Nursing while pregnant?

[HeatherG]

Hi all. I just found out that I am pregnant with my second. My DD is only 9 months and this was unplanned. I feel terrible. I feel like it is going to take away from my DD. I was wondering how many of you successful nursed your babies through pregnancy. Some folks are saying the milk dries up by 5 months.

[1Plus2]

CONGRATULATIONS on your pregnancy! I nursed my oldest dd throughout the majority of my pregnancy with my twin dd's. The only reason I decided to wean her was because I was having two babies instead of one. There are women who have gone on to tandem nurse all three! Many, many, many women all over the world continue to nurse their baby/toddler throughout a pregancy and go on to tandem nurse. Some women do notice a dip in their supply while others never see a change until the very end. Here's a little something from Kellymom.com you may want to read on nursing during pregnancy:

http://www.nursingtwo.com/faq/01safety.html

Although I don't have the book, I have heard only wonderful things about "Adventures in Tandem Nursing" which is published by LLL. I'm sure it talks about nursing during the pregnancy and addresses your concerns.

[HeatherG]

Thanks for the info 1Plus2.

Does anyone else have any input?

[mom2threenurslings]

My son was 9 months old when I got pregnant with his little brother. He successfully nursed throughout the pregnancy and tandem nursed with his little brother...then went on to triandem nurse with his little brother and little sister (I tandem nursed through pregnancy!). My milk didn't dry up during either of my pregnancies.

Each woman is different. Some mothers experience a decreased milk supply when pregnant, some don't. You may notice your nursling nursing more frequently, and this may signal a drop in your supply. Keep in mind that all it takes is a slight drop for a nursling to nurse more, so don't panic! One of the great things is that she's 9 months old and can have solids incorporated into her diet. By the time you might expect a bigger drop in supply, she should be pretty well established eating solids and won't rely quite so heavily on nursing.

As someone mentioned before, "Adventures in Tandem Nursing" by Hilary Flower has some great info on nursing through pregnancy, as does the newest version of "The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding" (LLLI) and "Mothering Your Nursing Toddler" (Norma Jane Bumgarner). You can also visit the LLL website and do a search for pregnant nursing / nurisng through pregnancy.

[Sustainer]

I successfully breastfed through my pregnancy, and my milk did decrease but never dried up. Be sure to drink TONS of fluids and eat whenever you're hungry. Good luck and congrats on your pregnancy!

[kerikadi]

Congratulations on your pregnancy!
When DD#1 was 7.5 months old I found out (surprise) that I ws pregnant. Because of the pregnancy we started solids sooner than originally planned. We went on to nurse through the pregnancy and I have been tandem nursing for 6 months now It's not easy but I am so glad I continued nursing!

Good luck,
Keri

[huskrkid]

I got pg with ds when dd was 19 mo & sucessfully nursed her through the entire pregnancy, even while through labor. She weaned shortly thereafter.


Water...lots & lots of water!!

Congratulations!

[bc1995]

Ds#1 was 9 months when I got pregnant with #2 (planned). I was able to nurse him through my pregnancy and am tandem nursing now. I did notice a major drop in supply at 22 weeks, but it rebounded nicely within 2 weeks.

[Mom2baldie]

Congratulations! I am 21 weeks pregnant and still nursing my almost 28 month old DD. My milk has dried up quite a bit (since the 2nd trimester), but it doesnt seem that she has noticed a difference. I am very much looking forward to tandem nursing in Sept.

My midwife told me that everyone doesnt have their milk dry up during pregnancy, it just depends on the person. I probably have not been drinking as much water as I should be, and that could be one reason for the decline in production.

Good luck to you!

[HeatherG]

thank you, thank you, thank you ladies!

Nice to hear the good stories The are all very encouraging.

[gotmilkmama]

Congratulations! I got preg when my ds was 9 mos too! Then I found out it wasn't just #2 but #2 AND #3! I wanted to nurse him as long as he wanted too. When I was about 4 1/2 mos preg and ds was about 13 1/2 mos he stopped. For a few weeks if not longer I could tell my milk was changing and so could he. He'd look up at me like 'Hey mom this doesn't taste the same!!!' Eventually he just stopped. I was so sad. Plus he was very occupied with his new trick...walking. So I think a combo of my milk changing and his preoccupation caused him to wean. But the good news is he self weaned which is what I always wanted and that I'm 33 wks preg now and my twin girls will be here shortly to start nursing!

Good luck to you and your babies!!

Carmella
33wks 2days
id sweet baby girls edd 7-4-04 (40 weeks)
Dominic (The Dom) 12-29-02