Breastfeeding while pregnant...questions...

HopeNotLost · March 2014

I found out I am pregnant with my 4th child. I had my tubes tied after the birth of my 3rd, so this was unexpected. I still bf my 15 month old, and wasn't planning on weaning her til 18-24 months. I forgot to ask my doctor at my appointment on Friday about nursing while pregnant, so I was going to ask you ladies. Were you able to nurse? Or were you told to wean? I am trying to get her to take a sippy of whole milk more often, and some days she does really well, others not so much. She still prefers to nurse to sleep, but I would really like to get her weaned of that as well.

Thanks for any insight you have!

bunniekrissy · March 2014

I got pregnant when DS1 was 18 months and still nursing 5x a day. My milk dried up at 10 weeks pregnant but he kept dry nursing until the end. I did stop nursing overnight and to sleep due to nursing aversions and intense Braxton Hicks contractions starting at 16 weeks. The night-weaning and from nursing to sleep was difficult for him but it got better after a few weeks. Good luck!

HopeNotLost · March 2014

Thank you ladies! I really feel like my supply has dropped quite a bit, and I know she nurses a lot of times just for comfort. Silly girl has no intention of giving up on the boob anytime soon lol.

ktpaladino · March 2014

I nursed until the beginning of my second trimester. My son was 15.5 months and we were already down to nursing before bed only. My supply was pretty much gone and I didn't want to do the dry nursing thing. We cut out the bedtime feeding by having Daddy put him down for bed a few nights in a row, then DS never looked back.

BootsOrHearts · March 2014

Your supply might be impacted because of the hormonal changes but there's no need to wean if you aren't ready.

And congrats, even though it was not planned. Sometimes the best surprises are unexpected.

eves1989 · March 2014

Congrats on the 4th LO! I think it's ok to nurse while pregnant. You can wean anytime you are ready to do so.

Chichigo · March 2014

I've heard that greatly increasing your water intake will counter the supply drop.

flummadiddle85 · March 2014

Chichigo said:

I've heard that greatly increasing your water intake will counter the supply drop.

And eating. I eat. All. The. Time.

HopeNotLost · March 2014

I am starving all the time too! I keep thinking this must be a boy (I have 3 girls) because I am constantly hungry.

Thanks for the advice ladies! I am definitely going to start drinking more water than normal!

boogerbearoriginal · March 2014

I am tandem nursing now and LO1 never really slowed down during pregnancy (although I pushed night weaning for my own sake). My supply was gone by mid-pregnancy until I started making colostrum in the third tri. From everything I've heard/read milk going away is totally hormone driven so nothing you do will change things although there are some women who do continue to produce it's much more common for supply to dry up entirely.

If you want to wean, the reduced supply may actually help, but if you want to continue it's totally safe to nurse while pregnant. Read Adventures in Tandem Nursing if you're looking for more information, it's an excellent book.

Sarelnad · March 2014

I nursed theough the 1st 20wks of my last pregnancy. I dried up slowely but almost completely by 20 weeks. I had tried pumping around the clock to boost production but it didn't work. I wanted to continue nursing but my nips were so sore dry nursing seemed like torture. Then we got thrush. That was the nail in the coffin for us. I have heard of plenty of moms who have been successful at nursing throughout pregnancy. I hope you have better luck than I did.

Oh and FYI my IBCLC said to drink enough water only to satisfy thirst. Your body will tell younhow much water to drink. She said if you drink too much water you can dilute the hormones needed for adequate milk production.

CNYBride05 · March 2014

Totally safe unless you are having issues with ptl and then you'd need to stop as BFing can increase uterine activity.

lotus88 · March 2014

DD was 13 months when I got pg. I think by then she was down to maybe three nursing s a day. Morning afternoon and bedtime. My supply started dropping with every PP cycle (which started at 10 months). The regular things I did to maintain my supply weren't as effective. I was told by both my RE and OB to wean her once i was pg, but from everything I read that was based on outdated information. Anyway, I did not want to tandem nurse and wanted at least three months of her being weaned before the second baby came. By 16 months she was done. My supply tanked while pregnant, but she didn't seem to mind. We eliminated one nursing at a time. Bedtime last. We just had more non bfing cuddle time.

winecastle14 · March 2014

theresat858 said:

I'm still nursing DD and will until she is 2. At that point, we may reevaluate..I'd like her to be fully weaned before the new baby comes.

I didn't know you were pregnant. I've seen many posts about your trying so I just wanted to say congrats!!

To the OP- congrats to you as well. I have no advice on nursing while pregnant because I'm not there yet. I do plan to continue to nurse my now 15 month old when/if I get pregnant while I'm still nursing. As long as you aren't high risk for preterm labor, there's no reason why you couldn't continue.

Want a personalized experience?

Breastfeeding while pregnant...questions...

Re: Breastfeeding while pregnant...questions...

Choose Another Board

Search Boards