Anyone in this bunch still breastfeeding and pregnant? - Page 3

[puddle]

SeattleKristin -- How many times a day does your DD nurse now? For most kids, moving as gradually as possible works best. You can start by setting limits, like only nursing at certain times of day. Nightweaning is usually a first step. While I haven't weaned a kid yet, most of my friends have weaned during pregnancy. It honestly depends on your kid though. I have one friend with a really intense and demanding DS, and for him, every new limit was horrible to adjust too. She eventually just cut him off altogether, and he actually responded better to that. One other caveat--weaning doesn't necessarily stop nightwaking. A lot of mamas I've known who nightweaned found that their kids still woke up at night HUNGRY, and needed a little snack and then had to be gotten back to sleep all over again.

My DD tells me that my milk is harder to get out now. I guess I've already had a little dip, and I'm only 4w6d! Nipples are a little sore, but no worse than they usually get around ovulation. I don't know what I'm gonna do when I lose my milk, or what to do when/if DD weans. I have no idea how to parent her without nursing!

[Morwenna]

My just-turned 3yo is still nursing, but he's down to 1 or 2 times day on most days...maybe this is the end? I kind of hope so, 3 years is good. He eats a good amount of food now.

[corrieoseal]

DD is 26 months and just barely nursing still for a few minutes at nap and bedtime. I was in the process of weaning her to pursue more aggressive fertility treatments when this pregnancy surprised us. I really figured she'd wean during the last month, but she seems very attached to the 5 minutes or so of nursing that we do each day. I can't imagine that she is getting much milk, if any, but it seems to be an important part of the sleep ritual for her and so I am willing to keep it up. Though my RE is still encouraging us to wean immediately. He believes that the minor uterine contractions could endanger my pregnancy since I've had 2 m/c since DD was born. I don't know whether to believe or disbelieve him.

[lightheartedmom]

Checking in again here because I can't remember how it was when I was pg with DD2 and nursing DD1: all of a sudden my usually good-sleeper (meaning she goes down awake and puts herself to sleep and wakes up once or twice a night) DD2 is a raging maniac at bedtime, won't go to sleep unless it's in my arms, wakes up every hour or so (ALL NIGHT LONG) and is nursing me dry within an inch of my life. I am so tired I would like to be in a coma for a few weeks just to get some sleep.
I have literally been getting up with them in the morning, feeding them breakfast and then putting on a video for them just so I can snooze for another hour or so...but it doesn't seem to help.
So...nursing...milk supply down? Do you think that could be the reason why she's nursing like this all of a sudden? Or does she just taste a sibling in the milk and she's trying to get her fill of mom before the competition shows up? ;-) (I'm half-joking...I think)

[puddle]

corrieoseal -- I think the general rule of thumb is that if sex is okay, nursing is still okay. If your doctor is advising you to avoid sex as well, then you may need to consider weaning.

[wembles]

I am still nursing my 19 month old. I had been working to pare him down to nursing upon waking up, before nap, and at bedtime before I got pregnant...but now he seems to be asking more and more for in between sessions. He has been night weaned since 16 months. I haven't had any pain while nursing so far, just this feeling that creeps up after he's been on for about 2-3 minutes that I need him off NOW. Sometimes, that's ok with him; sometimes, he throws a fit.

[SeattleKristin]

This is helpful. DD nurses about five times a day (two of those at night) now. She's on the intense/demanding side and I was wondering whether just going cold turkey with her would be best given her personality, so it's interesting to hear about your friend's experience. My plan for now is to try to get her down to nursing fewer times a day, but I'm taking a four-day trip without her in October and that just may be when she gets fully weaned.

Originally Posted by puddle

SeattleKristin -- How many times a day does your DD nurse now? For most kids, moving as gradually as possible works best. You can start by setting limits, like only nursing at certain times of day. Nightweaning is usually a first step. While I haven't weaned a kid yet, most of my friends have weaned during pregnancy. It honestly depends on your kid though. I have one friend with a really intense and demanding DS, and for him, every new limit was horrible to adjust too. She eventually just cut him off altogether, and he actually responded better to that. One other caveat--weaning doesn't necessarily stop nightwaking. A lot of mamas I've known who nightweaned found that their kids still woke up at night HUNGRY, and needed a little snack and then had to be gotten back to sleep all over again.

My DD tells me that my milk is harder to get out now. I guess I've already had a little dip, and I'm only 4w6d! Nipples are a little sore, but no worse than they usually get around ovulation. I don't know what I'm gonna do when I lose my milk, or what to do when/if DD weans. I have no idea how to parent her without nursing!

[famille_huggins]

I'm so glad to read this thread! I'm still nursing my 12mo and planned to for another year. Since we've always been an on-demand nursing pair, I haven't noticed a significant change in her patterns. Still, it's good to know what may be coming. I've never nursed through a pregnancy before...

[Kim Allen]

DS is still nursing. He is 12 months. He isnt getting much at all and really hurting my nipples from the constant nursing. I will have to wean him im sure as I did with ODS when I was pregnant with him.

[babygrey]

My nipples started REALLY, REALLY hurting the last few days during nursing. They weren't hurting before and I thought maybe I was going to be one of the lucky moms who didn't have nipple pain.
I'm not planning to wean, but it really is making the experience sad for me. I'm feeling bad for my DD. Plus, I'm soooo tired, bc we cosleep and she's used to staying latched all night and I totally can't sleep and nurse right now.

Those of you w/ experience- is there anything to help? They only hurt while she is latched on.

[lizzylou]

8w1d and my supply has tanked. I had also been encouraging night weaning so I am sure that also had an effect. But it has been soooo worth it because for the most part he is STTN for the first time ever.

[nerdymom]

I am still nursing my opinionated, demanding 21 month old. He just *needs* his baaboo about 6-10x a day. He's been sick so I'm not concerned with it too much, I'm hoping to go back to 3-5x a day when he's well again. I have no nipple pain, just a little added sensitivity, nothing too major or disruptive. I am hoping to wean before the new baby arrives. I just don't see myself tandem nursing. I pray that my supply gradually drops off and he stops nursing. That would be the easiest course of action. I am going to whittle down his other nursings after he's well again. I don't want to finish weaning too close to the new baby, for fear he will feel jealous of the new baby.

[birdword]

I'm still nursing my 12mo (every couple hours) and think I'm due in April but hadn't had a period yet so I'm having trouble coming up with a dd (had been charting my infertile cycles and noticed no changes . . agh). She is a nursing addict and hardly eats any solid foods, so I'm worried that my milk might dry up. It already seems like she's getting less and it is so painful I'm having trouble relaxing while she nurses. She's never been a very gentle nurser and pregnancy really isn't helping w/ that. Any suggestions for boosting milk supply during pregnancy? I pump while I'm at work. She and I would be devastated if we had to quit or even greatly reduce.

[nerdymom]

Originally Posted by birdword

I'm still nursing my 12mo (every couple hours) and think I'm due in April but hadn't had a period yet so I'm having trouble coming up with a dd (had been charting my infertile cycles and noticed no changes . . agh). She is a nursing addict and hardly eats any solid foods, so I'm worried that my milk might dry up. It already seems like she's getting less and it is so painful I'm having trouble relaxing while she nurses. She's never been a very gentle nurser and pregnancy really isn't helping w/ that. Any suggestions for boosting milk supply during pregnancy? I pump while I'm at work. She and I would be devastated if we had to quit or even greatly reduce.

There are a ton of moms on here who have or are nursing while pregnant. Check out the breastfeeding forums here on MDC and of course kellymom is always great. http://www.kellymom.com/bf/tandem/index.html

[famille_huggins]

Originally Posted by nerdymom

There are a ton of moms on here who have or are nursing while pregnant. Check out the breastfeeding forums here on MDC and of course kellymom is always great. http://www.kellymom.com/bf/tandem/index.html

Thanks for where to go for more info. When I checked in with my OB/GYN to begin my bi-weekly progesterone blood checks, his nurse insisted that I had to stop nursing immediately. Our little one is 12mo, and while she still nurses, she nurses maybe twice during the day and nuzzles/nurses on and off all night while we cosleep. She eats loads of solids, so I cannot imagine she's nursing for nutritive purposes, but our relationship is still so very important to us.

I've been trying to research why I'd be told to quit nursing. When I asked the nurse, she said the OB/GYN tells everyone to stop. All I can find online is a possible connection between low progesterone levels in nursing moms (especially moms in their mid-30's like me), but I ALREADY struggle with low progesterone. If I'm ALREADY at a high risk of loss, and if I'm ALREADY going to have my progesterone supplemented, and if I'm ALREADY going to have my blood drawn every 3-4 days for the first 12 weeks to ensure those levels remain stable, why then should we wean?

I don't want to intentionally risk this new baby -- of course -- but I also don't want to neglect or deny the baby in my arms. I'm so torn and troubled. Honest thoughts? Seriously, let me have it...

[nerdymom]

Originally Posted by famille_huggins

Thanks for where to go for more info. When I checked in with my OB/GYN to begin my bi-weekly progesterone blood checks, his nurse insisted that I had to stop nursing immediately. Our little one is 12mo, and while she still nurses, she nurses maybe twice during the day and nuzzles/nurses on and off all night while we cosleep. She eats loads of solids, so I cannot imagine she's nursing for nutritive purposes, but our relationship is still so very important to us.

I've been trying to research why I'd be told to quit nursing. When I asked the nurse, she said the OB/GYN tells everyone to stop. All I can find online is a possible connection between low progesterone levels in nursing moms (especially moms in their mid-30's like me), but I ALREADY struggle with low progesterone. If I'm ALREADY at a high risk of loss, and if I'm ALREADY going to have my progesterone supplemented, and if I'm ALREADY going to have my blood drawn every 3-4 days for the first 12 weeks to ensure those levels remain stable, why then should we wean?

I don't want to intentionally risk this new baby -- of course -- but I also don't want to neglect or deny the baby in my arms. I'm so torn and troubled. Honest thoughts? Seriously, let me have it...

If I were in your shoes, with such a young baby, there is no way I would stop nursing. If your OB is that unsupportive of your decision to nurse beyond the first year (which many health organizations recommend) then perhaps this OB will also be, er, resistant to other choices you might make, like not wanting an episiotomy or induction. If I chose to stay with this doctoer I would FOR SURE print out some information about the benefits of breastfeeding a toddler and breastfeeding during pregnancy and give it to him. Let him know right away that you are an informed mother who is going to take an active role in her prenatal care.

[famille_huggins]

Originally Posted by nerdymom

If I were in your shoes, with such a young baby, there is no way I would stop nursing. If your OB is that unsupportive of your decision to nurse beyond the first year (which many health organizations recommend) then perhaps this OB will also be, er, resistant to other choices you might make, like not wanting an episiotomy or induction. If I chose to stay with this doctoer I would FOR SURE print out some information about the benefits of breastfeeding a toddler and breastfeeding during pregnancy and give it to him. Let him know right away that you are an informed mother who is going to take an active role in her prenatal care.

Thanks for the follow-up, nerdymom. My doctor is a very stubborn OB/GYN, but I don't think his recommendation is in opposition to extended breastfeeding as much as it a recommendation against nursing while pregnant -- which is clearly not a one-size-fits-all recommendation. As far as other choices I have, they're limited because of some special issues I have -- I have a transabdominal cerclage which many OBs have never seen before, and I don't know that I *want* to go on the hunt for someone new when this guy knows me and my equally strong personality, knows my special needs, knows my maternal-fetal medicine specialist and the role he plays in my process.

This guy has walked with me through a whole pregnancy and he really did take good care of me. This is just an issue where we're gonna butt heads, I'm afraid. This issue is not about my choices with regards to any other portion of my birth plan or process -- this is really about needing some voices of experience or advice regarding breastfeeding while pregnant and how that affects progesterone levels.

[nerdymom]

Good, good! Glad you know your OB and trust him. I didn't recognize your name but I recognize your story. You're in the c/s moms thread aren't you? I will start recognizing names (maybe) in a few more weeks I think! lol

[birdword]

Thanks nerdymom I know it's possible and of course I'm planning on continuing just wondering if anyone has any tips for increasing milk during pregnancy as it seems to have decreased ie. herbs that are safe to use. That website is great I've checked it out before.

[alireb]

I'm still nursing my 2.5 year old although this morning I was so nauseous, I had to pull him off of me. We've been down to just a morning nursing for months now and with this nausea, I'm not sure how long I'll be able to continue. I'm not sure exactly how far along I am, maybe 6-7 weeks. I haven't had any nipple pain yet, thank goodness!