. I do wonder if that's why I had my mc cause the lining was too thin but they said there was no reason at the hospital...
Anyway hope the weaning goes well and is easier than expected. I seemed to ovulate on cd13 and gave it a good go dtd every day! 8 dpo now...

@Samsi17 yeah it's weird though because last few months were 27/28/29, seems to flip flop about between early and late. Common theme being inconsistent! Again, so hard to tell if it's the BF'ing or normal but i know i was super regular pre-baby.

Re: your miscarriage, that could well be possible! You've completely weaned now though?

I haven't even had a line which is the weird thing...presuming if it implanted there would be some HCG so maybe it just can't even get to that point. It's funny because there/s been 2/3 months where i was "sure" i was pregnant. May well have been the case.

Oh 8DPO! Have you done any testing? I think i'm 2DPO now so we can keep each other company :) Also managed it 5 times this month - go us!! Normally it's 1 😵

Hi @ThatNimbleOP
Yes completely weaned now, babe is almost 17 months and has adapted well. I miss it though at points! But I'd only just started when I got pregnant last time. Maybe there's no correlation i guess I'm just looking for a reason why it happened...
I just felt my body was hyper sensitive to hormones when breastfeeding ad I'd been ttc for months but maybe it was just coincidence...
No, no testing. I've decided not to until my period is due. It mentally destroys me if I get a negative and after last mc I guess I'll have a bit of anxiety even if it was a positive so the later I know the better in a way is my crazy logic! Will you test?

@Samsi17 completely get you! My little one is 2.5 now which is insane...did always know i wanted to BF this long if not longer but had no idea it would be getting in the way of conceiving. My doctor actually said that the women who conceive whilst BF'ing are more unicorn then not...i was also thinking about speaking to La Leche League, they're great for this.

Doc also said it can take 1 year after BF'ing for hormones/endo lining to return to normal levels, eek!

Every woman's body is different/individual...factors like nutrition/stress and environment all factor in as well. Our bodies can sense if it's the environment for a baby to be brought into right?

Yes i'm gonna test! Weirdly gives me less anxiety, if i get negatives by 10/11DPO normally know i'm out so can prepare myself mentally :)

Also, i'm really focusing on my health/excercise now and trying to lose a little weight. Helps with TTC because no being pregnant obviously works better for this haha!

@ThatNimbleOP that's amazing you've gone so long, well done!
Thats interesting from your doctor as I just seem to read and hear lots of women who get pregnant while breastfeeding so I found it quite frustrating! It's just age is against me so I'm keen for it to happen sooner...
Yeah I know, it just obviously wasnt meant to be but frustratingly I was as healthy as ive ever been. C'est la vie...
Yeah I understand about the tests! Good luck when it comes! AF is due in 8 days so will keep you updated also!

Just reading these latest comments, I wanted to saw that I don’t think it’s unicorn at all to conceive while breastfeeding! Not that I’m an export but biologically it doesn’t make sense that your body would ovulate if you weren’t ready to carry a child. Our bodies are wise etc etc etc. Obviously it may take time for cycles to fully regulate and fertility might not be optimal for a while (I’m dealing with late ovulation and short luteal phase) but it’s all steps in the right direction, as far as I see it. Hopefully I’m not being too optimistic about it 😅

Hey hope everyone is okay. Just wanted to check others experiences. I've been back to work 4 days a week now so only feeding morning and evening for 3 weeks and I'm currently on day 7 of night weaning - the wakes up were too intense for to deal with on condensed hours at work though feeling very guilty!

Do you think this may be enough to trigger return of periods? He is still a boob monster days I'm with him x

@BB3Hopefully i know, tbh I think the doctors are just dismissing me because everything else is normal. They won’t investigate because I’m breastfeeding…had AMH count too through works insurance and all normal. Consultant there said breastfeeding can impact endo lining or the hormones can affect it. So in theory your body is ovulating/ready for a baby but the hormones are effecting implantation. Guess everyone reacts differently to these hormones just like every woman has different cycles and experiences etc.

We’re all uniquely different and can’t slap a label on anything tbh.

@OneKookyPinkShaker it might do! It’ll come when your bodies ready i guess…not helpful at all though I know! Think 14 months is average up to 2 years (whilst breastfeeding)

Also CD11, testing negative y’day so pretty sure I’m out! Period due Saturday 🙌

Sorry to hear you're out @ThatNimbleOP

I can't believe I'm writing this but I got a BFP 2 days ago when my period was due... in Portugal on holiday with my LO, and I'm struggling to feel any excitement since the mc a couple of months ago though... Just hoping it sticks.. x

@ThatNimbleOPyes I was told the same, and nearly all the research I did suggested I’d be sub fertile breastfeeding. It’s why I didn’t really worry about it (my fertility) last time until I stopped, and then I was pregnant the next month.

Ive just fully weaned my daughter now and my period after that has been horrific, extremely heavy, and not nice. I’m wondering if my lining was sub-optimum and now it’s clearing out all the old not good stuff. I’ve been having regular periods for well over a year (they came back at 3 months).

@OneKookyPinkShakerhopefully they will! It’s so individual.

@Samsi17congratulations!! That’s brilliant news

My periods when breastfeeding were super light too, they’d hardly last a day of actual bleeding! My luteal phase was so short too

@Samsi17 wow!! Congratulations, you're getting more BFPs then all of us put together :D Fingers crossed for a sticky bean.

@january1244 fascinating! I tried night weaning the other day but she was so distressed; just couldn't do it. We're still in temporary housing until our house purchase is complete, that alongside my partner being off for the summer, hoping to be all done by end of August! I'm reading up about gentle weaning techniques though, don't offer, don't refuse?

Really interesting about your period...were they lighter then normal then?

@OneKookyPinkShaker this woman's website is fascinating https://www.carolsmyth.co.uk/ you could also try la leche league helpline, i found them very helpful at the beginning of breastfeeding and heck maybe i should call them now as well!

@BGxxx wow, keep these anecdotes coming...this is all so interesting. So it has to be more about a suboptimal lining then the process of ovulation itself then...so we could in theory be fertilising eggs each month but implantation is just void.

I think this fits because some months i've really "felt" pregnant and "felt" implantation. I also had a faint line in January which fizzled to nothing...followed by a longer cycle (37 day) the following month which can also be a sign of a chemical.

I've started taking L-arginine to try and build my womb lining up, only been couple of weeks though so don't expect a result anytime soon.

I don’t think it helped I was ovulating so late in my cycle too. I’m not sure if that then effects the hormones after implantation? Either way my lining must of been so thin, and was shedding so early!!

I stopped feeding in Feb after the ectopic, had 2 periods which were more typical, like 4 days long and just a normal amount of bleeding. I concieved on the 2nd cycle trying and am 8 weeks at the moment. I have found life a bit easier with my toddler now I’m not feeding anymore which is actually a bit sad 🤣 I hated when people would say she’d sleep better if you didn’t breastfed or she’d be happier to be with other people if I stopped but it has actually been true! I wouldn’t of stopped if it wasn’t for the ectopic though

It can definitely lead to sub-fertility, and late ovulation and short luteal phase are the classic signs. Prolactin inhibits LH production, which depresses ovulation, and it also inhibits progesterone, which "weakens" the luteal phase (progesterone builds up your lining) even if you do ovulate. I've been finding that My cycles have regularised to 29 days since January when they came back, but I'm ovulating at different times, it started off around CD22, and it's moved earlier and earlier each month; most recently I o'd on CD15. This signals to me that my body is figuring out the balance, and it's moving towards fertility rather than subfertility. My LH is peaking at a fairly normal time, and my Luteal phase is getting longer and longer (meaning my progesterone levels are balancing out and not being as inhibited by the prolactin). When I conceived my 2nd while breastfeeding I was seeing the same pattern, but my cycle normalised much quicker than it is this time around! My first was only nursing maybe twice per day and a few times overnight, whereas my second is boob-obsessed and would sit and nurse all day if I let him.

Oh congrats as well then @BGxxx !!

@BB3Hopefully interesting! Also found this from when i originally posted, way back in Jan lol 😥

From another poster:

With my first son I conceived on my first cycle so I naively thought the same would happen again the next time round.
We TTC number two whilst I was still breastfeeding my first son and to be honest I didn’t think it would cause any problems as you hear of women getting pregnant all the time whilst breastfeeding.
My periods had been back for over 18 months at this point (breastfeeding hadn’t stopped them unfortunately) and my cycles were regular so I assumed I was just as fertile as I had been when TTC number 1.
However, after 10 months (so about 11
cycles) of negative pregnancy tests I went to see my GP.
She told me that the act of breastfeeding can affect conception in some women, not because it affects ovulation or fertility, but because of the hormonal effect it can have on the endometrium wall. She explained that for some women, the hormones produced alongside breastfeeding can cause the endometrium wall to be thinner and/or of a lesser quality than usual, and as a result it cannot maintain a pregnancy.
She said that for all of the 11 cycles I had been TTC I could have conceived each and every time, but that if the endometrium wall wasn’t of a good enough quality to allow the fertilised egg to embed within it then pregnancy could not occur. She said if this were the case then the fertilised eggs would come to nothing and I would be having my periods as normal.
She came from a background of gynaecology so I trusted what she said and she seemed to know her stuff.
Anyhow, after thinking about it for a few weeks I decided to stop breastfeeding and then much to my happiness, I got a positive pregnancy test 6 weeks later.

Maybe that's why some women can/can't conceive whilst breastfeeding, we all have different endometriums!