Menstruation after giving birth

Esther - posted on 04/16/2012

Well..My experience... my 1st child... was natural birth and my menstruation pretty much came back next month after birth, I was breastfeeding for 6 month, but was not bleeding a lot. It was more like spotting every month until I stop breastfeeding and it return to normal.

My 2nd child was c-sec (operation), my menstruation did not return until a month after I stop breastfeeding. And the menstruation is like normal. Cramp and all. So this is my experience, I think everyone experience would be different as their body reaction to this experience is different. :-D

Holli - posted on 04/16/2012

BTW, nursing will prolong the lack of periods. I nursed with my first for a couple of months until I dried up ~sob~. I was unable to nurse with my second.

Holli - posted on 04/16/2012

With my first pregnancy, I went 5 months after delivery menstration free. It was blissfull. With my second, I had my first period only 2 weeks after my postpartum bleeding ended. I felt so jipped.



Also my periods changed with each child. my periods were horrible before I ever had kids. After my first, I hardly noticed them and they were very light. However, after my second, they are very heavy and currently cause a lot of discomfort and last forever... don't know how if my uterus is still recouping or if it is trying to give out as it was a difficult delivery.

Sherri - posted on 04/11/2012

Well my son is 8wks and I have yet too stop bleeding yet. I went to my OB and he said it is nothing to worry about.

Bethany - posted on 04/11/2012

With baby #4 I got my period back when he was 8 months and continued to breastfeed until he was a year old without any problems.

Caran - posted on 11/03/2010

maybe you should go for a check-up just in case... as for me my baby just turned 11 months old and i still don't have my period... yes, i am breastfeeding. but anyone think i should go for a check-up?

Jessi - posted on 08/21/2009

I was completely the opposite of you when I had my son almost 2 years ago. Before being pregnant, I always had the lightest, most inconsistent periods of anyone I knew. That probably contributed to the fact that I was unaware I was even pregnant until I was starting my 2nd trimester! After I had Dylan, I didn't have a period again for about 12 weeks or three months after the delivery. Now I feel as though I a hemorrhage to the brink of death every month.

Kelly - posted on 08/17/2009

I'm breastfeeding, so sometimes my period tries to start with lite spotting but when I nurse my baby again it goes away. It's been about 8 weeks.

Toyin - posted on 08/17/2009

I do not understand the science too, with my first daughter, the period returned after 9months, with the 2nd born (boy), the period return around 8months. With my 3rd born that i had just march 2009, i had cramp and light blood just a stain after 2 months and up till now nothing yet so im thinking it could be as usual for someone like me.

Melanie - posted on 08/16/2009

I have a quick question for you ladies...I have joined a few groups since my son was born and don't remember for sure if this was a military wife group. The reason I ask is I see Tifani Ohayon that your husband is in the navy. My husband is too and we have not left the midwest or been stationed with him yet so I have not met any other navy wives. If you read this I would love to exchange email with you.

Melanie - posted on 08/16/2009

This post has the absolute perfect timing. lol. My son is 9 1/2 months and I am breastfeeding. I got up this morning and had some light bleeding. This didnt worry me untill I was in a full blown period by lunch. I have not had a period since January when I started my birthcontrol. I did not get another period till today. I was worried it was going to effect my milk because I do want to continue bfeeding as long as I can. Another reason I worried was because my doc said it is normal not to get a period untill you stop breast feeding so I TOTALLY was not expecting it to come. It is so wonderful to hear other women feeding past 12 months because I want to do the same. Thank you ladies!

Desislava - posted on 08/14/2009

I got my period 6 months after giving birth. It is normal because I breastfeed my baby.

Michele - posted on 08/14/2009

I had gotten pine about 3 months after my twins were born But i bled for 6-7 weeks after they were born I thought i was going to wear pads for the whole year but when my period came it was lite i now have my 2nd period and it is back to normal and I am also on the pill after twins my hubby says NO more kids so I have to patronize him for at least 1 year LOL I have twin girls I need to try for a boy LOL

Rebecca Lynn - posted on 08/14/2009

My Daughter was born 7 months ago and I still do not have periods which is weird because with my son i started periods right away. I stopped breastfeeding a month ago and still nothing :o

Wendy - posted on 08/12/2009

i strictly breast-fed my 5 month old baby boy and i got my period at 8 weeks!
it now comes the exact day month to month and are the same intensity then before i got pregnant... it took me a little over 6 weeks to completely stop bleeding after the birth so really didnt get any "grace" period when it came to my period!

Tifani - posted on 08/12/2009

So really I am just kinda posting a little story about periods and breast feeding and me... I will start out by saying that I have a beautiful baby girl that will be 1 in just a week. However, when I discovered I was pregnant with her in December of 2007, I was quite surprized! Here's why, I was still breastfeeding my 10 month old son and I had not gotten my period back even then. And in September my husband had only just returned home from a 6 month deployment, so of course he was feeling very frisky at the time. I did explain that I had not gotten my period back, but that I had read that it might be possible to get pregnant and that he should use a condom, needless to say he didn't. Then about a month and a half later I swear to you I felt pregnant so I started taking test after test, they were all negative, so I scheduled my annual pap with my OB, this way I could get on the pill or something. Then it happen, 1 week before I was set to go in for my pap, I took 1 last test and you guessed it...Positive. I remember my husband was underway (out on a ship), so I sent him a picture of the pregnancy test that was positive, just to blow his mind. And well, Now I have the terrible twosome, but I couldn't love any 2 babies more :-) Thanks for reading if you did, and take this with you, if you really don't want to find yourself pregnant AGAIN use protection, even if you are breast feeding exclusively.

Shannon - posted on 08/12/2009

It can be your endometrial wall weakening, which is very common. There is no sure way of knowing when your period will start, especially if you are breastfeeding. So, if you are not ready to get pregnant again talk to your doc about birth control methods that are right for you

Bobby - posted on 08/11/2009

well, my daughter is 14 months old (in a week) and i just finished my first period after birth about a week ago. This was after my second child..i wasnt sure what was going on because i had wee bits of break through bleeding for about a week before the initial menstruation(which also lasted a week((rats, before birth it was usually 4days at the most!!!)). I didnt get the usual backache and cramps that i previously had gotten (but when it came I had mean backaches throughout-i swear they feel like mild contractions!) algood though oh and i still breastfeed.

Esther - posted on 08/11/2009

It sounds like your period.... the experience of giving birth probably have numb you from feeling cramps.... I had similar thing... around 7/ 8 weeks start bleeding.... and my gyn. said is normal to bleed abit and it is probably period. Some say you can not get period or pregnant during breast feeding... IT I NOT TRUE!!!! It depends on the person... but so far i have been breast feeding 4 months now and i have been getting my period so i can get pregnant. With cramps is there but it is just nothing compare to giving birth.

Maggie - posted on 08/11/2009

Hiya,
It's encouraging to read all these such varied experiences. My daughter will be 12 months this saturday coming and I'm still breastfeeding and had no periods but last week had TERRIBLE period pains and back ache- so much so that I went to the doctor! No bleeding thou so have been wondering when my period will return- I shouldn't complain thou!
Maggie x

Amanda Jolene - posted on 08/11/2009

After I had my 1st daughter I got my period about 10 wks or so after she was born. I was still nursing. It was really light and hardly any cramping. By the time my daughter was 5 months I was pregnant, again. After our 2nd daughter was born, I got my period about 4 wks after birth and pretty regular but further apart (36 days) than before. Also, very light, little cramping. It was like that for a year. I wasn't able to nurse with my 2nd daughter.

Also, and this is straight from my Dr. BREAST FEEDING DOES NOT PREVENT OVULATION. Just because you don't get your period, doesn't mean you aren't ovulating. In fact, period or not, you start ovulating with in 6-8 wks after delivery. You are more likely to get pregnant very easily with in the first 6 mo. after delivery.

I hope this helps.

Heather - posted on 08/11/2009

My period started after 6 weeks much to my dismay even though I am breastfeeding exclusively. So much for getting a break. It was lighter though.

Lucy - posted on 08/11/2009

Coming from a mom of 4 kids, depending on if you breastfed or not, it can be a few months before your body is back to a rythym. it takes 9 mos to create your baby it can take 18-24mos for your body to get itself in order sometimes. not to scare you, just go back to your doc on your next appt and get back on your birth control method and it will regulate things.

Megan - posted on 08/11/2009

no worries...i'm 8 months from giving birth to my son, bfing, and still haven't gotten my period:)

Noni - posted on 08/10/2009

After my first I got mine after 6weeks (I started the mini pill at that time) and after my second it was over 6months and then I had implanon put in when she was 81/2 months old have had one period a month after and none since she is 14months old (i beastfed both) and neither times was it overly painful or different from before a little lighter maybe...

Melanie - posted on 08/09/2009

I got my period when my daughter was 7 mos old. I was exclusively breastfeeding until 6 mos when I introduced solid foods. I'm still breastfeeding 4 - 5 times a day but unlike a lot of the other posters, when my period returned it was extremely heavy, lasted almost a week and I had terrible cramps with it. I've had 2 cycles so far and they've both been like this. I'm also experiencing great CM like one of the other posters and while I was bummed about getting my period so soon (my sister didn't get hers until her daughter was well over a year!) I want to start tracking my cycles and possibly TTC and having your period makes it a lot easier to do. BTW just because you're not menstruating doesn't mean you're not ovulating! If you don't want to get pregnant again, use protection or NFP.

Mel - posted on 08/09/2009

I've actually been wondering when should i expect to get my period. My son is 4 months old. I completely stopped breast feeding about 3 weeks ago, but my breast milk started drying up quite early on so even though i was feeding i was having to top him up with formula.

Kelly - posted on 08/08/2009

my friends were so mad at me for this.. but I went for 2 years without a period after my son was born. mine are back to the same old way they were before

Christy - posted on 08/08/2009

Rebekah, it sounds to me that your body is still going through post pregnancy changes. I do not think it's your period but, rather, your uterus continuing to shrink after giving birth. I've heard of women's periods resuming as early as three months after birth so if this occurs again in four weeks, I'd say it IS your period...but I wouldn't worry about it until it's more consistent. I have an 8 month old who breastfeeds and I still have not resumed menstruation. Although, I've been experiencing pre-period cramping for the past two months without having a period. Every body is different!! :-)

Jenny - posted on 08/08/2009

p.s i was breastfeeding too as i was told if i was doing that my period wouldnt return for months

Jenny - posted on 08/08/2009

my period returned at about 8wks after birth it was much lighter with no period pain and lucky for me thats how it stayed.

Angela - posted on 08/07/2009

Hi I breastfed all my kids after the first one i got my period 28 days later, second baby i got it 5 1/2 months later , third baby i got it 11months after and with the last baby i got it 16 months later. So i am not sure that there is a rule it up to your body. The first couple were a lot lighter and i don't have cramps like I did prior to kids which is wonderful. I hope this helps.

Atasha - posted on 08/07/2009

With my first it came back 5 weeks after I had him. With my second it was like 3 months and with my 3rd it was more like 5 months. With all of them I was still bf when it came back and I was pretty bummed. I was hoping I would be period free at least until I had finished bf-ing. The periods were the same also

Janelle - posted on 08/07/2009

my periods were never normal and after i gave birth i wouldnt stop bleeding even though i too breast fed. It wasnt til my daughter was 2 1/2 til i finally went to the doctor . My period would stop for a few days then come back for months thank goodness there was no cramping and they did tests and nothing was abnormal. They ended up putting an IUD in me also and it has drasticly reduced my periods!! Thank goodness for birth control

Amanda - posted on 08/07/2009

well are you bottle feeding? because i breastfeed and from what the doctors told me if you breastfeed you dont start your period for awhile and if you botte feed it can start right away. my baby girl is 5 and a half months and i still havent had a sign of my period!! :)

Hope - posted on 08/07/2009

Hey! My son is 13mnths old now and my first. I bled for the first 6 weeks and didnt get my period until he was 9/10mnths old. I bf. I have to agree that I think its all hormonal because a gf of mine bf as well but got her period very early in the peice. I experienced cramping randomly for months before it arrived.... now its highly irregular. I had my period twice last month. I wouldn't worry yourself, its all hormone dependent. Ask around for advice, this post was a gr8 idea. I find midwives and drs tend to fog you off in the too hard basket if your body doesnt follow the text book. Good luck!

Kamilla - posted on 08/07/2009

I have always had vaginal discharge. Not bloody, but deffinately there. I hear it's normal. It's your body's way of cleaning itself out.

Kamilla - posted on 08/07/2009

I started up again about 6 weeks after giving birth, only 1 week after I quit bleeding from the birth (my body hates me) and yes I was breastfeeding.

Laura - posted on 08/07/2009

hi bekah, my period started almost 1 month after my daughter was born. she was 11 weeks early and i had bleeding during my pregnancy. i was expressing for the first 4 weeks then went to bottle. before my baby my periods were really heavy and painful i could only cope with nurofen but now just as heavy but no pain only very mild cramping every now and then.

Pauline - posted on 08/07/2009

Hi rebekah

Am pauline. My baby is now almost 4 months and i get back my menstruation after 2 months n still got cramps!!! Guess it is not the same for all people.

Shauna - posted on 08/05/2009

I was breastfeeding, and i didn't have my period until almost 5 months after i gave birth. But it was alot different, it was very light, almost like spotting. After my first period i was having my period every 2 weeks. No cramps, no pain, just bleeding for 2 days. I didn't think anything of it until it was going on for 2 months, i had my period 8 times. I went to the dr and found out with was my birth control, something in it was making my hormones go crazy. Now that they are normal, i have some cramps, but they are nothing like what i was having before i got pregnant. If you are on birth control, that may be causing it, you might want to ask your dr to switch you to something else.

Amber - posted on 08/05/2009

and if u are breastfeeding that can actually take your periods away or make them very light do to the hormones

Amber - posted on 08/05/2009

actually i went through the same thang delivery is a miracle on the woman's body it helps clear out all the buildup...and when u have the child it gives your uterus a fresh start..hinting less cramps to get menstrating..

Angie - posted on 08/05/2009

can i ask a related question? my baby is 5 months, still no period, but i have been having vaginal discharge for a couple months. very similar to the discharge during pregnancy. it has no odor and the nurse said since i'm bf and haven't had a period it isn't unheard of. has anyone else had this?

Monika - posted on 08/05/2009

i got my first period at abt 4 weeks after i had my son. it was worse than my normal period and more painful too but saying that i do have a bicornuate uterus which i always get alot of pain...

Deziray - posted on 08/05/2009

my son was 8 weeks old when i had my period and my cramps actually got alot worse after my first born

Deidre - posted on 08/05/2009

I had one about 8 weeks later then missed two. My first one wasnt much. Everything changes pretty much after you have a baby. And if you are breast feeding you may not have a period.

Marny - posted on 08/05/2009

4 weeks and 3 days after birth with my second and at 7 weeks with my first. Mine are lighter and less painful but gradually went back to normal last time. If you're breast feeding you may find that everything changes just before a period and for the first couple of days during. Less milk, slow let down, you smell different apparently, milk tastes different and my daughter's get very cross about the whole thing. They sleep less well (guess they're more hungry) and I have to go back to night feeds. It took me 6 months to find all this out with my first and some hugely stressful moments and so was gutted when I'd had only 3 days without loss this time.

Elsie - posted on 08/05/2009

My cycles were like clockwork before I got pregnant, right down to the time of day.

When my daughter was 9 months old, I started getting symptoms of ovulation. (She was exclusively breastfed for 8 months, one week of solid food, then exclusively breastfed again until 10 months). It drove me crazy because I had the symptoms continuously for 3 months, when it would normally be 3 days the week before I expected my period. 3 days shy of my daughter's first birthday, I finally got my period (and I was relieved to finally get it because I was sick of the 3 months of anticipation).

My cycles were thrown out of wack, and lighter, because I was still breastfeeding. They never went back to being normal again, because I continued to breastfeed and got pregnant when my daughter was 2.5 years old.

My second daughter is 6.5 months old, and there is no sign of a period in sight. She is exclusively breastfed.

Krystal - posted on 08/05/2009

My first period after my daughter was born was at about 8 weeks and very different from before. Similar to you, I had bad cramps before and none after (I really hope that lasts :]) My flow was different too. And it was about 35 days (from start to start) until I got it again.