Breastfeeding a toddler while pregnant--support

[Anna's Lovey]

I just found out I'm pregnant and I'm breastfeeding a toddler right now. I'd like to continue. I haven't seen a doctor yet but I have a feeling I will be told to wean. Any information on the subject will be so appreciated. Mainly I want to know 1) that it's ok to do, and 20) what should I eat to stay healthy.
Thank a bunch!

[boysmom2]

I nursed DS1 until he was 3.5yo. He was 2.5 when DS2 was born. I continued to nurse him whenever he asked, though about half way through my pregnancy we night weaned because I was so exhausted and needed more consistent sleep. He was about 2yo at that point and it wasn't very hard on either of us. I try to eat healthy foods/plenty of protein when pregnant, so I just did that then too. I'm sure I ate more, just tried to eat good stuff and drink plenty of water.

Congrats on the new one!!

[ramama]

Congratulations! I'll just say what my OB told me when I became pregnant with DD2 (and still nursing DD1). He told me that some OBs believe that nursing while pregnant may trigger premature labor. However, he said that in his own opinion, the female body is smart enough to differentiate between internal stimulus and external stimulus. I had no problems.

My only advice is to take it one day at a time. Don't get your heart set on any one thing, because much of it is out of your control. You very well may come to hate nursing while pregnant once your milk turns to colostrum. Don't be too hard on yourself if that's the case. You won't be alone in feeling that way. Also, the Womanly Art of Breastfeeding says that 70% (I'm pretty sure that's the figure) of toddlers self-wean when their mother's become pregnant again. I've known many mothers who had their hearts set on tandem nursing and were overwhelmed with guilt when their toddler self-weaned. Again, don't be too hard on yourself if that happens. Just be prepared for anything, it'll all work out in the end!

My personal experience: I became pregnant with DD2 when DD1 was 14 months old. I HATED nursing DD1 while pregnant. As a result, I was overwhelmed with guilt, absolutely consumed. I was ashamed to admit I was feeling that way, even though I would have had the support of a great LLL group at the time had I "confessed." But I stuck it out and DD1 continued nursing and didn't wean until age 3 1/4, or thereabouts. These feelings are natural, have a support system set up, come here to vent or gush, to scream or pat yourself on the back, anything that will help you.

[mosesface]

congratulations on your pregnancy AND for breastfeeding your kiddo!

here's a link to the kellymom site regarding pregnancy and breastfeeding. if you are in good health, there is no medical reason to wean during pregnancy!

[GardenStream]

a huge to ramama

I hated nursing my toddler from about my 5th month on. That's about the time where the milk dried up too, but that never slowed my toddler down. FWIW, I was really hoping that bfing would trigger labor so that I would be able to have a VBAC, but it didn't. I still went a week over with no signs of labor.

DS1 and DS2 are still nursing today and show no signs of weaning anytime soon.

[Anna's Lovey]

Thanks a lot for responding to my post! I feel much more secure in my decision to continue breastfeeding my little one for as long as I can while pregnant. Honestly, she's such a frequent and avid nurser that I have wanted her to slow down or quit many a time, but now that I'm pregnant I find myself wanting to prolong the experience for some reason. I hope I can continue to nurse. Thanks for your support.

[kcparker]

I just made it through nursing a toddler during pregnancy and am now tandeming. Nursing hurt like stiletto knives in my nipples when the milk was drying up, then went to being super-annoying but tolerable for short periods, and AS SOON AS the baby was born, it went back to being a-ok. Now we are figuring out nursing though engorgement, limits (or not) on toddler's nursing, and all the rest of it, but you can do it - just eat well, keep your calcium intake up, set limits if you need to.

[cocopop]

I nurse my 15 month old and am 14 weeks pg. When I told my OB I was nursing the only thing he said was "and you can continue to do that, it's perfectly safe". I already knew that

I also nursed #1 while pg with #2. (they are 8 and 7 now). My milk dried up at about 20 weeks and I expect it to do the same this time too. The first time, once it dried up, DD weaned immediately. She was 16 months old. But she was never a comfort nurser. My 15 month old IS a comfort nurser and I fully expect him to continue nursing even if my milk dries up. But I do NOT want to tandem nurse

Kim

[Agustina]

I am 38 weeks pregnant, my son was 9 months old when I got pregnant, he is 17 months now, so not only he was an avid nurser, but he needed to nurse, considering his age, so for me weaning was not an option. It has been the most challenging thing of my motherhood, but when this pregnancy is over I know I will be so proud of myself. The worst part was when I suffered from breastfeeding aversion, I never thought my body would react so negatively to my son and there was no way to stop it, it was HORRIBLE. We survived it thanks to the support of LLL and we are now right on track. My only advice is that breastfeeding while pregnant can trigger a full range of emotions, some of them are not pretty, don't feel guilty, embarrassed or ashamed, they are all natural responses of a body doing a lot of overwork, talk about them openly and reach out every time you need it, there are a lot of moms out there that have been through the same and have a lot of support to give.

[spirit4ever]

I also nursed through a pregnancy and tandem nursed with my first two, when I got pregnant with my 3rd my 2nd weaned a few months after we concieved.

It was hard but I knew in my heart that that is what my son needed!

[noobmom]

Another pregnant-nursing-a-toddler here. DS was about 2.5 yo when I got pregnant and already down to just 2-3 nursings a day. My milk dried up early (probably partially because I was taking Unisom for morning sickness--at the time I didn't think about the fact that it's a antihistamine). For me, it was awful to nurse in the first trimester and into the second, maybe because my milk dried up early + I had terrible morning sickness. We came very close to weaning and DS would go several days without asking to nurse. And when he did nurse it was very limited (due to me--he's a major comfort nurser so he can stay attached forever). Once my colostrum came in it was actually more comfortable for me to nurse. DS is back to nursing 3-4 times a day now. I haven't gotten the heebie-jeebies yet, but I'm on the lookout.

[littlecityfarmer]

As long as you don't have a history of pre-term birth or other complications, it is totally fine to nurse through your pregnancy! Your milk supply will probably dwindle significantly with the hormonal changes in pregnancy, but there may still be a bit of milk, especially later on. Here is my story of tandem nursing and pregnancy weaning:

My oldest, DS, weaned at 17 months, when I was about 7 months pregnant with DD1-- he was always a "down to business" breastfeeder, used a pacifier for comfort sucking, and had bottles of EBM while I was at work (I continued pumping until shortly before he weaned). DS did ask to nurse a couple of times after DD1 was born, but his latch, never great, was really bad, so I would express milk into a cup if he asked for it-- really only a few times.

DD1 loved nursing from the moment after she was born, was still actively nursing when I conceived DD2, and told me in no uncertain terms that when the baby (DD2) was born, she (DD1) would have all the milky she wanted, and the baby could have a bottle. DD1 was a very high needs baby, meeting all her suck needs at breast-- I don't think I put her down for more than 10 minutes until she was about 8 months old, and she nursed about every hour- hour and a half until she was well over 2. Nursing was very uncomfortable for me as the pregnancy progressed, especially as my milk supply dwindled, but DD1 still nursed a few times a day for a few minutes. When DD2 was born, DD1 was 27 months old, and eager to nurse as often as the newborn DD2. DD1 nursed less and less frequently, and fully weaned about a month before her 4th birthday.

DD2 was a quiet, content baby who always nursed well (I always said I could have 4 more like her!), but found her thumb early. She nursed frequently, latched well, but sucked her thumb to soothe. She's still nursing a few times a day (morning, nap, bedtime, and if she gets a boo boo) at 28 months, and still sucking her thumb. I'm 3 months pregnant, now, with #4, and starting to find nursing pretty uncomfortable. We still nurse for a few moments a day, and I plan to tandem DD2 and the new baby!

Sorry for the novella! Good luck, OP!

[nudhistbudhist]

I'm 33 weeks PG with a 15 mo ds. I also went thorugh some serious serious breastfeeding aversion (which I think had a lot to do with night nursing). I was at the point where I couldn't even imagine bfing my new baby. I didn't figure out that it was bfing aversion until I was coming through the other side, by night weaning ds. Now, its a bit uncomfortable, but I am looking forward to tandem nursing. I had to give ds a paci though... it literally saved my bfing relationship. I give it to him at night when he's nursed for a few minutes and can't take it any longer.

My doctor told me that I should wean... luckily, I had already done all my research, so I told him that I would not only nurse while pregnant, but tandem nurse as well. My ds was already eating lots of food, and I had an appetite like a horse, so we were good to go

Congrats on your new addition

[ChristianMomOf2]

My OB's were supportive of me nursing while pregnant, although I FULLY expected them to tell me to wean (as my family did).

DS was born 10/2006 weaned 9/2009
DD was born 03/2008
DS is expected 03/2010

Although I weaned DS1 by the end of September, he was sick w/ pertussis and there were several times that I nursed him because I noticed that DD was recovering better and figured it was from BFing. Also he was crying me and begging to nurse last week so I let him for about 2 mins... it's the first time he asked when he wasn't sick.

So this time around, I was still tandem nursing 2 toddlers during my 1st four months of pregnancy!

To keep healthy, make sure you get plenty of protien and calcium (using raw spinach in salads is great for that)... I take Vitamin D supplements in the winter, and try to cut out refined sugars. Also, pregnancy can cause constipation so I try to make sure I have plenty of fiber too.

You'll be great & your babies will too!

[jillmamma]

An awesome book you might want to check out is Adventures in Tandem Nursing by Hilary Flower. She talks a lot about nursing while pg and afterwards if you decide to continue. That book was awesome for me!

I am nursing through pregnancy for the second time now, though this time is not nearly as often. My oldest was 2 when I got pg, so he nursed 4-5 times a day yet, and continued through pregnancy and beyond till he was almost 5. This time DD is 4 and I am due in 2 more months. She is just taking a sip or two from both sides (not even sure if anything is even there, but she still seems to need the comfort) before bed most nights. My oldest (2.75 when his sister was born) wanted to nurse a lot at first once all that good newborn milk came in, and over the next few weeks I was able to get him gradually back to his old nursing routine. I am open to doing tandem again if she does not wean before the baby comes, but since she will be so much older (almost 4.5), she definitely will be limited to just bedtime like now and for as long as I feel like it.

As far as staying healthy, nutritional needs, etc. I have found that the biggest area I need to concentrate on is staying hydrated. WAY less nipple pain as you get more advanced in pregnancy. Other than that, just try to follow a generally healthy lifestyle and eat good foods when you are hungry. I have found that supply generally dips for me during the first trimester, but I start producing some colostrum in the last trimester (if your LO is still in diapers, watch for runny poops from that!).

Overall, I am VERY glad I continued to nurse my kids as long as I have, and I feel tandem nursing has helped a lot in those early days when they are still adjusting to a new baby in the house...they still have mama available to nurse even though she has to do a lot for the baby. Nothing quite like a 3 year old making his sister giggle while nursing at the same time as she is, so that both have milky smiles and are holding hands.

[Theoretica]

You've gotten lots of great advice (ditto the above book recommendation, btw!) so I just wanted to jump in as another voice of support!