When you’re trying to get pregnant, the sight of your menstrual period can be disappointing, even devastating sometimes. But for mothers who breastfeed and are beginning to think about getting pregnant again, a period is a welcome sign of returning fertility. A few women ovulate before their period returns, and that is why people will always warn you to use birth control while nursing if you don’t want to get pregnant, but for most the first period indicates that ovulation is on its way. It’s not very often a woman wishes for her period, but this is definitely one of those cases.
The average time it takes for a woman’s period to return when she is nursing is 14 months, but it can vary a great deal. I’ve read cases where it took 22 months and I’ve heard of women who get a visit from “Aunt Flo” just 6 weeks after delivery. It would appear that returning fertility is directly tied to nursing, and it is to some extent, but there are always plenty of exceptions. Plenty of women begin to ovulate even though they are still nursing. Weaning doesn’t necessarily guarantee the return of your cycle right away, either.
You might be wondering how much control you have over your fertility and whether you need to wean your toddler in order to conceive again. Fortunately, very few women need to go as far as to wean completely to get pregnant again. Usually reducing the frequency or duration of breastfeeding is all it will take to allow fertility to return. An abrupt change, such as the baby sleeping through the night, is especially effective. You could also try eliminating a daytime feeding as well.
Another thing to consider is that your body probably knows when it is ready to carry a pregnancy again. You may just want to let nature take its course and wait a few more months. After all, if your toddler is still nursing, he or she may not be ready to share you with a sibling anyway.