chances of falling pregnant whist breast feeding

[kmcoulter]

thank you so much for all your replys and info, think we have decided to take our chances............. will let you know if and when no 4 happens xx

[krystals]

My mum fell pregnant with my brother while breastfeeding me AND being on the mini pill! I think he was just meant to be LOL.
My period returned almost as soon as DS stopped feeding overnight, so I think that must be a factor. He'd always been exclusively Bfed.

[Becs_bubs]

I was still b/fding 2 hourly (although not exclusively cause he was on solids, but he still fed for quite a while each time) and had missed a few days of the mini pill and fell pregnant this time around I'd suggest using SOMETHING if you don't want another bundle just yet

[mumoftwo<3]

You need to be exclusively and regularly like every 3/4 hours for your body to release the needed hormones.

BUT

I was BF exclusively and using condoms and I got pregnant.

so nothing is fail safe!!

[MantaRay]

There was a study done on this a few years back which showed that exclusive breastfeeding is around 98% effective as a contraceptive (about the same as the pill) for the first 6 months, but only if all the following conditions are met:

- Baby is exclusively breastfed - no solids, formula or other drinks
- The baby feeds at least once during the night - preferably between 1am and 5am as the hormones are higher when you feed at this time
- Your periods haven't returned.

From 6 months solids etc start to be introduced so the effectiveness drops a lot.

However, if you REALLY don't want to get pregnant, it might be an idea to take extra precautions.

The mini-pill can impact on breastfeeding for some mums so it is a good idea to discuss your options with a doctor or family planning clinic.