Post-partum birth control & nursing

[Chupacabra]

Got the clearance today at my 6 week checkup. Lots of hoorays! I also got a prescription for the mini pill since I am nursing. I'm feeling less than thrilled with the following things:
1. The mini pill must be taken at the same time each day or it is not effective.
2. Breast feeding must be around the clock to be effective birth control (only applies the first 6 months.)

I suck at remembering to take the pill but on tri-phasic it wasn't a problem. So I need to set alarms. And Gemma has been gracing me with 5-7 hour stretches at night already so there goes the around the clock thing. I also pump once a day and will do so more when I return to work.

But the two combined and used as properly as me-possible will prevent pregnancy,right? (gulp)

Quite frankly I am done being pregnant but I am not 100% sold on an IUD. Husband wants to wait a few years before considering a snip. When I'm done nursing I'll be happy to go back on the regular pill as it was a good fit for me.

So are we stuck using condoms and the mini pill to ease my mind or does anyone have any assuring stories that exclusive breastfeeding (with sometimes long nights) and the pill alone are fine?

/panic
_________________
Etsy!
Blog!

[cake]

I don't know, man, the mini-pill freaks me out effectiveness-wise. I have heard a lot of anecdotal "oops" stories involving it. If I were you, I'd use condoms in addition, unless you get really good at taking the pill at the exact same time every day (I suck at that too).

And yeah, the criteria for lactational amenorrhea has always seemed fairly nebulous to me. But in my limited understanding, the 5-7 hour stretches do indeed make your period more likely to come back. Although I get that much at night, plus at 14 mo. S obviously nurses much less than Gemma and mine still hasn't come back. Bodies are so weird.
_________________
What can't that centaur woman do?

[snoopy]

I have no experience with the mini-pill, but I totally ovulated while nursing every three hours, even within that first month post-partum. I got the IUD as soon as I could.
_________________
my unoriginal blog
photo blog

[meexie]

My family is full of fertile women who have gotten pregnant while lactating. I was reading somewhere about suppressed ovulation during lactation having something to do with body fat, and that modern Western women generally have more body fat to draw on after pregnancy and so are less likely to have suppressed ovulation.
_________________
"I hate that they're giving tea a bad name. Tea is a peaceful, gentle drink." - Teahugger

[Figwit]

I still have no period at 12 months (tomorrow! sniff...), but I have very little body fat and a babe that nurses ALL THE FREAKIN TIME. Like a newborn. I love it :)

But he does sleep stretches of 5-7 hours sometimes. Not very frequently, but it happens. It actually used to happen more when he was younger.
_________________
good, clean, fair.

small is possible.

[Chupacabra]

Dang. I may need to purchase some condoms it seems.
The body fat thing also rings true with the mini pill... May not be effective for women over 150lbs (which I am.)

Feh.

Also, snoopy, it sucks your period came back so quickly!!

And happy birthday to R, figwit!
_________________
Etsy!
Blog!

[LooseyMama]

My #2 son is a product of my #1 son sleeping through the night precisely ONCE when he was about 9 months old. I had a weeeee wisp of a period that I didn't even recognize, and BAM, I was pregnant.

So I'm a fan of condoms. Well, maybe not a FAN, but ykwim.
_________________
"Struggle is obsolete." -- my friend Barbara

[featherstoryaniweda]

How long you have clearance with LA varies on where you read it, the most recent scientific study I read said either 8 or 9 months, but I don't remember where I read that.

You can tell by checking your ovulation. It doesn't have to be round the clock, but in most cases after 6 hours the body starts to think you're ready again.

For me, my first daughter would sometimes take 10 and 12 hour breaks between nursing, I think it's more about your milk supply, because in less than a day she would make up for that so my milk supply would stay the same.

I do think body fat has something to do with it though.

I have talked to many, many people about these things and the women who it tends to work for the longest are the ones who are on the smaller side and who are pretty much attached most of the time.

For me with my first daughter it worked until she turned 2...and I mean directly after her birthday.

With my second daughter, I have bled a few times after her 1st birthday, but I'm still not having periods. I intend to actually see if I'm ovulating, anyway, she'll be 2 this month, but I'm not having sex so its not that important to me.

Are you opposed to other forms of birth control for any reason? Beyond hormonal and condoms, it seems like neither is really up your alley, based on the posts.
_________________
My personal blog!
Creativity!

[Chupacabra]

Nope not against anything. I prefer mindless which would be the IUD but the thing still scares me a bit, I've only come across ideas against it lately. I started the mini pill and I've talked about this with my husband. Condoms will probably come into play as well. I really don't want to get pregnant again and I do lean on the very fertile side based upon planning my two pregnancies. No period yet and the baby woke me up 3x last night so I spoke too soon! I would definitely track my temps to predict ovulation but wouldn't I have to wait til my first period to start?
_________________
Etsy!
Blog!

[ali171]

Hello,
I have not tried this yet but I am planning to. Neam (or Neem, I am unsure of spelling) Oil is used in India and has been tested and proven effective as birth control. What is awesome about it is men can take it orally as birth control or women can take it internally I believe (or both). I don't know where to get it yet and I want to talk to my naturopath about it first but it seems like a good option for me.

I am in a bit of a situation for birth control too. I cannot take hormonal birth control because the pill made me lose my vision a few years back. I had an IUD before my pregnancy and it was crazy painful every period the first two years of having it. I can't do that to myself again. I also know people who got pregnant despite the IUD. I wanted to mix condoms with fertility awareness but as I am nursing I have no period to chart (at ten months, my little one eats a lot).

Something odd my doctor told me is that condoms are a lot less effective once you have a baby. That 99.9% number they advertise is just for women who have not had a baby. Once you pop one out your odds of preventing pregnancy with condoms are more like 60%. I can't find this printed anywhere official so I hope she is mistaken. I really don't want to get pregnant again until after I finish med school. It would be disastrous for me. One baby is the perfect amount of babies for me right now.

Good luck with your birth control quest! If I learn any cool methods at school I will be sure to post them on this site.
_________________
Be Awesome!

http://fourthfloorhomestead.blogspot.com/

[Chupacabra]

That condom stat has got to be wrong! It's not like condoms change after I've had kids, they're still same old condoms.

Good luck finding what works for you. It sure is daunting & I've never felt this way about bc before.
_________________
Etsy!
Blog!