FET while breastfeeding?

[Hope644]

So it's way, way, way too early for me to be considering FET - I am only 6 wks with my 2nd child, but I cannot get the thought of my 5 little frozen embabies out of my head...

with my DS, i had to wean him earlier than I would have otherwise chosen to, in order to start treatment for baby #2... I stopped at 10 mo.

i haven't asked my RE or nurse yet, but was just wondering if there's anyone out there who has done a FET (medicated or unmedicated) while still breastfeeding. the medications my RE uses for FET are just estrogen & progesterone, but both thru I/M injections.

DH and I weren't exactly planning to have more children beyond this one (praying she/he is born safely) but with the thought of our children waiting for us, we are definitely considering giving them a full chance to survive and thrive as a part our family. And i would like to get started sooner than later due to age, primarily...

i know i'm crazy for asking this soon, i but i am just wondering.

[PMApsy]

)) You're not crazy, and CONGRATULATIONS!

I, too, started thinking about FET's compatibility with breastfeeding very soon after I delivered my son. I have been breastfeeding him for 10.5 months now, and I'm waiting for AF to call the clinic and launch an FET cycle. When I do, I'll wane him completely.

Months ago, I talked to the clinic's nurses, doctors, and pharmacist about FET meds and breastfeeding. Because Suprefact is used in the protocol, they told me it's 100% sure I have to stop breastfeeding before I start taking it. Superfact and Lupron are mostly used for prostate cancer... so there's little to no research on pregnant/nursing moms.

But the pharmacist also did some research to check for the other meds - estrogen and progesterone. They're pretty much at ease with the progesterone intake, because we also take it all the way through the first trimester. However, they're far less sure about estrogen. I'll take Estrace (pills), and the pharmacist couldn't find a clear indication on the matter. Namely because, like so many FET-IVF meds, there's almost no research with pregnant or nursing mothers. The doctors at my clinic want to play it safe anyway, and so did my pharmacist. They all told me that, due to the lack of research on all those meds, I had to wane my son before attempting FET again, just to play it safe.

Hope that helps,

Sophie xxx

[Hope644]

Sophie! thanks so much. that does help a lot! it makes sense... even tho i'd only be taking progresterone & estrogen, - if there is even the slightest risk, i don't want to take it! plus, i actually forgot about the bcps I'd be taking before hand (instead of lupron - i guess) - which prob wouldn't be a good idea to nurse with either... or maybe it's ok, ? i don't know... since dh's vasectomy - we've never had to use bcps for birth control,... but then i recall the ob/gyn asking if we'd be using that for b/c after ds was born... who knows.

anyway, thank you SO much for offering your info! can't wait til you're pg with me!

[PMApsy]

Hi sweetie,

I'm glad I could help. From my experience, when it comes to meds, your pharmacist is the most qualified person to answer your questions. Doctors who specialize in fertility tmts do have a lot of experience, but your pharmacist's experience focuses mainly on meds. So I would take the first occasion to go to your local drugstore and have a little chat with your pharmacist about fertility meds. Here we even have one that specializes in IVF-FET, so they can really answer our questions about meds. As for BCP, I don't have any info. With the last surgery, both my tubes and my right ovary were removed, so I never had to discuss it with my doctor or the nurse who did the postnatal visit.

The rule of thumb is that, IF you never miss even ONE breastfeeding session and AF still hasn't shown her ugly head (she came back for me after TWO months, LOL!), you could go without any birth control method until your baby is six months old. That's what the nurse explained in the prenatal sessions we attended. But, again, you may not want to take a chance and we all know we need to keep all unnecessary worries away during the first months. So, again, I would have a little chat about BCP with my pharmacist if I were you.

:D Yes it would be really great to be pregnant of our second child at the same time! I can't wait until AF shows up so I can call the clinic! (around a week left now).

Take care!

Sophie

[meg12]

I'm pretty sure you can be on the pill while nursing, at least after you introduce solids...at least that's what me obgyn told me. She said that while nursing is my son's only food, she doesn't want me on it as it can dry up your supply. She put me on what's called a "mini-pill" while I'm breastfeeding--it just has progesterone in it and it works with your bodies hormones. But, she said that once I start lessening up on the nursing, then I have to switch to the regular one as the mini-one won't be effective.

Wishing you the best of luck in this pregnancy and future ones (if you decide to have more!)