Pregnant & Breastfeeding

amberoye

Just looking for information/advice/personal stories on being pregnant and nursing.

When did your supply start to go down? I have an 8 month old who is nursing regularly and I'm hoping to maintain my supply for another 4 months (I just hit 7 weeks). 

I've heard of the book, Adventures of Tandem Nursing but reviews said that it mostly covered nursing toddlers rather than infants who still needed the nutrition. 

 

thanks 

 

Cotton

Personally, my supply started dropping as soon as I was pregnant. Took me a couple weeks to figure it out, and then a couple weeks before I weaned #1 completely. To me, I just felt so drained and had to tell myself I couldn't support everyone!

Good luck, though! Keep it up if you can, but cut yourself some slack if you can't.

Elizabeth

kami1977

I'm currently nursing my toddler and I'm 36 weeks pregnant.  My supply took a hit by about 10 weeks.   I went from being able to hand express a bit of milk to barely being able to get 1 drop out.   In my situation, I just went with the theory if he wants to wean he will but we'll keep going until he's done.   In you situation, I would consider supplementing with formula, just to make sure your first child is getting all the nutrients he/she needs.   If your pediatrician is breastfeeding friendly maybe I would discuss it with him/her and see what his recommendation might be.  

It's been hard nursing while pregnant but I'm hoping it'll help with the transition of having a new sibling for DS.   I know as I get closer to my due date, DS wants to nurse more and more and I'm less tolerant of the hair playing and face stroking that goes along with all his nursing.  Good luck with you pregnancy and figuring out what you need to do to keep everyone healthy and happy.

bellelamb

I got pregnant when ds was 9 months I was already supplementing some with formula and food but I was able to bf until ds was a year.  I weaned him then so we could start preparing for lo I did not want to tandem nurse.  I did see my supply drop some around 12 weeks. 

jakana

I am currently 10 wks pregnant and breastfeeding my 20-month old.  I did notice a severe drop in supply around 3 - 5 wks but it hasn't seemed to bother my son much.  He nurses more for emotional comfort than nutritional needs and nurses at night at least twice (he refuses a pacifier). 

My husband and I are discussing weaning.  I would like to nurse less because my breasts are so sensitive now.  Is it common for them to shrink?  As my supply has dropped they've gotten smaller.  Has anybody's toddler self-weaned over the course of pregnancy?  Could you give me any tips on how to handle a toddler who wants to nurse when the new baby comes?

00jennifer00

My first was 2y2m when I got pg with my second.  He was still almost exclusively bf thanks to some severe texture issues on his part (that still plague him today at almost 9yo!).  He was a healthy 30lbs, but he did lose some weight during the pg as we struggled to get him eating and drinking milk and stuff.  He chunked right back up when my milk came back in and I let him nurse quite a bit the first month and then cut him down to just a few times a day and worked more on the food.  My second was 19mo when I got pg with my third.  She was just barely starting to get interested in food.  I don't think she lost any weight.  My third was almost 16mo when I got pg with my fourth.  He was just beginning to get into foods too (my kids just are NOT interested much before their first birthday).  I don't think he lost weight either and he did a great job with eating and stuff.  This time, my fourth was 17mo when I got pg.  She is not really into food much.  She'll have a few bites a few times a day, but that's it.  No meals or anything.  My first wasn't nightweaned yet when I got pg, my second was newly nw'd, my third I nw'd in the first tri, and my fourth...well, I had hoped she'd nw this month but no such luck.  Most nights she nurses twice.  My supply has dropped a little, but I have enough to get her through the day and night still.  With every pregnancy my supply is 100% gone by 16w and my colostrum doesn't return until 21/22w.  So I have 5-6w of dry nursing.  All 3 of my older kids have continued nursing through the pregnancy and until they were 3y9 (my third is going to be weaned next month, right now he nurses once before bed).  If I had a baby who would still be under a year by the time I hit 16w, I'd definitely have to carefully consider supplementing, although I'd probably look for raw goat milk.  But that's me, most people would choose formula.  I don't know if my milk will stay on longer this time because I don't plan on cutting back on nursing at all with my fourth for a while, so we'll see. 

I have two other friends who have been nursing when they get pg.  One says her milk stays until her colostrum comes, and she makes a lot of colostrum, so her LO doesn't seem to go without much.  The other one, her supply tanks immediately and she's been forced to use formula with two of her babies (both times was a surprise pregnancy 5mo pp).  So I think it can be a very individual thing.

tokenhoser

Adventures in Tandem Nursing covers breastfeeding in pregnancy extensively.

All you can do is nurse frequently. You need to be open to supplementing if your supply does fall - watch your baby. If s/he's hungry and doesn't seem satisfied, you may need to introduce formula or milk. 

Some women have no issues, some just can't keep a full supply. It's got more to do with how you react to hormones than anything else.