What are the chances??? ***Warning - TMI***

**Pretty Butterfly** · April 8th, 2008, 11:44 AM

Ash, any news babe???

**_JeSs_** · April 8th, 2008, 12:21 PM

there we go purplemama's the proof :P hehe!!

let us know soon ash!

**Pretty Butterfly** · April 8th, 2008, 04:24 PM

Your very quiet Ash, hope all is ok babe....

**SallyJ** · April 8th, 2008, 09:50 PM

Well going on my own experience - I have had two children and with both of them I had lochia for the full 6 weeks - you cannot surely be serious that you can ovulate 6 weeks after giving birth while your body is still adjusting its post-partum hormones. I can understand some women might get their fertility back in a couple of months, but not before you've even had your first checkup.

My midwives and docs also said no intercourse for 6 weeks, because everything isn't closed you can leave yourself open for infections.

Though I must say, the thing that shocks me the most is that you have the energy to DTD with a 6 week old baby! LOL

**Liviam** · April 8th, 2008, 10:10 PM

Any news Ash? Hope everything is going OK.

**Trillian** · April 8th, 2008, 10:43 PM

SallyJ, I know 5 women who have babies less than 12mths apart - two of those had two babies in the same year, 10mths apart. I was actually told to at least attempt DTD before 6wks so if there were any issues I could discuss them at my 6wk check up. But naturally if you have lochia that would be offputting.

**Zee** · April 8th, 2008, 11:07 PM

Sally- I dont know how its so either but I was told the same thing at the hospital after having DD (Like an hr after having her LOL) that it would be best to DTD before my 6 week check up incase there are problems providing that I wasnt bleeding (Unless I fancied that)but to make sure DH wore a condom as your very fertile after having a baby (1st 6-8 weeks).

Ash- How are you hun??

**The[cookie]Doctor** · April 9th, 2008, 02:34 AM

Hi everyone i have been out for the day (and night!).
BT came back negative!
I guess we are 'pleased' with the result, but also disappointed. If it weren't for all the other things we've said we'd do first it would have been perfect.

I didn't have any tearing or stitches so i was told that i could DTD whenever i felt comfortable and like Lindsay said, providing the bleeding had stopped, which mine did at 2 weeks, if i "could" before my six week check up in case there were any problems.
As for the energy he feeds four hourly and goes six-eight hours overnight, with a very helpful DP so I'm very lucky to have the energy.

Of course my luck is about to change as DS has developed Reflux

But that's a whole other thread!!

Thanks everyone for your advice and support. What would i do without BB, lol!!

**Cricket** · April 9th, 2008, 06:57 AM

Well going on my own experience - I have had two children and with both of them I had lochia for the full 6 weeks - you cannot surely be serious that you can ovulate 6 weeks after giving birth while your body is still adjusting its post-partum hormones. I can understand some women might get their fertility back in a couple of months, but not before you've even had your first checkup.

I know a woman who found out she was pregnant again at her six week check-up. It does happen!
As far as desire goes, we find it so wonderful for stress relief, we can hardly wait to resume DTD! So we might be the next couple you hear about with babies 10 months apart.

Glad to hear that all is well Ashlea. (at least, aside from the reflux.)

**_JeSs_** · April 9th, 2008, 07:14 AM

ash, oh i was the same! im doing another test in a week or so to be sure, but i really wouldnt have bothered me if i was preg again, would be quite good to have kids so close together! and HE wants one too lol and was quite disapointed when i told him i wasnt preg LOL.. weird

im sure u's will have another one when u are ready!

**Pretty Butterfly** · April 9th, 2008, 07:29 AM

Well i'm glad all is ok, and i'm sure #2 will be on its way when your good and ready!!!

I have only bled for a few days with each of my babies, and the longest it has taken to dtd again was a week, due to stitches!!!

the soonest was 4 days, after Za. He was a hour labour, out of hossie the next day, and no bleeding after 3 days. I guess i'm just lucky... I think!!!

**SallyJ** · April 9th, 2008, 04:55 PM

So these women who were pg at the 6 week checkup, were they breastbeeding or bottlefeeding? This is the exception rather than the rule. Hospitals will tell you to use birth control no matter what, they are just covering themselves. I know many women who have one or more children and none of them (who were breastfeeding) had their fertility return earlier than 4 or 5 months. A friend got pg with a 5 month old but she was bottlefeeding. My own DH & his sister are 14 months apart, but were both bottlefed.

There are good natural reasons for this, if the baby has its milk supply interfered with by a pregnancy they may not thrive (I am talking evolutionary reasons here not the availability of alternative food).
Regarding DTD within 6 weeks of giving birth, obviously advice has changed since the last time I delivered, but it certainly used to be strongly advised against. And as I said before, I am amazed & impressed that you'd have the energy with a weeks old baby!

Editing to add, don't forget the lochia is not just red, it is also white, so bleeding for a couple of days does not mean lochia is ended.

Editing again to add, Ashnant, enjoy your new baby, and hope you do manage to fit in all those things you said you'd do before ttc for your second.

**The[cookie]Doctor** · April 15th, 2008, 09:28 PM

Hmmm seems i was destined to get AF back quickly regardless of how high my prolactin levels were / how much i was BFing... for the last twelve days we've been feeding 2 - 3 hrly (as opposed to four before) and she's still decided to make her return...

I really would like to know why this is so different and varied across different women. Not fair!!!

**Cricket** · April 16th, 2008, 12:58 AM

I'm with you on that one! Surely it would be much more fair if after going through labour, delivery, night feedings, etc, etc, we were allowed at least a one year break from AF.

There should be a rule!

paradise lost · April 16th, 2008, 02:40 AM

Ash i feel your pain. My AF came back at 6weeks on the dot only a week after my lochia stopped - i had it at my six week check up and it came back 4 weekly from there so i guess it was really AF. I BFed DD fully for 4.5months, then supp'd with FF until 7months then weaned her. I think some of it might be genetic.

SallyJ my mother had her first 3 kids in 3 years and both times was pregnant already at her 6 week check-up. She fully BFed each baby until her milk went, both times at about the 16th week of the next PG, she continued to feed as long as they would suck even without milk but both boys were impatient and refused the breast once it was consistently empty. She said the midwives insisted, even after her second was born, that BFing would cover her.

As Barb will tell you, BFing is only a good contraceptive IF AF stays away. If AFcomes back all bets are off and they don't know why some women's ovaries are less responsive to prolactin than others.

My mother said she remembered the check-ups very well, both times she'd had minor tearing they wanted to check was healed well and both times they used a speculum to check her cervix was closed. It was closed, and BLUE (chadwick's sign - symptom of PG). She said the second time she was feeding #2 in the waiting room and the doctor got a bunch of students in to see that BFing wasn't always effective. The worst thing for my mum was that #1 walked very late so at one point she had THREE children that couldn't walk yet!

I have also fallen pregnant on the Pill, i think because i'm big (i'm 5'11" and was 95kg when i fell PG) the standard dose might have been borderline for me.

Bx