How do breastfeeding mammas prevent a pregnancy?

Question

What's your BC method??

I need BC but don't know what to take

I'm breastfeeding my 7mo son

& how can i start with the mini pill if i haven't had a period since my son was born?

I'll go to the dr next wk but i am curious =]

Answer 1

I am using the mini pill I started it 4 weeks post partum and after breastfeeding was well established my midwife put me on lo-estrin.  My milk supply suffered a little but I was more concerned with possible side effects on my LO...so I went back on the mini pill.  I haven't had a regular cycle either but as long as you take it at exactly the same time every day than it should work to help prevent pregnancy.  From the time I was 5 weeks post partum all the way up until I had completed 2 packs of pills my husband and I also used protection to help reduce our risk of pregnancy that much more.

Answer 2

Too tired to have s*x and my episitomy hurts ha ha.

No really, we got past that point. Well, honestly, natural family planning. Withdrawal. Theoretically we use condoms when I'm fertile but really we're so busy and tired and our house has so d**n many people in it that we just don't make the extra effort.

I know a lot of people tandem nursing--still nursing the older kid while prego/having a newborn--so obviously you can't count on breastfeeding as BC.  

Answer 3

I used the mini pill (Ortho Evra is the brand name... there are lots of generics like Erinn, Camila, etc.) for the first month or so and then had the Mirena IUD put in because I wasn't 100% comfortable with the mini-pill.  Since it's a progestin-only pill (the estrogen in the combo pill can dry up your milk supply), you have to take it at the exact.same.time.everyday. or else it's not effective.  Even when taken at the same time every day- it's only about 80% effective overall.  I got pregnant with #2 when #1 was 6 months old...so I didn't want to a a third kid to the mix just yet :)

The IUD has been great so far!  It was a little uncomfortable getting it put in.  I cramped for a few days (menstral like cramps) and spotted for about a month- but it was nothing a pantiliner couldn't take care of.  I had it put in maybe 10 months ago and I've only spotted once since then and it lasted about a week.  

Also, having 2 kids being 15 months apart and one co-sleeping is great birth control!  :)

Answer 4

I have an IUD and have been bfing for 11 months....love it...I've only had one or two real periods and they each lasted a day. The down side...I had bad migraines once a month for the first 6 or 7 months I had it in.

Answer 5

my doctor has prescribed  these mini pills that are compatible with breastfeeding and i can start taking them when i want, i mean unlike other mini pills i don't have to wait to take them on the first day of my period.

Answer 6

my dr gave me ortho micronor its for women that are breastfeeding their babies. it doesnt release as many hormones as the other pills but is still as effective as the others. you dont need to start your period when you take the mini pills they will still be in effect whether or not you have it.

Answer 7

We use LAM (The Lactational Amenorrhea Method) until it is no longer effective, then after that we just let what happens happen.

Not much help, but that is what we do. LoL.

Answer 8

My doc put me on Jolivette or something. ITs a Mini pill. Its okay, I guess, but I hate taking pills. This is my first time being on b/c by taking pills. My first b/c was Depo Provera, and after that Nuva Ring. I loved Nuva Ring!

I DO NOT want to get pregnant at least for another 3 years, and I'm iffy about taking the mini pill, simply because I'm not a good pill taker AND w/this b/c she put me on I have to take it at the SAME time EVERYDAY. Thats nerve racking. I have a reminder on my phone, but I'm not always by my phone, and I forget. Its stressful. I'm scared to have s*x w/hubby, because I know I'm extra fertile, and its like I feel like I'm going to get pregnant, even if I miss taking the mini pill by 5 minutes!  

Answer 9

my doc prescribe birth control that was ok while i was breastfeeding my son.  

your doc will know.

my friend got pregant while breast feeding her 4 month old baby - be careful.

Answer 10

My husband and I use FAM and condoms.

Works out well for us, but might not be for everyone.

Answer 11

I started the mini pill 2 weeks postpartum after the birth of our son. I was very pleased with it. It did not affect my milk supply at all and when we decided to start ttc I simply stopped it and became pregnant the next month. That pregnancy ended in a m/c but that is a whole other issue. I have heard great things about Mirena, although I would not get an IUC or IUD personally.

It is a good thing your appt is soon, I got pregnant with my son when my daughter was only 8 months old ;). I was breastfeeding and my period had not returned either.