One of the things that most worries a mother after giving birth is the return of her period. Amenorrhea absence of menstruation after childbirth is prolonged in each woman in a different way, since the body needs to stabilize to return to her ‘original state’. Once you return, menstruation may be different, with breastfeeding being one of the factors causing these hormonal changes.
Changes in Menstruation During Breastfeeding: How Breastfeeding Affects Menstruation
- There is no exact rule that establishes when menstruation appears again after giving birth. The factor that influences the most is whether you are breastfeeding. If so, it will depend on each woman, but it can appear in a month or last for almost a year or more without a sign of menstruation. In the event that you have decided to give a bottle, it is very likely that this will come in the first months after the happy delivery. In any case, with or without a period, you can continue to breastfeed without a problem because it does not affect milk production at all (the milk continues to have the same flavor and the same quality).
- Nor is there any symptom that warns you that your period is about to come down, although some mothers point to certain swelling in the body or mood swings as one of the preliminaries. Yes, it is important when you start to distance the shots because the baby does not ask for so much breast, you gradually incorporate solids or if you have to go to work. In this case, you are deleting several takes and the reappearance of the rule may be close, but as we said it cannot be fixed in time.
- And how is that rule? At first they can be irregular and with variation in flow, but over time they tend to stabilize. For this reason, we recommend that once menstruation reappears, you go to your gynecologist for an in-depth examination.
Can I get pregnant if I have a prolonged lactation?
When the baby begins to breastfeed, the hormone called prolactin is activated, which makes the period take longer to arrive. For this reason, women who choose not to breastfeed their children have an earlier period reactivation. Breastfeeding is considered a natural contraceptive method, but be very careful, this does not mean that you cannot get pregnant again, since its effectiveness is 98%.
How do I know if I’m pregnant while breastfeeding?
When breastfeeding and not having your period, it is difficult to know whether or not you can be expecting a new baby. But it is important to note that from the first moment you have unprotected intercourse, you can get pregnant, even with minimal risk as we have said before. If you think you may be pregnant, it is best to take a pregnancy test to find out for sure. You can also, before taking the test, note how your baby behaves when you put him to the breast. If you notice, for example, that there is a constant rejection and you think you may be pregnant, it may be because the taste of milk has changed due, as we say, to your new state, although there are other reasons such as lactation crises.
