When to Expect your First Period Post-Partum

Your baby boy or girl is now here… so when will your period return? That all depends!  We have had the privilege of meeting so many women who have not only shared their personal stories with us, but their expanding families also!  As a tribute to them, we wanted to share our most recent discussions via Prego Expo attendees about when to expect your period after the delivery of your little one(s)!

While it is typically experienced that a nursing mama doesn’t experience a return of their cycle while breastfeeding, there are always exceptions.   Likewise, the onset of your cycle may not happen the very month following your weaning either.  One of our customers stated she had weaned her daughter off breastfeeding over two months prior and was still anticipating her cycle starting soon – hence why she was so excited and supportive of our Apele mishaps panty booth at the event.  Because there aren’t any “for sure”formulas that will calculate a return of menstruation, our performance fabric is perfect for wearing daily in preparation for the untimely and unanticipated return of menses.

Some women produce more estrogen sooner than others which will prompt menstruating sooner – even before they wean their little ones from nursing. In fact, 6 weeks to 3 month postpartum are not uncommon times to regain a monthly cycle, or at least the first post-delivery.

If you’re on the other end of this, however, and have either breastfed exclusively or for a long period of time, or even experienced irregular periods prior to conception, it’s very possible that your cycle will not return until much later. Still, you’ll want to be on the lookout for the following things to ensure that your period isn’t being compromised for other reasons:

• Make sure you are eating enough calories to sustain your body and its functions (especially when nursing)
• Ensure your weight loss (which can be faster during nursing) is at an adequate rate and weight. You do not want to lose too much too soon as this too can affect the return and regularity of your cycle.  
• Ensure your diet is still healthy and not strenuous. Your body will need nutrient-dense food to restore and maintain optimal health, which will help all bodily functions return to optimal performance as well.
• Watch your exercise. You do not need to be in a hurry to get back your pre-pregnancy body. It’s great to do what you feel is good for your mental health, but remember that stress on your body physically can affect your period significantly.
• Ensure you are using protection of your preference is not to have a back-to-back pregnancy. Just because your cycle hasn’t returned yet, doesn’t mean that you are not prone to another pregnancy.  In fact, many women are excite to return to intimacy with their partner those first few months of baby and wind up conceiving again as the uterus is still low and eggs are still released – even if not accompanied by a regular cycle or bleeding.
• Mention any and all of the above issues or concerns to your medical heath professional so that there is documentation and support for getting you back on track with either your period, or preferred method of managing it.

Because your cycle will take its time to return and regulate as it perhaps was before (or even on a new regimen), you’ll definitely want to consider wearing period panties custom-tailored to support your everyday lifestyle while also being prepared for the untimely leaks of your first postpartum period. We would love to hear how we have or can support you!