Has anyone got pregnant while breastfeeding?

[YouMaySayImADreamer]

I am currently breastfeeding my 2 month old DS. I do not want to go on the pill because of past problems with migraines etc, however there are no other forms of bc that appeal to us!

I know that bf provides some amount of natural contraceptive but am wondering what anyones experiences are of this?

When DS was conceived we had been using the withdrawal method for 8 months with success. Around the time i became pregnant i had gone back in the pill for a month because i had a wedding that i did not want to be on my period for. During this time we didnt use withdrawal as believed we were covered by the pill. We think DS was probably conceived when i came back off the pill somewhere in the transition rather than as a result of relying on withdrawal which i have heard is around 80% effective.

With the natural contraceptive of bf and using the withdrawal method would it be a fairly safe bet that i wont become pregnant would people think?

[Branleuse]

i was exclusively breastfeeding ds2 when i fell pregnant with dd.

there is 11.5 months between them [buconfused]

[CotedePablo]

It happened to me. I was thrilled, but if you're not going to be, then use something safer than withdrawal.

[Liskey]

Friend of mine got pregnant while breastfeeding - you ovulate before you have your first period so she got pregnant before realising she was in danger......
and withdrawal is notoriously risky.

[AuntieStella]

Bf-ing as a contraceptive is effective at a population level (fewer conceptions per '00 women), but not predictably reliable for the individual. And it's not effective after 6months anyhow, nor if you are not fully demand feeding round the clock.

I know one family with children 13 months apart despite DC1 being exclusively bf.

[ohforfoxsake]

I did when DC1 was 5 months, but I had just started to wean him so wasn't exclusively bf.

Wouldn't rely on it as a form of contraception. We had decided to TTC again, but I didn't think it would happen so quickly (first attempt) because I was bf a lot still.

[ShowOfHands]

Withdrawal, used effectively, is actually much more than 80% effective. Its failure rate is built on a man's inability to pull out in time but if your dh is okay in that department, then it's pretty reliable. A lot of people erroneously believe it's not that effective.

Breastfeeding is theoretically quite a good guard against conception as long as you are bfing on demand, having no more than a few hours between feeds (more than 6hrs, on once occasion can be enough to trigger ovulation), no dummies, no bottles and feeding through the night still. However, my dd fed round the clock, exclusively and with no more than 2hrs break between feeds and I ovulated when she was 11 weeks old. DS slept through from 6 weeks and was a quick, efficient feeder and I didn't ovulate until he was 12 months so I know I wouldn't rely on it.

I have also fallen pregnant on the pill and using condoms (belts and braces) so know that nothing is foolproof.

I'd say that chances are you probably won't get pregnant but if you are adamant that you don't want to be, then I'd consider condoms at the very least. If you wouldn't be too fussed by a pregnancy though you'd rather avoid it, I'd assume you're pretty unlikely to get pregnant.

[MissTweed]

I am a bf myth result!! Ha!! I won't be making the same mistake as my mum

[YouMaySayImADreamer]

Thanks everyone. I am bf on demand and he has just started stretching his feeds out for up to 3.5 hours (even though it was 2-2.5 hours max just last week!). He still feeds frequently through the night, the longest gap between feeda being 3.5 hours and all of the others being 2-2.5. He doesnt have any bottles but does have a dummy.

DP is good at pulling out but obviously there could be the odd occasion where some sneaks through.

I definately wouldnt be upset if i got pregnant again, id be happy to have two close together, but on the other hand DS was large and after quite difficult delivery i still have a couple of small problems and would ideally like my body to have a bit more time to recover!

[ShowOfHands]

Sneak out? Arf. Like stealth sperm?

Either he pulls out before ejaculation (well in advance) or he doesn't. It isn't believed that pre-ejaculatory fluid actually has any semen in it. There is a theoretical risk that if a man ejaculates twice in quickish succession, there can still be sperm in the pipes from the first time round which can leak out along with pre-ejaculatory fluid. But if your dh goes for a wee between sessions, this risk is eliminated.

This is all theory of course and only you can decide if you're happy with your contraceptive choices.