Taking Progesterone While Nursing/TTC TW: Loss Mentioned

[briarrose]

Hi all. I am here with a complicated question. I have yet to see my doctor, and some of this is prompted by Dr. Google, but I need to talk this through and hear some opinions/experience.


I have had back to back very early miscarriages. Two within 6 weeks of each other. The first was at 6 weeks, the second at around 4 weeks 3 days. We had thought the first was just a fluke or chromosome related, just one of those things that happens, but then I had the second. I had heard of people having to take progesterone, so I looked into it thinking that might be my issue. Then I discovered that low progesterone can be a result of breastfeeding, and may affect some women in early pregnancy.


My son is 2.5 and nurses 3x per day. I can probably cut out 1 session, but bedtime and morning would be horrendous to try to wean from, and we both love nursing and I would hate to give it up. I also hate that this may be causing my losses, and that if I want another baby anytime soon that I might have to try to wean when I have been planning to let him self wean for all this time.


My question for anyone who may have gone through anything similar, is, have you taken progesterone supplements while TTC, while still continuing to nurse? Or was weaning the answer?


I see the doctor on Monday, and I am scared I will have one who is not BF friendly, but I am still in shock that I am going through this and the possibility of having to actively think about weaning is hard for me as well.

If you made it all the way through this, thank you.

[lilyelayne]

I'm so sorry for your losses, briarrose. agm04, didn't you take progesterone while TTC and nursing?

[Deleted]

I'm sorry for your losses. A lot of doctors won't do p4 supplementation because the research is sketchy. I had one ob that had me supplement, but I never had a successful pregnancy using it. The pregnancy that resulted in my rainbow I didn't use it.

There is some research that says it has the potential to help, but only if you start using it before implantation. That being said, if Google searches and two early losses are the only reason you're suspecting it, it may help to actually get tested.

[agm04]

briarrose I'm so sorry for your losses. Hugs to you.

I did take progesterone while TTC and nursing, as my luteal phases were consistently on the short side. Were/are you charting? I was cutting back on nursing at the same time, but continued with 1-2 short nursing sessions per day for the first 8-10 weeks of pregnancy, all while taking progesterone. I think I stopped progesterone at 10 weeks, still nursing once a day. . (DD pretty much self weaned after that.)

I don't think that was very helpful - I'm sorry - but I am totally happy to answer any questions. Sending hugs and hoping for healing and a happy, healthy pregnancy for you soon.

[briarrose]

Apr 5, 2017 21:19:59 GMT -5 agm04 said:

briarrose I'm so sorry for your losses. Hugs to you.

I did take progesterone while TTC and nursing, as my luteal phases were consistently on the short side. Were/are you charting? I was cutting back on nursing at the same time, but continued with 1-2 short nursing sessions per day for the first 8-10 weeks of pregnancy, all while taking progesterone. I think I stopped progesterone at 10 weeks, still nursing once a day. . (DD pretty much self weaned after that.)

I don't think that was very helpful - I'm sorry - but I am totally happy to answer any questions. Sending hugs and hoping for healing and a happy, healthy pregnancy for you soon.

I do not chart. Low progesterone might explain why my periods are so different than they were before my son, as well as all the spotting I had before my first miscarriage. I didn't know anything about progesterone until I started looking into it because of all this, so I am actually looking forward to being tested on Monday.

If I am wrong about this, that would be okay. I am just scared of really having to wean to have another child. With the losses, nursing my son is something that has been a bit of a lifeline for me, and I would hate to take that away from both myself and him if it won't help whatever is going on with my body.

[agm04]

briarrose I totally understand that. very difficult and emotional decisions, with no right or wrong answers - just hard. I hope you are able to get some answers.

[briarrose]

agm04, thank you. my hubby is super supportive, but I think he is frustrated because of the situation in general, and because of the chance that I may have to delay conceiving till I wean, if that is the route we choose to go.

I am angry because of all people, I, who love to breastfeed and am happy to continue till DS is ready to be done, may have to encourage him to wean, because we really do want another baby. I have had friends, as well as even my grandma, get pregnant while BFing and sustain the pregnancies, and it may be something that doesn't work for my body, so I am jealous. Sorry for the rant, just a lot of feelings right now of course. And I know I am jumping the gun trying to figure out what is wrong, but it is so hard not to.

[agm04]

briarrose I don't think you're jumping the gun - I think anyone in your shoes would want to figure out what's going on. I know I would be angry and jealous too. Weaning is emotional for many of us no matter what, so I can definitely understand your feelings.

[briarrose]

agm04, forgot to ask, were you just taking the progesterone for your short luteal phases? what did it do in that situation? allow your uterine lining to build up more quickly so that you could sustain a pregnancy?

[agm04]

briarrose yes, and i know i had blood tests run but i honestly don't remember exactly when in my cycle and what all they tested. my understanding is that when progesterone levels drop, it signals the body to shed uterine lining/start period. the progesterone supplements delay that so that if an egg was fertilized, the body has time for implantation and/or for pregnancy to progress if already implanted at that point. does that answer your question?

i think i was on a relatively low dose, and it did lengthen my luteal phases, but i still got my period on cycles we did not successfully conceive. i've heard that for some women, they have to stop taking the supplements in order to get their period (after negative tests so many days post ovulation). i hope that helps.

[Deleted]

You might also try asking on Parenting After Loss or Loss After Living Children. You might get some more responses there.