Questions about Trying to sway girl while breastfeeding

[jenren]

Hello! I just have a few questions about swaying while breastfeeding and I hope someone can help me out!
I am currently bf my 13 month old son and have not had my cycle return yet. I was planning on:
1) starting vitex daily until return of cycle and then taking vitex af-o
2) start the LE diet 1500-1800 calories per day
3) zyrtec daily (I take it for allergies already)
4) baby aspirin 2x a week
5) extensive cardio is not doable for me right now so I was gonna go with the couch potato route

Question I have:
* I am already very small at 99 lbs. Is it ok to do the higher end of the le diet closer to 1800 since I am bf and have very little room to lose weight? I also don't want to delay the return of my cycle with too few calories

* I should avoid saw palmetto correct? I was going to add it in but believe I read today not to do so while bf a baby boy

* is mint tea ok to add in to my sway plan

* will vitex encourage the return of my cycle?? I was hoping to start ttc in march?

Does this seem like a good girl sway plan? Any suggestions to add to it?

Thanks for any help/ insight anyone can give me!

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[Kitty0911]

I'm only going by my own experience, but Vitex did not bring my cycle back, and I think it actually delayed it. I dropped down to only one breastfeeding session a day and my cycle would not come back. I dropped the vitex and a week later I finally got a positive OPK. I would definitely go with higher calories to start with. Even with me nursing only once a day I had to eat 1800-2000 calories a day to maintain my 105lbs (I'm 5'7"). I think aspirin has been found to be too dangerous now. I know I keep reading that it's benefit no longer out weighs the risks it has. I don't know about saw palmetto, never took it. I'm not sure about the mint tea either. I know fiber is good to add. I hope someone else comments and can help more.

[Dreamingofpinkafter2blue]

I will also share my experience. Tried vitex to get cycle back twice (wasn't swaying the first time) and it never worked. The only way I could even get my period back was to completely wean. I tried everything with my kids even nursing 1x a day. I didn't get it back until I weaned completely (16 months and 21 months).

Also my doctor said that skinny women have a longer delay of fertility when breast feeding because our body clings to the fat store we have. He said it's very common on other countries (especially poor countries) for women to use breastfeeeding as birth control.

[XXforhubby]

I too will share my experience. Vitex only seemed to mess with my ovulation day and didn't help me conceive quickly. I'm not too sure if weaning my DS to two feedings a day helped me to conceive or if my fertility improved from stopping another supplement I had been taking (for non-swaying purposes). I was one of the few ladies that got my cycle back at 6 weeks postpartum despite nursing in demand. My ovulation day seemed to move around so much, and I thought Vitex might help but didn't. My DS was 20mo when I conceived my DS3.


DS1[emoji125]🏼, DS2[emoji577], DS3[emoji170][emoji577][emoji843][emoji602][emoji170] Jan. '16 I'll sway for a DD[emoji166][emoji171][emoji166] for my DH!!

[jenren]

Hmmmmm :( well maybe vitex isn't the way to go. I want to ttc but I am not ready to cut my son off so it will maybe have to wait. Thank you ladies for sharing your experiences!!!!!

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[atomic sagebrush]

Taking vitex daily while nursing can make it take FOREVER for your cycle to come back. If you want to use it to kickstart your cycle then go back and look at what your cycle was before you conceived and take it in 2W on, rest of cycle off pattern that corresponds to your old cycle (before you got pregnant). For reasons we don't know your ovulation tends to resume at about the same time as it was before your prev. pregnancy.

NO baby aspirin when nursing. This could harm your nursing baby.

No saw palmetto or mint tea (in anything more than dietary amounts like 1-2 times a week) This could harm your nursing baby.

I want you at 1800-2000 cals. I have my breastfeeders at that level of food intake and I'd also have you eating more like 50-60 g protein and 50-60 g fat too. I think your cycle will stay away longer if you don't eat enough.

[atomic sagebrush]

I will also share my experience. Tried vitex to get cycle back twice (wasn't swaying the first time) and it never worked. The only way I could even get my period back was to completely wean. I tried everything with my kids even nursing 1x a day. I didn't get it back until I weaned completely (16 months and 21 months).

Also my doctor said that skinny women have a longer delay of fertility when breast feeding because our body clings to the fat store we have. He said it's very common on other countries (especially poor countries) for women to use breastfeeeding as birth control.

:agree: I DO believe vitex helped bring my cycle back twice, BUT overall I feel like I was in the minority on that. Many have tried it and it hasn't been effective as we would like it to be.

Most people will have their cycle come back when nursing that little (1x a day), though. Some may have to wait it out but I don't want anyone to wean for their sway (especially a pink sway since it may actually help sway pink.) Most of the times when the cycle doesn't come back while nursing, it's because people are nursing a lot and it's only reliable as birth control when you're exclusively nursing a baby of under 6 months. I totally agree that thinner women or undernourished ladies may find that it takes 2 years to come back but it will eventually. :)

I had my cycle come back once at 4 months, twice at 4 months but then go away again till 7 or 8 months, then 18 months and 2 years. It seemed to get longer the older I got. :) HTH

[jenren]

Thanks atomic! I don't want to wean before DS is ready so for right now I will just do the le diet (with the increased protein and fat) and see what my cycle does. I have only had one cycle in 5 years (got preggo with DS2 without a period and only had one period between DS2 and Ds3) so I honestly have no idea what my cycle was... so I think I will just see what my body does. I don't eat much... never have so counting calories is probably going to up my intake a bit which might actually help with my cycle returning.

Thanks for all the help ladies!

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[jenren]

This is the longest my cycle had been gone (13 months) and it is probably because DS still nurses at night at least one time. Sometimes twice

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[atomic sagebrush]

I think you're on the rright track!!

[jenren]

I think you're on the rright track!!
Thank you! When my cycle does return I think I will have a million more questions. Until now it is just a waiting game ;)

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[MrsECullen]

Vitex brought my cycle back 3x while BFing..

[jenren]

Vitex brought my cycle back 3x while BFing..
How old was your baby when you started taking it and how long until your cycle returned? Did you take it everyday or just for 2 weeks of the month [emoji4]

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[MrsECullen]

How old was your baby when you started taking it and how long until your cycle returned? Did you take it everyday or just for 2 weeks of the month [emoji4]

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The age of the baby was different each time (9m, 11m, 12m) but each time it took about a month to get my cycle back. I took it all month the first two times, even after cycle returned. The sway that got a girl, I took 2wk on 2wk off for a few cycles(don't know if that made a difference). Hope this helps!

[jenren]

Thanks for sharing your experience!!

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