Question about nursing toddler during pregnancy

[momofadella]

Hi mamas! I'm currently nursing my 13 mo dd and my DH and I are talking about ttc in the very near future. DD loves to nurse and is very very attached to it, sometimes nursing 12+ times throughout the day and night. She likes solids, but nursing is a lot of comfort for her. My question is...I've been browsing through old threads here and I've seen a lot of comments from mama's who have experienced pain, aversions, creepy crawly sensations, and just over-all really hating nursing through pregnancy. I'd really love to hear from some mama's who have done it and actually enjoyed it, or at least didn't mind it quite as much. I hate the thought of weaning her during pregnancy, since she's so attached to it, but I also would like to get pregnant again sometime soon. Also...does the milk supply always get affected by the pregnancy?

[dfunk98]

my dd was 26 months when i got pg with ds. for her, i think it was such a comfort issue, she didn't care when the supply dropped off. i don't know how much she got, but it wasn't much and she didn't wean. in fact, she continues to nurse now, at almost 5 yo!!

i did have boughts of soreness, but i persevered. we had a rough start bing in the beginning, but my convictions of letting her decided when to wean were stronger than any pain i felt. although, i did feel the need to shorten some of our sessions. but nursing did give my pregnant body an "excuse" to sit and rest every once in a while

i feel strongly that it was the right decision for us. my children are very tender and affectionate towards each other (most of the time ) and there was little jealousy when ds was born. i believe not weaning dd played a large roll in that. also, ds never lost any weight after birth bc dd was there to make sure i had a nice, full supply!!

good luck. hope this helps!!

[LadyCatherine185]

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[pitbullrescuer]

dd was 31 months when ds was born. She weaned towards the middle/end of the pg when my milk was very low; but just before ds came my milk came back and she picked right back up where she left off. I never thought I would tandem nurse, but I did for about 6 months. I had mastitis and dd got the "lumpy" milk out for me (her proud words). I was so sick when this happened. I have never in my life been not able to get out of bed. Try to continue nursing if you can without going nuts, but a sane mom is important too. Just do what you feel you can do. Best of luck to you. Btw my dr told me that if I had too many contractions we would have to talk about weaning dd. Be sure to ask your health care provider what is best for you. Also be sure to get enough rest, fluids and food. You will be supplying for 3! (healthy stuff of course

[Blue Lotus]

You know, every woman's experience is different. For the most part, tandeming has been a really good experience for us (DD is almost 3.5 years old, and DS is 1; both are still nursing). DD was 28 months when her brother arrived, and I was worried what her reaction to having to share would be since she is high-needs and is exceedingly attached to nursing (especially for comfort). For the most part, she is really gentle and caring towards him, and was just fine sharing nursing with him.

We did have some of the typical issues, though. My milk disappeared at about 16 weeks, then came back at 18 weeks - DD kept nursing through it all as if nothing had changed. I did have the soreness and creepy-crawly feelings, but it was while I was pregnant (hormonal I guess) and only lasted a month or so. I persevered through the negative feelings by reminding myself of how important it was for DD to not wean then. I didn't hate it at all, but there were times it was not very comfortable at all. On the plus side, she helped insure I had a great supply and didn't get engorged when my milk came in.

I feel that tandem nursing was the right thing to do for them, and has really helped them bond as siblings better without the jealousy issues. Would I do it again? I'm not really sure. I keep joking that they will probably wean at the same time since they have such differnt attitudes toward nursing. DD needs it totally for comfort, while DS wants it for food and to fall asleep.

BTW - Your LO and my sister share a birthday!

[woodchick]

Originally Posted by dfunk98

my dd was 26 months when i got pg with ds. for her, i think it was such a comfort issue, she didn't care when the supply dropped off. i don't know how much she got, but it wasn't much and she didn't wean. in fact, she continues to nurse now, at almost 5 yo!!

i did have boughts of soreness, but i persevered. we had a rough start bing in the beginning, but my convictions of letting her decided when to wean were stronger than any pain i felt. although, i did feel the need to shorten some of our sessions. but nursing did give my pregnant body an "excuse" to sit and rest every once in a while

i feel strongly that it was the right decision for us. my children are very tender and affectionate towards each other (most of the time ) and there was little jealousy when ds was born. i believe not weaning dd played a large roll in that. also, ds never lost any weight after birth bc dd was there to make sure i had a nice, full supply!!

good luck. hope this helps!!

I couldn't have said it better myself. My experience was extremely similar.

NAK

[momofadella]

Originally Posted by pitbullrescuer

Btw my dr told me that if I had too many contractions we would have to talk about weaning dd. Be sure to ask your health care provider what is best for you. Also be sure to get enough rest, fluids and food. You will be supplying for 3! (healthy stuff of course

That's a good point, thanks for bringing that up! With my pregnancy with my DD, I had what my doctor called an "irritable uterus"...meaning I had contractions constantly and was on modified bed rest, pelvic rest and basically threatened preterm labor. But, we actually ended up being induced at 38 weeks! So...this worries me a lot with nursing through a pregnancy. I'm hoping, but not sure if that sort of thing is pretty consistant with all pregnancies, or maybe I'll get lucky and not have to worry about it the next time.

[prancie]

I am about 12 weeks pregnant now and nursing a 2 year old. My supply has dropped a great deal but I am still making milk. The worst part is the soreness. It hurts like the first few weeks of nursing all the time. DS went through a stage where he wanted to nurse all the time and I think he was trying to build my supply back up (which he couldn't).

Obviously getting pregnant now is your choice, but I wanted to assure my ds 2 years of nursing without any danger to my supply. At 13 months nursing was so important to both him and me I would never have chosen to become pregnant then. With an active toddler it is a gift beyond price that we can snuggle down a few times a day while he nurses and I get a break of sorts. More than that nursing was a huge part of his diet, but maybe it's not that way for yours. While getting pregnant may not necessarily preclude these things, it can complicate them and you don't know how your body will react.

Take my advice with a grain of salt, I was very nursing-centric. I nursed so much AF didn't come back until almost 18 months postpartum. If that is not your lifestyle choice, by all means, do what you desire.

[valsblondies]

I was due w/ ds3 2 days ago and am still nursing ds2, who is 22 months. I was instructed by my OB to stop nursing just because "they recommend it". So I left her and went to a midwife. I have found nursing my son painful throughout my entire pregnancy however I would do it again wihout a second thought. The pain was well worth the benefits. I dont feel resentful nursing him and know it helps him feel loved and secure. There have been times Ive cut nursing short because it hurt. I plan to tandem nurse and think it will help my litle guy feel close to and not be so jealous of his brother if they can share it together.

[pbjmama]

I got prego when my ds was 13 months and nursed through pregnancy with milk until a few days before my colostrum came in. There were times it was unpleasant but never unbearable. I did set limits but it wasn't a huge deal and ds really loved nursing. I just weaned him at a little over 3 and dd is still nursing at 17 months.

[KangaTwo]

I didn't have any problems nursing through pregnancy, and I do believe that tandem nursing not only contributed HUGELY to my pp weight loss, but it also smoothed the way to avoid sibling rivalry. My boys (15mos apart) have always been very close. I did get the ants in your pants feeling starting around 18mos but we continued nursing until DS1 was 2 and then DS2 solo nursed for another year or so to over 2 years.

[alegna]

I nursed dd through pregnancy.

I feel it is a birthright for a baby to have a minimum of 2 yrs of breastmilk, so I wouldn't personally ttc before the nursling is 2.

I did have significant discomfort and creepy crawlies while pregnant. My milk was gone around 10 weeks.

-Angela

[ewe+lamb]

I nursed through pregnancy mostly - dd stopped nursing about 6 weeks before her little brother turned up (she was 35 months) then she starting nursing the day we returned from hospital - we had a very particular situation and it was something that she really needed and continued to nurse for 18 months thereafter. I didn't get the creepy crawlies but did have some discomfort we sang songs, counted to ten and all that, dd's poops however did go back to being the yellowish baby poop that you get - lol, I would certainly do it again, it wasn't so uncomfortable that I hated it, Adventures in Tandem Nursing by Hilary Flowers tells you nearly all that you need to know and helps you regulate those feelings that surround tandem nursing - the other thing that I do really remember being shocked about was my tiny infant nursing and this HUGE 3 year old nursing at the same time, but the sharing was wonderful, they would call and let the other one know that they were nursing and did their sibling want to join in, they would hold hands and play together - and now 4 years later on they do have a very fusional relationship which i am very proud of!

[momofadella]

Originally Posted by valsblondies

I have found nursing my son painful throughout my entire pregnancy however I would do it again wihout a second thought. The pain was well worth the benefits. I dont feel resentful nursing him and know it helps him feel loved and secure.

Thank you, that was exactly what I needed to hear. I plan on entering pregnancy with the same outlook. Of course I have no idea what how my body will respond, but I plan to nurse through the pain if she desires, because I strongly feel like she deserves that. It's good to hear that you'd do it again without a second though. thanks.

btw, I guess since your dd is 22 months, you must have gotten pregnant when your other LO was around 13 months too.

[momofadella]

Originally Posted by prancie

Take my advice with a grain of salt, I was very nursing-centric. I nursed so much AF didn't come back until almost 18 months postpartum. If that is not your lifestyle choice, by all means, do what you desire.

I love that, "nursing-centric". I've never heard that before, but I would totally label myself as that as well. I've always made nursing a priority and done everything to protect our nursing relationship. That's why this is such a big deal. I've always wanted children to be 2 years apart, and that time is approaching very quickly. Being a first time mother, I never thought nursing would be so important to me and to her, but it is. It would be devastating to lose our nursing relationship, but I also have dreams of having children close in age. What to do, what to do?? I'm really only just now in the "thinking" stages. I haven't even had a AFPP yet, so it could be quite awhile anyway. But, thank you for your opinion, it's always nice to consider all angles.

[pbjmama]

I really wanted mine about 2 years apart too and that is what I got. And I love my children. If I could go back I would wait a little longer. I couldn't anticipate how much of a baby my 2 year old would still be when his sister was born. Just my two cents.

[sarahtdubb]

I am 20 weeks pregnant and nursing my 24 month old, and I wanted to chime in because I haven't experienced any pain or "creepy crawlies" with nursing.

From women I've spoken to, the experience is different for every woman--- some lose their milk early on, some not till the very end. But if it is really important to you to know you can continue to nurse your LO, you may want to wait a bit to TTC. Just my two cents! We all have lots of ideas about what we want life with kids to be like before it happens, but make sure to factor in current reality with your vision.

[momofadella]

Thank you, I appreciate your input.