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Breastfeeding/breastfeeding and birth controle

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Expert: - 12/2/2007


Question
helo i am curently breastfeeding and all is well. i had my baby by c-section so i need to wait a while before i get pregnant again. i am not having a period but i know i  can still get pregnant. i wanted to get on a birth controle pill but my doctor said that it will hert my milk production so i was just using spericide foam and the old pull out method. but now i had an allergic reaction to the foam and my husband and i can not enjoy ourselves by useing a condom. so now we are not even having sex and that is not going to well as you can imagine. should we just hope that me breastfeeding and him pulling out is enough or is there something else out there that i dont know about. i just need someone elses opinion on the matter. thank you for your time

Answer
Dear Amanda,

First, congratulations for giving your baby the best start in life by breastfeeding!

Your questions about sexual relations and birth control during lactation are important ones. I devote an entire chapter of my book (see below) to this topic. I also give a chart of all the different kinds of birth control and their relation to the nursing mom.

Your doctor is right about the birth control pill's tending to decrease your milk production; it is best not to use the pill until your baby is at least three months old, and preferably six months.

Unfortunately, withdrawal (pulling out) is very unreliable, as well as being unsatisfactory for both you and your husband.

Four to six weeks after delivery you should be able to be fitted with a diaphragm, but this too requires a spermicide. Maybe you can try a different brand from the one you were using and you might not be allergic to that one.

If you are breastfeeding your baby very frequently, day and night; if your baby is under 6 months old; if you are not separated from your baby for more than 4 to 6 hours; if you still have not gotten your period; and if your baby is receiving no other food (like formula), you may be about 98% protected from getting pregnant again. But if any of these conditions are not met, you can get pregnant.

I would suggest giving condoms another try. There are a lot of styles on the market now, and you and your husband may find something you like -- and some enjoyment is better than no enjoyment! Also, you can pleasure each other in ways besides intercourse -- manually and orally. The most important thing to remember is that this state of affairs is only temporary.

Good luck!

Sally
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Sally Wendkos Olds
Author, THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING: Eiger & Olds, 3rd edition 1999, published by Workman Publishing & Bantam Books, and available in most public libraries, bookstores & La Leche League chapters.  

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Sally Wendkos Olds

Expertise

What do you want to know about breastfeeding? I can tell you what`s good for the baby, what`s good for the mother -- and the father, how it`s related to a woman`s sexuality, how working moms can nurse, how to overcome obstacles, and lots more. As the author of THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING and author or coauthor of 8 other books and more than 200 articles about child and adult development, I can offer sound, sensible advice on breastfeeding, child care and family issues.

Experience

I nursed my 3 daughters and am the grandmother of 5 breastfed children. My book THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING (written in consultation with pediatrician Marvin S. Eiger, M.D.) was first published in 1972, and in 1999 came out in an updated 3rd Edition by Workman Publishing & Bantam Books. It is now a classic, with over 2 million copies in print. I am now revising this book for a fourth edition, consulting with pediatrician Laura M. Marks, M.D. This new edition will be published September 2009. I welcome any and all suggestions for the new edition. I coauthored college textbooks A CHILD'S WORLD: INFANCY THROUGH ADOLESCENCE, and HUMAN DEVELOPMENT; both are leading texts in their fields and have been read by 2 million students. I am the coauthor of HELPING YOUR CHILD FIND VALUES TO LIVE BY and RAISING A HYPERACTIVE CHILD, and author of THE WORKING PARENTS' SURVIVAL GUIDE & THE ETERNAL GARDEN: SEASONS OF OUR SEXUALITY. My newest book, A BALCONY IN NEPAL: GLIMPSES OF A HIMALAYAN VILLAGE, published in 2002, tells the story of the way of life in a remote village in Nepal, where all the women breastfeed! My book, SUPER GRANNY: COOL PROJECTS, ACTIVITIES, AND OTHER GREAT STUFF TO DO WITH YOUR GRANDKIDS, will be published March 2009. I speak often to professional, parent and general audiences and make many radio and TV appearances.

Credentials I received my B.A. in English Literature from the University of Pennsylvania, where I minored in Psychology, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and graduated summa cum laude.

Other points of interest I have received national awards for my writing, and am a former president of the American Society of Journalists & Authors. I am listed in the World Who's Who of Women, International Authors & Writers Who's Who, and Contemporary Authors, and am a member of several professional and civic organizations. I believe: that all parents are working parents; that parents employed outside the home need special support; that mothers' well-being is crucial to their children's welfare; and that the family is the best institution in the world and the one for which we are least prepared. My thrills come when parents or kids tell me they were helped by my writing or speaking or just understanding. To find out more about me, go to

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