These past few weeks I've been experiencing PMS symptoms and mild cramping and was so sure I'd be starting my period soon (for the first time since being preggo with #2) but its been 2.5 weeks and absolutely nothing...With my first son, I unexpectedly started right around 10/11months. Right now its about 6 months into nursing my 2nd son. Has anyone experienced something like this? Is it something like when your pregnant you might have mild cramping around when your cycle would normally have started? I don't know quite what to think at this point? But am pretty uncomfortable with the bloating and cramping..I would just like to start and be over with already?? Any thoughts?
edit: I'm not on any birth control...my son was very finicky with nursing when I tried so we're using non hormonal BC (just condoms). My supply has been up and down like crazy lately.I think partly because my son has been erratic with his feedings, I think he's teething :( and I've just started introducing some solids as well,. But I don't have any plans on weaning any time soon. I'm actually really confused as to why I haven't started...and now I have all the symptoms and nothing to show for it...I'm pretty much already back to my pre pregnancy weight...does you uterus really continue to shrink 6 months postpartum?
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I breastfed all 4 of my children and I can remember having the cramping and bloating too. It's most likely just your uterus contracting back down to it's pre-pregnancy size. It's actually a great thing!! :) That's one of the benefits of breastfeeding. It can help you lose the baby weight faster! :)
~ Ann
Ann M. couldn't have said it better. My friend while nursing started unexpectedly also, but that was too around 9-10 months into nursing. Your body is just trying to get back to normal. I understand how you feel though... paranoid and nothing! I guess only time will tell. Hang in there.
when that happened to me I had a syst so it could be that, but I would take a test just in case :)
I breastfed all 4 of my children and I didn't have periods for 9-18 months. When I did start, I didn't have PMS or cramping with periods but I remember having that for the first few months after baby was born. I did lose weight quickly and with my 4th lost all my weight in 5 months. I felt it though... not bad but it could be annoying. Just be sure you're getting plenty of fluids while nursing. If you had a tubal ligation or if you're on birth control, that could effect things too. Good luck and CONGRATULATIONS!
You might think about taking a home pregnancy test. Our boys are 15 months apart and I never had a period. I didn't know I was pregnant for a while. Hope you are feeling better soon and Congrats on your baby and nursing.
Updated
You might think about taking a home pregnancy test. Our boys are 15 months apart and I never had a period. I didn't know I was pregnant for a while. Hope you are feeling better soon and Congrats on your baby and nursing.
Perhaps you're pregnant. It's possible to get pregnant before you get your first period after delivery, especially if you're not using birth control. T.
I am just thinking it may take longer to get your period back this time?? Are you weaning right now? I have been very slowly reducing my breastfeeding/pumping over the last 3-4 months with my 11 mo. daughter, and I am experiencing the same thing - esp. the bloating. Just waiting patiently for my period to come back too. I don't know what else it would be, so I'm curious what others will say.
Another pregnancy is definitely a possibility, so a test is a good idea! :) How are your nipples feeling? If they're suddenly super tender when you nurse, that's another pretty good sign that you might be pregnant.
The erratic feedings are very likely to trigger the return of your cycles, and as another poster mentioned it is possible to get pregnant before your first post-pregnancy period if you happen to catch the egg from your first ovulation. It could also just be your body starting to shift back into gear because with the drop in feeding frequencies - some breastfeeding women menstruate without ovulating for their first cycle or two. This is more likely to happen if your periods come back before 6 months post partum.
If you are indeed pregnant with #3, there is ABSOLUTELY no need to wean your 6 month old, unless you decide it's the best path for you both. Find a copy of "Adventures in Tandem Nursing" by H. Flower and read it - it's a fantastic guide for women who need to decide if they are up for nursing during pregnancy and tandem nursing.
I am now 12 weeks pregnant with #2 and still nursing my 15.5 month old - aside from the painful nipples we are doing quite well. I'm hoping my supply continues to hold out (and that she won't mind the taste of the colostrum when it comes in) because neither of us are ready for her to wean quite yet. Obviously, with a baby under one year old, if your milk supply decreases significantly due to the pregnancy you'd need to supplement with formula. But the concerns that a number of doctors have about breastfeeding during pregnancy causing pre-term labor are based on out dated information, as Ms. Flower explains in great detail in her book.
If you are pregnant and do decide to continue to breastfeeding your son, be sure to find a provider who won't cause you to continually second guess your decision.
Good luck!
HP
