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Getting Ready for Breastfeeding Getting Ready for Baby — Baby Necessities Getting Ready for Baby — Bringing Baby Home Childbirth — Cesarean Delivery Getting Ready for Baby - Packing for the Hospital What is a Pregnancy Calculator? What is a Chinese Conception Chart? What is Implantation Bleeding? Getting Ready for Baby — Planning your Parenting Style What is an Ovulation Calculator? What is an Ovulation Predictor Kit? What Should I Expect My Second Trimester? What Should I Expect My Third Trimester? What is a High Risk Pregnancy? 10 Tips for Better Sleep During Pregnancy? What is Safe to Eat During Pregnancy? 10 Things Your Non Pregnant Girlfriends Should Know Now That You're Pregnant What Should I Expect in My First Trimester? What is a Professional Labor Assistant? What are Some Safe Medications to take During Pregnancy? Finding or Starting a Mom's Group How to Handle a Sympathetic Pregnancy Is Breastfeeding During Pregnancy Safe? Top 10 Gifts for Pregnant Women 5 Things You Should Never Say to a Pregnant Woman Differences Between an OB and a Midwife Is There a Male Biological Clock? What is Secondary Infertility? Coping with Depression during Pregnancy Coping with Postpartum Depression What Affects How Long You Stay in the Hospital after Delivery? What is Artificial Insemination (IUI)? Unwanted Hair Growth During Pregnancy What is Hyperpigmentation During Pregnancy? |
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Pregnancy While Breastfeeding Written by: Olivia Wallace |
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Many women consider pregnancy while breastfeeding, although breastfeeding is a natural form of birth control. Can you get pregnant while breastfeeding? Definitely, yes, although it may be a little more difficult if you were not still breastfeeding. There is no hard and fast rule which can help you predict if you are fertile during pregnancy, so it may be a process that is more "hit and miss" than usual. Many women use the lactational amenorrhea method as a form of natural birth control if they'd rather not use another form such as an oral contraceptive or IUD. The term amenorrhea refers to the absence of a menstrual period, although one could conceivably get pregnant before menstruation returns. Avoiding a pregnancy while breastfeeding is 98% to 99.5% effective if your baby is under six months old, you have not had a period since you gave birth and are exclusively breastfeeding. A woman's periods return on average 14 ½ months after giving birth if she's breastfeeding, and after six months, the efficacy of breastfeeding as a form of birth control is somewhat reduced. Several other factors can reduce and increase the chance of pregnancy while breastfeeding. Studies show that the more you breastfeed, and the less you augment your baby's diet with solids or formula, the less fertile you are. If you continue to nurse at night after your baby is mostly weaned during the day, you may be less fertile. Conversely, you can increase your fertility and get your periods back faster with a shorter weaning time. If you wean slowly, it may take longer to start menstruating again. Most women do not ovulate with their first period; however some women have gotten pregnant before resuming menstruation. You may have to wait a few months before you're completely fertile, and before your cycles are regular again. More than likely, if you were regular prior to getting pregnant, your cycles will return to normal very soon. If you were irregular, your cycles will probably be similar. If you want to attempt pregnancy while breastfeeding and space your children closer together, try scaling back on nursing, or pumping to bring your fertility back sooner. If you've relied on fertility treatments such as Clomid® to get pregnant in the past, you'll be happy to know that most of these have been found to be safe to use while breastfeeding. Remember, nursing is the body's way of naturally spacing your children — if it is not ready to support pregnancy while breastfeeding, your body will use its own natural birth control to avoid another pregnancy. Since it is definitely possible to get pregnant while breastfeeding, and if having another baby right away is not an option you're willing to consider, talk with your doctor about additional birth control options. |
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