Need Advise for Nursing One and Preg. with Another

I nursed through 3 of my pregnancies. At some point your milk supply may go down and the consistancy and taste may change which may lead to weaning (although it did not with any of mine), your nipples may also become very sensitive and it will be a challenge to nurse. (I used meditation to help me through it) If at anytime it doesn't feel comfortible for you, offering your toddler a bottle or sippy to substatute would be fine, just make sure to cuddle and give affection during supplemental feedings to offset and emotions he may have about not nursing. both of my boys were almost weaned when i delievered, but as soon as they saw the baby at the breast, they started nursing as much as the baby.

i tandem nursed 1&2 then 3&4. i'm tandum nursing now an almot 3 yo and a 10 mo old, my other two are 6 & 5.

i am a huge supporter of breastfeeding, especially extended, and even tandum, but please understand that it can be extreamly exhausting to tandum nurse, make sure your spouse supports your decision to do so and be prepared for family to give you advise or looks you may not want.

if you need any support feel free to contact me.

happy nursing!!!

M.

Hi S.! Congratulations on your pregnancy :) :)

This is a pretty good resource: http://www.kellymom.com/bf/tandem/index.html

I've nursed through 2 pregnancies, and have been nursing/pregnant/tandem nursing for the past 6 years. It can be difficult, but very rewarding.

It's helpful to go to an OB/midwife who supports nursing through pregnancy - some do not. I was fortunate to belong to a great group who answered all my questions and had no objection to my continued nursing.

I am pressed for time right now, but I'll try to get back to edit my post, or please feel free to PM me.

Best wishes :)

Yes, I have nursed through 2 pregnancies, and had no problem. It is only a risk if you had premature labor with your other pregnancy. I am happy I did it, when the next baby was born it caused less jealousy because the older still got that special time with me, and he was thrilled. It also helped with engorgement. I did have one doctor tell me to quit, but did some research and found that it was not necessary. I also attend La Leche League where several moms have done the same.

I have a two and a half year old and a 4 month old and I nursed the entire time while pregnant...and I'm still nursing both of them! While I believe my time tandem nursing is coming to an end soon, I have loved every minute of it! I highly recommend three things. First, find a doctor who will support your efforts! Second, if you are not already attending, find a local La Leche League. The leaders will be able to anwser any questions you have and will support you through any trials you may have to go through. Third, read The Adventures of Tandem Nursing by Hilary Flower as soon as you can possibly get your hands on it! I read this after I had the baby, but I wish I would've read it before I was even pregnant with my second child! This book covers EVERYTHING! It will answer questions you don't even know you have! Good luck with your little nurslings! It's an adventure, but it will be so rewarding in the end!

I was just reading about this recently in my La Leche book. They have a whole section on it. Apparently lots of women do it. They say a lot of times during the pregnancy or shortly after the new baby it born, the toddler will wean himself. Check out the La Leche guide to breastfeeding for more info. It was very helpful to me!

just make sure that you are eating plenty of high nutrition food and drinking lots of pure water and you should be fine--especially if he is already down to mostly naps. He will need to learn after the baby is born that the baby nurses first but you would be surprised at how much even a little one can understand!

Nursing while pregnant is perfectly fine. I did with my daughter. She ws a year old when I got pregnant (literally, conceived two days after her bday!), and she nursed until she was 15-15 months. Your milk will change, and it is possible that he will wean himself. My daughter did. But, I also suffer from hyperemesis (severe sickness during pregnancy) throughout my entire pregnancies and become very dehydrated. So, she stopped because I wasn't producing milk anymore. I've never tandem nursed, but I know it is entirely possible. Love the book suggestion from the previous poster. La Leche League is a wonderful resource. :)

Gongrats and God bless,
A.

After I had my baby, my lactation nurse was great to talk to. Find out what hospital you deliver and see if they have a lactation nurse that can give you more info.

Hi S.,

A friend of mine has been tandem nursing her 4-year-old and baby who is under a year. The La Leche League has support groups for those nursing toddlers and tandem nursing, so I would start there. I know my friend has put limits on the older child's nursing, such as only doing it in the morning and at bedtime. Books by Dr. William Sears and his wife may also be of help. Good luck!
R.

Hi S.!

First, Congrats!!! I know you have gotten lots of good responses. I just wanted you to know that although I've never tandem nursed (lots of my friends have, though), I did nurse during this pregnancy (I'm due in 3 weeks). Usually around your 12th week, your milk slows or stops or at least changes. And at that time I was exhausted and not feeling so great with the pregnancy, so I didn't fight to NOT WEAN. My son would have definately nursed if I offered it (he loved it, too) but I gradually quite offering. I slowed down to 1-2 times a day, then 1 a day (at bedtime) and then tried every other day at bedtime for a week or so, then just didn't offer. If I didn't offer, he was fine. I kind of wish I had nursed him longer, but I also needed the break, and it was getting uncomfortable. I was already very large and had to wear maternity clothes (this is my 5th pregnancy in 9 1/2 years!). Plus, although I am fine with others nursing much later than I do, I personally am only comfortable nursing a child until they are about 2. It's just a personal thing for me. You will do what feels right for you and your family. Definately, it is draining to nurse and be pregnant, but LOTS of moms do it all the time. Good luck!

You need to talk to your Dr. about this before making a decision. A friend of mine got pregnant with her second child while she was still nursing her first and the Dr. told her she had to stop immediately. It takes too much away from you and your new baby. Obviously, since you nursed your first you want the best for your children; you need to make sure you are giving your new baby what it needs.

I haven't had the opportunity to nurse while pregnant (only one child atm) but a friend of mine did and her Dr. told her it was fine as long as she continued to gain (healthy) weight and she should make extra sure to get the proper nutrition to support both children and herself. The only word of caution was the chance of inducing labor in later pregnancy due to the hormones release when nursing that cause uterine contractions. BUT IF the pregnancy and baby are healthy the risk of this happening before you would normally go into labor is quite slim.

I have never nursed while prgnant but I know some people who have. I think it's generally okay. You have to make sure and get enough calories to support both. Your milk will probably start tasting sour during your second trimester and will turn back to colostrum before the babies born. I would stop nursing if you have a history of miscarriage or preterm labor. Your uterus may contract when you nurse. Good luck! J. (Mom of 3 and breastfeeding peer counselor for 3 years.)

My almost-3-year-old nursed until I was about 5 months pregnant with my almost-1-year-old. I wasn't planning to nurse while pregnant but my daughter was much more attached to nursing than my son was. He stopped at around 15 months. My daughter wanted to keep going... and going... and going... I finally resigned myself to the fact that I would probably have a 2 year old and new baby nursing at the same time. However, at around 5 months pregnant, my daughter suddenly lost interest in nursing. She was only nursing 2-3 times a day at the time. I decided to just do the "don't offer, don't refuse" thing for weaning since it worked for my son. She asked to nurse only 2-3 times over a 4 day period and then never asked again and she was done.

Congrats on continuing to nurse. Be prepared to 'justify' the fact that you are nursing. Many people believe it's bad for the baby or for you. It was a harder pregnancy on me simply because I was totally exhausted - much more than my previous pregnancies. But that was probably also because I was chasing around 2 very active young children! Anyways... there's no medical reason to stop nursing when pregnant. I've heard of many kids losing interest, though, becuase the milk changes a bit during the pregnancy. Talk with ladies at your local La Leche League becuase they are very supportive of tandem nursing and can give you specific hints and tips.

S.,
Cut him off! I think this is too much for your body to handle. Think about what nutrients you, the fetus and the nursing child need. What is your caloric intake for the day 7,000??? Have you mentioned this to your OBGYN??? I would seriously try formula mixed w/cow's milk for the toddler and have your body soley support you and new baby.

R.

Hi! Congratulations! First, La Leche League has a book that is helpful: Adventures in Tandem Nursing".
My kids were a little closer than yours and it worked (and is still working) just find for us. I was 9 months when I found out that the last period I had wasn't a period and I was 10 or 11 weeks along. Finding a supportive doctor is key. I went to a check up with my doctor and said something about nursing my son and she said "and that's fine, you can keep nursing as long as you want." I said "That's good, I wasn't going to ask." She told me some doctors don't think it's ok...sure, doctors who haven't read anything on lactation in the past 20 years...In any case, fighting over something like this from the beginning of your pregnancy is just going to stress you out, so make sure it's not an issue with your doctor.
First, your milk supply may dwindle or even dry up around 6 months and this might make your son mad. Your breasts may become very tender and you won't want to nurse at all for a while. Your milk will change at some point. Mine never went back to the "gold" colostrum but it definitely wasn't the same as the milk my son was used to - he couldn't have cared less...your's might.
If your son wants to stop, let him. He may be interested again once your milk comes back in and he sees the infant nursing. You can nurse one on each breast or nurse the baby first and then the toddler.
The two best things about tandem nursing for me were 1) I was never engorged, I could just offer to nurse my older son and he'd take care of it! 2) when I was in labor with #2, I kinda stalled out and they started talking about breaking my water and then pitosin which was totally against my natural birthing plan (there's more to that whole story if you want to hear it) so I told the doctor (on-call, not my own who was out of town) that I would nurse my older son and see if the nipple stimulation helped. I figured if nothing else, at least it would buy my some time before I had to start fighting with them over statistics of augmentation. Luckily, my contractions went from every 6-7 minutes to 2-3 minutes!

Here is my advise after going through it...
When people ask why you haven't weaned the older one (or when you will, or what you will do when the baby is born), a short explination is all that is necessary. "The AAP, WHO, and UNICEF all agree that the second year of nursing is as beneficial as the first. I didn't want to take that away from my son just because I am pregnant. He'll let me know when he's ready."
Don't worry if you aren't gaining weight. Your body will take care of the baby if you take care of yourself. Eat a healthy diet and keep water close by at all times. You'll be fine.
Nap when your son naps. I have never been a napper, but I was unbelievably exhausted at the beginning of my second pregnancy as I tried to keep up with my son (and yours is probably already walking!).
Don't take it personally if your son does self-wean. Your milk will change and he may just not like it. It has nothing to do with you. And, like I said, he me want to go back to it later.
You will have contractions as you nurse but you won't go in to labor unless your body is ready. Don't worry about the contractions, they are harmless like the ones you might get after you pee or have sex.

This was probably longer than you expected. PM me if you have any questions. At this point I am nursing a 3.5-month-old around the clock and a 20-month-old in the morning and at bed time.
Good Luck!