23 month old indulging on new baby milk

[toyarmy]

dd2 is 23 months old. dd3 is 12 days old.
im really enjoying tandem nursing. its tiresome, but dd2 has always been fairly high needs, so i feel like its really made this transition a lot easier for her.
that said, the instant my milk came in (with dd3) shes wanted to nurse, pretty much every time dd3 is nursing, and more.
the problem is, she pretty much refuses solids, and eats very little if at all.
her poop is not too different from the newborns.

im really just wondering if i should be concerned. is this normal?

[orangatan]

Congrats on the new babe!!
No idea if it's common or not but we have the same situation over here. DD's doctor knows about it (poop and minimal solids) and he's not too concerned, said it will even out as she works through her feelings of having a new baby brother- and slowly we are getting there. It's been three months now and she's back at eating food and mostly comfort nurses instead of filling up on milk. He said the usual things of offering food, some distractions, ect. As long as weight, growth is ok and refusal of solids doesn't last too long (he didn't really say a specific time line though) then it's fine. I first got freaked out and concerned about her intake of breastmilk vs. solids and tried to *gently* wean her while new baby nursed all the time and that TOTALLY did not work and she just wanted more. Not sure what I was thinking, so the wrong time to even think about weaning. Hence me mentioning this to our doc and getting some great feedback. Hope that helps.

[pbjmama]

very normal.

[Meredith&Alexander]

That's what my older son did when his younger brother was born. He nursed like crazy, gained six pounds and grew about three inches in those first three months! It was wonderful to never deal with engorgement, and I have a positively bulletproof supply.

It all worked out. He slowed down a lot after the first couple of months.

[ellesmom]

Yep! DD did that as well... she was lovin' that milk esp since my supply was pretty much gone during my pregnancy. She has slowed down a lot.

[TiredX2]

Totally normal. I think DD gained 5 lbs in a just a few months after DS was born She got a few little rolls again!

I think a total love affair w/the new milk is 100% normal for the older of the tandem nursing pair and you often see both a change in their poop AND weight gain (I think there was a Momma on here with a child who gained 15 POUNDS that way, but that was the most extreme I have heard of, the 3-5 lb range (in a couple months) seems much more "normal"). I know with DD she was eating "enough" while I was pg, but the extra calories once DS were born were exactly what she needed!

[Mamatoto2]

Oh goodness. I've been wondering about this. I had to cut DD#2 off from nursing back in Oct when I was put on strict bed rest because continued nursing may have threatened the viability of my pregnancy. DD knows that she can have "nursies" again when the baby comes and Mommy's body is healthy again, and she talks about it often (she is very much looking forward to it). I keep having visions that I will be holed up in bed for months on end with little milky kids latched on for dear life....here's hoping that it all goes smoothly.

[Fujiko]

Oh wow, thanks for this thread. I'm expecting #2 any day now and I wasn't sure what to expect.

[cmhermes]

Completely normal! My DD did the same thing. Even had newborn BF poops, too! She eventually ate again and slowed down her nursing, but she was in Heaven the first 2 months or so! She gained like 5 or 6 pounds at that time!

Congrats on your new addition!

[mommy2two babes]

Originally Posted by TiredX2

(I think there was a Momma on here with a child who gained 15 POUNDS that way, but that was the most extreme I have heard of,

I am that momma.
DD went from being 20lbs at 23mos ( when DS was born) to 35lbs at about 25 mos. Now at 5 she is only 40lbs.

[ChinaDoll]

Originally Posted by toyarmy

dd2 is 23 months old. dd3 is 12 days old.
im really enjoying tandem nursing. its tiresome, but dd2 has always been fairly high needs, so i feel like its really made this transition a lot easier for her.
that said, the instant my milk came in (with dd3) shes wanted to nurse, pretty much every time dd3 is nursing, and more.
the problem is, she pretty much refuses solids, and eats very little if at all.
her poop is not too different from the newborns.

im really just wondering if i should be concerned. is this normal?

very, very normal - and a good immunity-booster for the older DD. congrats on the newest one

[TiredX2]

Originally Posted by mommy2two babes

I am that momma.
DD went from being 20lbs at 23mos ( when DS was born) to 35lbs at about 25 mos. Now at 5 she is only 40lbs.

It really was that extreme. I remember thinking, "there has got to be something wrong" but it turned out big sib was totally healthy! You must have made the BEST milk!

[luckysgirl]

That's similar to what happened when DD was born. DS pigged out once the colostrum phase passed, although he continued to eat solids as well as breastfeeding like crazy. He was two-and-a-half at the time.

[luckysgirl]

Originally Posted by mommy2two babes

DD went from being 20lbs at 23mos ( when DS was born) to 35lbs at about 25 mos. Now at 5 she is only 40lbs.

Wow! You must make super milk or something, mama.