So I'm EBFing, NEVER supplemented with formula, DS is at my breast 24/7 even throughout the night since I only get 3 hour stretches overnight from him. During the day he eats every 1 1/2-2 hours (he's a good eater lol). Pre-pregnancy I had NO periods, not even spotting, in fact I was told I was probably infertile!
Therefore, I was hoping to enjoy 4-6 months of natural birth control & the convenience of not having a period...then whaddaya know? Over the weekend at 7 1/2 weeks PP I got my first period! Anyone else get their period already? At how many weeks PP did you get it? Sucks for me too because it also seems my milk supply has plummeted since AF came to town ![]()
Re: What are the odds of THIS????
My Blog on PPD and life in general**
Corbin | born 4.19.12
Baby boy #2 | due 4.13.15
I also EBF and had a major 1.5 week bleeding session starting at six weeks.
There's a thing called the 'sixth week bleed' in BFing women which is supposedly NOT your period, but has to do with hormone levels changing due to BFing.
This was cited on another forum and I swiped it:
In a recent study, where postpartum bleeding in nursing mothers was evaluated, any bleed, less than 56 days (nine weeks) into the postpartum period was considered a sixth-week bleed, if it was separated from the lochia (post-birth vaginal discharge) by at least four days where no bleeding occurred. A little over one fourth of all breastfeeding mothers in this study experienced a sixth-week bleed, though only 10 percent of these women actually resumed their period at this time.
In this study of 485 nursing mothers, it was found that the average duration of lochia is 27 days. It is not affected by frequency of nursing. It is common for postpartum bleeding to stop and restart. Postpartum bleeding is still considered to be lochia if it is has continued without an episode of at least four bleeding-free days. If bleeding begins less than four days after it has stopped it is still considered to be one episode.
When a nursing mother does experience a sixth-week bleed, there is more likelihood that she will experience an earlier return of ovulation and her menses. (Visness C.M. et al. The duration and character of postpartum bleeding among breast-feeding women. Obstet Gynecol 1997;89:159-63)
Unfortunately there's sooo little information out there on it, and although it's unlikely that you (or me) are resuming fertility at this point, it's hard to want to take that gamble, even if the odds are in our favor. As my lactation consultant put it to me, if you can't bear the thought of getting pregnant again right now, assume it is your period and use protection.
I didn't want to but I took my first mini-pill yesterday
however, if you wanted to take more of a 'wait-and-see' approach to determine if it really is your period, you could always use condoms until you see if it comes again next month.