Nursing moms

[sarahn4639]

I've noticed there are a few of us. Come check in! How are you doing? Any changes in supply? Any changes in your nursling? Are your breasts sore? Are you planning to tandem? Anything else you want to share?

[sarahn4639]

Well my nipples have been very sore. I am already discouraging night nursing and hadn't planned to do that for several weeks. It just hurts too much and I can't sleep through nursing anymore. I am still nursing if she insists but I try several other things (cuddling, water, rubbing back) before resorting and then I cut it short and try not to let her fall asleep on the breast anymore. I am doing okay during the day but it does get hard if it takes her a long time to fall asleep for her nap. I haven't noticed any changes in my supply (can still express some after she nurses). I haven't noticed a difference in DD as far as maybe having a different taste or anything. I am open to tandem nursing and I think I'd be pretty suprised if DD weaned during pregnancy, she is pretty attached to her num nums!

[ColesMommy]

Now that I see this thread, I'm feeling sad that my son and I are done.

When Cole was about 18 months old, I was getting tired of breastfeeding. I'm not a touchy feely person and Cole is a child who loves his boob and wouldn't dream of a quick snack so it was starting to wear on me. I decided that we would try to slowly wind down our nursing relationship, hoping that by the time he was about 2, he'd be weaned.

It's been an up and down process but about a month ago, he stopped waking up for his midnight snack. Around the same time, he stopped falling asleep for the night while nursing - he'd nurse and then snuggle with me or my husband for awhile then go to sleep. Last Friday, he didn't ask for boob before he fell asleep and on Saturday, he went to sleep at my parents' house while they were babysitting. He usually lets me know that he wants to nurse by grapping his Boppy and bringing it to me so on Sunday, my husband put it up. He asked a little bit but was then content to just snuggle. Today marks a week since he last nursed.

I do wonder if me being pregnant played a role in his willingness to give up his beloved boob.

[MCKH]

Sarah,
Just wanted to drop by and say congratulations!!!!! I am so glad that you graduated from the TTC while BF board :) Yay!!!! DD and I are still nursing strong, not that it hasn't been without its low points, but here I am at almost 11 weeks. You can do it!

Maureen

[azyre]

MY 4yo DD still feeds to go to sleep at night and she has claimed my milk has been gone for the last 18 months or so! I'm pretty sure there hasn't been much there for a long time, so she might get lucky and get something in the next few months :)

Given we are the real end of our breastfeeding relationship, I can't imagine I will be facing many of the issues most pregnant and nursing mothers do. I just hope she hangs in there with her 30 second feeds for 9 months so I have a feeder that is easy to communicate with should I need any help with engorgement LOL And have one boob still used to being fed on! (She had weaned off the right ages ago.) I reckon I deserve some tandem feeding perks having fed this long LOL

[ellymay]

I AM! LOL I am 5wks no sore nips my bbs feel very heavy and full all the time though and I feel letdown alot more than I did and dd is still nursing a million times a day but she has been extremely gassy every since I have been preggo. I hope that ends soon bc she isn't sleeeping well bc her belly hurts.

[flapjack]

I am- but I don't think we're going to make it all the way through this pregnancy. My milk supply is a long way down, she's asking less frequently and is sleeping through the night. She's maybe nursing 2-4 times a day, something like that?
In the end, CLW has never been a big goal for us. Skye is making the choice between frustrated boobie/no boobie, and I'm happy for her to figure out the tradeoffs.

[Jlcampbellkidz]

I nursed my 2nd daughter all the way through my pregnancie with my 3rd. Definetly had pain and challenges but it was worth it. It also helped the morning i went into labor. Gabi was only 18 mo. at the time and still in my bed so she wanted to nurse. It helped speed up the proccess I think and 4 hours later I had my new baby. She started wheening about 4 months ago.
Krisalyn (15 mo) is still nursing. I am not home during the day usually so it's only morning and night now. But I don't see her wanting to give it up anytime soon.
Yes starting to feel some discomfort while nursing but still totally manageble. It's also a nice tool to practice relaxation for the pain of contrax.

[Mama2-4]

My little guy still nurses, but not that much. He nurses at nap time, he nurses for comfort maybe 1-2 times per day and then at bedtime. And he prefers 1 breast! So, I am not sure how much milk is really there, but it keeps him happy.:)
Andrea

[JJJJBlue3333]

My 16 month old nurses ALOT. I really hope we make it through the pregnancy. When he latches on I feel sore initially but that has just started the last 2 days. I'm worried about my supply. How do you keep it up?

[Ivan's Mom]

Ivan will be 2 on June 10. He loves nursing and it is so painful for me. He nurses a lot during the night, which is difficult. He is restless during sleep, so he stirs often and wants to nurse each time he stirs.

I still see some milk when he nurses.

What do we do when during labor and hospital stays? Ivan and I are so attached, he cannot sleep without me. Anybody else have plans for what you are going to do with your nursing toddlers? We have decided that my mom will be with me for labor and delivery, so that dh can be with Ivan. I am so afraid that he will feel abandoned otherwise.

[sarahn4639]

:hug Maureen!! I'm so glad things are going well with you guys. I'm glad to be here too!:D Thanks for the congrats!

I'm glad to see there are so many of us.

Ivan'smom-those are good points. We are planning a home birth so I won't have to leave her but I do worry about her seeing me in birth. We are going to talk about that and watch her birth video and things towards the end. She still sleeps with us and nurses through the night. I am trying to start night weaning and we are planning to move her to her own bed too. I want her night weaned first and then we'll work on moving her. I just feel like it will be good for me to be able to use lots of pillows and move around and go to the bathroom without waking her and all that in the end of pregnancy. Plus once the baby is here I don't want him/her to wake her and her start night nursing again! So that is our plan for that, I hope it works itself out!

[crbyard]

My dd is 16 months and is still going strong. She nurses quite a bit still at night and probably 4 times during the day. I haven't noticed any changes in my breasts at all so far. I am hoping to tandem, at least, I am hoping that the pregnancy doesn't cause her to wean prematurely.

[flapjack]

Hey, Christina, I didn't know you were here too!
Ivansmom, this kind of worry is why lots of people start considering homebirths- what do you do with your child? How do you cope with missing them? With worrying about them missing you? Other than that, I'd think about a shorter hospital stay.

[ellymay]

What do we do when during labor and hospital stays? Ivan and I are so attached, he cannot sleep without me. Anybody else have plans for what you are going to do with your nursing toddlers? We have decided that my mom will be with me for labor and delivery, so that dh can be with Ivan. I am so afraid that he will feel abandoned otherwise.

I have been thinking about the same thing BUT I am going to have dd there well I always have all my kids in there and my mom will be there w/ her but I was more worried about an overnight stay which I will have to do and I am not ready and don't think I will be ready then for her to be away from me at night so I guess I am going to be interviewing hospitals I guess you could say and find out which one will allow me to have my dd stay w/ me at night since my dh is there anyways so he can help.

[Ivan's Mom]

Thanks for the replies about the hospital stay. I am trying for a VBAC, so I am definitely not going to have a homebirth. We are over 40 miles from the hospital that our doctor practices at also. It took a long time to find him since he is basically "holistic."

I will ask about Ivan being able to stay with me. I did not see any small children there when I gave birth to Ivan though.

How does one night-wean? I have the book "Adventures in Tandem Nursing." But all seems difficult. Ivan keeps me up so much at night with nursing and calling out in his sleep.

[flapjack]

I hear a lot of good things about the No-Cry sleep solution for toddlers. Other than that, dd just did it herself- all my kids did at around this age, actually, but the night feeds were generally the last to go.

[mama_nym]

I'm definitely pregnant and nursing - I'm actually pregnant and triandem nursing, so this should definitely be an interesting journey! I'm about 5 weeks pregnant and don't have any soreness, have plenty of milk and breastfeeding is going smoothly. My 20 month old continues to nurse many times a day, my almost-5 year old nurses a couple times a day and my almost-7 year old once a week or so. It will be interesting to see who is still nursing by the end of my pregnancy! :lol

[lovetobemama]

Hey mamas! It's great to have so many mamas who are nursing and pregnant to share this trip with!!!!

DS is 18 months old. He is night-weaned, and nurses at wake-up, after nap time, and at bedtime. However, after learning about how much work it can be to keep your supply up during pregnancy, I have actually started encouraging a bit more nursing at times when he might lean towards asking for it anyway, like after a scraped knee or something.

So far I haven't noticed any difference, but I am feeling my let-down more than I have in months. Don't know what that is about.

I am really hoping to continue on and tandem, at least for a bit. I hated getting started nursing, and I hope that if DS keeps me from going completely dry, it will be much easier to establish nursing with #2. Also, my best friend tandemed her two kids, and it seemed very healthy for both of the kids. The older one adjusted well to the baby nursing, and I think that the fact that she still always got her turn had a lot to do with it. And, lastly, DS is SERIOUSLY addicted to his "milk", and I would hate to see him loose that:)

[eilonwy]

:wave Miss Bella is still nursing a lot, she's 14 months old. Bean nurses when he's sick (like last week) or when people around him are about to get sick (it seems like the nursing prevents it for him a lot of the time). :lol He's 4.5. I do CLW, so I've nursed through pregnancy twice now.

I expect Bella to nurse the whole way through; unlike her sister, Bella nurses for comfort as well as her primary source of nutrition (BooBah self-weaned at 15 months. I know, a lot of people don't believe that, but having a 3 year old who was still nursing when the 15 month old weaned, don't you think I'd know? :lol). Night nursing was always preferable to me (baby nurses and sleeps, rather than playing around and popping off) but it will probably get to the point where I need to limit daytime nursies. I will do so with distractions-- offers of food and libations. :lol

[Nature]

Hey nursing mamas! :wave

I'm tandem nursing my almost 4 year old and my 17 month old. I have no doubts that I'll be triandem nursing next February. :lol I nursed through my last pregnancy with no problems except for a bit of soreness. (and aggravation from being a bit touched out) I don't think my 4 year old will wean anytime soon as she is really really in love with her nummies. In fact, I bet my youngest will wean before she does. :lol

[mama_nym]

:lol We were fairly sure our second child (Z) would wean before our first (A) because our first was so in love with nursing - but A self-weaned on his fifth birthday and Z continues to nurse 3.5 years later and is almost 7 years old!

This is the fourth pregnancy I've nursed through...I've nursed one through one pregnancy, tandem nursed through two pregancies and am now triandem nursing and pregnant. :dizzy: :lol

[naturallia]

Hi, I'm still nursing and hope to tandem nurse.

[Dov'sMom]

I'm definitely still nursing my 6 month old and I'm hoping against hope that I can continue to supply his milk requirements throughout this pregnancy.

Any advice is appreciated.

So far, my breasts haven't really been sore. Well, that's not true -- one side has been MAJORLY sore, but I don't think that's pregnancy related -- I think that's because DS decided to lie down with his head at my navel and yank on my breast so my nipple would reach his mouth down there. :lol

[LawrenceDoula]

I'm nursing my 2 and half year old and it is driving me crazy. I only nursed her twice yesterday because the pain was so bad, but she was cool with it. If I can keep it down to morning and once more later in the day I think I can handle it, but I think it will be better for us if she is done before the new baby comes.

This is probably TMI, but I am not especially well endowed, and for some reason she always pulls out to not have her face up against me and it HURTS SO BAD. Anyone else experience this?

[zulupetalz]

I am only 4w2d, but I noticed this morning after I nursed DS that he spit up colostrum! I didn't think it "changed over" until the middle to end of the pregnancy. He is also spitting up a lot more frequently now that I am pregnant. Anyone else experiencing this?

[eilonwy]

What do we do when during labor and hospital stays? Ivan and I are so attached, he cannot sleep without me. Anybody else have plans for what you are going to do with your nursing toddlers? We have decided that my mom will be with me for labor and delivery, so that dh can be with Ivan. I am so afraid that he will feel abandoned otherwise.

I had an emergency c-section (prolapsed cord, double footling breech) with my second when BeanBean was 19.5 months old-- after the surgery, I couldn't get comfortable nursing him right away or pick him up. He was unhappy with me for a couple of days, that's for sure. Mike slept with him, he spent a lot of time with and got a lot of attention from his grandmother, but he was still angry with me. So much so that the first time I asked him if he wanted to nurse after BooBah was born he said yes and tried to put his hand down his *grandmother's* shirt-- he wanted to nurse, but not with me! :cry When my milk came back in, though, all was healed. He had been missing the good nursies, and the first time I nursed them both together he was SO happy to have his milk back, as well as his baby sister, that he stopped being so upset with me. It was still very frustrating for me not to be able to lift him (I couldn't do that until about 6 days pp-- should have been longer, but he was desperate and I hate seeing my babies unhappy) but he recovered nicely.

The thing that I was most concerned about-- him being jealous of/angry with the baby-- never happened. He was unhappy with me and all of his unhappiness was clearly directed toward me. He loved his sister from the very begining; I have the most adorable pictures of the two of them together. :D

[eilonwy]

I am only 4w2d, but I noticed this morning after I nursed DS that he spit up colostrum! I didn't think it "changed over" until the middle to end of the pregnancy. He is also spitting up a lot more frequently now that I am pregnant. Anyone else experiencing this?

No, but I have been experiencing a somewhat reduced supply already (I too am 4w2d ;)). Bella wants to nurse on both sides each time, rather than feeling full after one boob (I'm a one-boob-per-session nurser :lol). My nipples are also extra tender; between the pregnancy, the increased frequency and pressure, and the fact that Bella's teething I occasionally want to pull my hair out. Bella must know this on some level, because she loves to pull my hair out... :lol

In any case, I haven't seen colostrum yet, for me that probably won't show up util around 13 weeks. :shrug Bella doesn't spit up much, but I have noticed some changes in her diapers, for the yuckier. :o

[miss_honeyb]

I have an almost 1-year old and just found out I'm unexpectedly pregnant! :chart: I really feel like I don't know much of anything about nursing while pregnant and tandem nursing!!

I hope ds doesn't wean himself in the next 9 months cuz I don't feel ready for that! But I've noticed bf at night has become irritating to me - I can't fall back asleep while he's nursing, it just feels too weird. So I've just been putting him back to sleep by rocking/patting and only nursing 1-2x at night. But daytime nursing is still fine.

DS is the first baby I've breastfed, and he's starting to nurse so FAST and he tries to climb off my lap while still latched on! It's like he's divided over his desire to nurse and his desire to go play. It's certainly nothing like nursing an infant! I'm hoping all goes well with tandem-ing!

[Kesliemack]

Hi, it has been a while since I have posted, but I definitely need support right now. I am 32 wks pregnant and have an 18 mo old nursling. I was so glad to find this thread and to see that I am not alone in my struggles. I am in excruciating pain through each nursing session and really do not want to wean. I decided to night wean at around 15 mo, but just can't bring myself to do it. One thing I noticed was as my supply started to diminish, which was around 3-4 mo, she started wanting to nurse for longer at night. To help with this I started bringing a sippy cup with water in it to bed (I also tried a bottle which did not go well, she has never taken a bottle). This helped immensely, since she was thirsty and was not getting enough milk. Now, thank god, she usually only nurses at around 5 am then at 7ish, as she is waking up.

The last week or so has been torture for me. She is teething and is wanting to nurse a lot more often. It hurts so bad that I am almost in tears. Breathing doesn't really work for me, in labor it is different, that I handled fine, but bfing is just irritating as well.

I have read, and been told, many times that it is better to wean then to let them know that you are not enjoying it. I don't see how, especially since every time is not miserable, most times I can fake it. If her knowing bothered her that much and made her feel so bad, then wouldn't she wean herself??

Actually she just fell asleep a little while ago, for the first time ever, not on the boob. She was dozing off and then asked to nurse but I asked if she could please not since it made the "boobies owie". She protested a little but then fell asleep on my shoulder, wow was that nice!! I love nursing, but I just feel so touched out and the pain is so bad. WHY DOES NATURE WORK LIKE THIS!!!

My milk supply has fluctuated since I got pregnant, it diminished quite a bit in the very beginning then can back around week 8 or so. Then it diminished again at around 3-4 months, then came back at around 5 months for a brief period and has now become colostrum.

I am totally looking forward to tandem nursing, in fact I think it is what has kept me going through the really rough days. My sister and I do not get along very well to this day, especially around my mother. We compete for her attention although it is not conscious at the time. There is a lot of jealousy that stemmed from when we were children. My mom meant well, but it is still there. I am very determined to help DD and her new sister to get along. I am going to do everything I can to eliminate jealousy as much as I can and I know that Tandem nursing will help tremendously.

Okay now that I have written a small book, I will stop. Thank you all for reading this much and I hope I can contribute some helpful info and support.

[Livie'smomma]

Hey Momma's!
I too am glad to have so many others to be sharing this experience with.

Olivia is 3+ and still nursing...not through the night now thank goodness.
Hey Ivan's mom-just wanted to let you know that I had great success with Dr. Jay Gordon's 10 day plan. We did it when she was 2. She cried a little but I knew she ok, she was just mad. That sounds horrible as I write it, but I was there comforting her and singing to her and offering her, her water and cashews and snuggling, just not the "BB's (as she calls them)". We never let her Cry it out. She has always slept with us and sleeps through until usually 5 or 6 ish. We got to 7 this am!!! Woohooo! If you or anyone has more questions about this, I'm happy to answer.

Here is the link to the article FYI:
http://www.drjaygordon.com/development/ap/sleep.asp

My nipples are SCREAMING! :firedevil It really reminds me though of the sore nipples I had during the 1st 2 weeks of nursing Olivia. They are most sore at latch on, but then ease up a bit.

I am curious if anyone out there has done this before, how long did it last?
was it the whole pregnancy? I really hope not.

Hope you're all feeling well or at least can get rid of the stomach yuckies soon. :sick

:wink

[Kesliemack]

Hey Ivan's mom-just wanted to let you know that I had great success with Dr. Jay Gordon's 10 day plan. We did it when she was 2. She cried a little but I knew she ok, she was just mad. That sounds horrible as I write it, but I was there comforting her and singing to her and offering her, her water and cashews and snuggling, just not the "BB's (as she calls them)". We never let her Cry it out. She has always slept with us and sleeps through until usually 5 or 6 ish. We got to 7 this am!!! Woohooo! If you or anyone has more questions about this, I'm happy to answer.

Here is the link to the article FYI:
http://www.drjaygordon.com/development/ap/sleep.asp



Thank you for the link, I may try a variation of this, but I really like where his is coming from. Thanks!!

[newchicagomommy]

So excited to find so many pregnant nursing mamas! I think my supply is already dropping... I can't seem to pump much and DD seems less interested than ever... I am just so nervous about all these sudden changes for DD.. but I suppose this happens all the time.