Reddit reviews Breastfeeding and Natural Child Spacing

The return of fertility after birth is heavily effected by how you feed your baby. For women who exclusively bottle feed, fertility (first ovulation and period) tend to occur within 8 weeks of giving birth. For women who exclusively breastfeed, fertility rarely returns before 6 months. For women who mix bottle and breastfeeding, it varies.

Sheila Kippley has researched Lactation Amenorrhoea and written several books on the topic, including "Breastfeeding and Natural Spacing" and "The Seven Standards of Ecological Breastfeeding: The Frequency Factor". They include details about what type of breastfeeding is most likely to lead to extended infertility, as well as statistics for how effective this is at postponing pregnancy. They've also made this nice summary sheet.

Many women combine their preferred method of natural family planning with lactation amenorrhoea. The Couple to Couple League, Billings, and Creighton all have instructions for postpartum charting. Women typically start charting within a month of birth, when lochia decreases. All three methods help women detect when ovulation is likely to occur, whether it is 6 weeks or 2 years after birth.

Typically women who chart while exclusively breastfeeding see dry days or unchanging mucus after birth. As the baby gets older and eats less/less frequently, women start to see fluctuations in mucus that indicate that the body is starting to ramp up for ovulation. This time sometimes involves a lot of abstinence because the body often tries to ovulate many times before being successful. Eventually ovulation occurs and women return to cycling, at which point your cycles will probably be regular again.

Have you contacted a CCL/Billings/Creighton instructor?

Hope you have a safe and healthy labor!