Can You Nurse While Pregnant?? Weaning When 15Mo Really Wants to Nurse?

my daughter was 17 months and still breastfeeding 4-6 times a day when i got pregnant.she weaned at 22 months. my supply didnt dry up,i dont know if it tasted different but it didnt stop her.i just got stricter on weaning and she finally stopped.

I am due to give birth to my baby daughter in a month and I JUST stopped nursing my 2 and 1/2 year old son. Actually he weaned himself a few weeks ago. I hadn't really planned on a definitive time to wean him or even if I was sure I would tandem nurse. I guess I am thankful that it naturally happened although it was hard on me at first. He seemed okay to give it up and it was actually harder on me! Now we just have a closer bond of hugging and cuddling before bedtime instead of nursing. I think you should do what is good for you and your baby and what "feels" right.

I was preparing to wean my firstborn when when I got pregant with the second one-that was even before I knew I was preganant again. You can try to say that you boops hurt and he shoudl wait a copule of days while making usre that he doesn't ever see them for a good while. i think the taste of milk changes as well. so if you wait till you are pregnant and tak e it slow afterwards, both of you can have an easier time I guess

I think that it is possible that you can nurse while pregnant, but I think that your body may just dry up, too.

Since your son is 15 months old, you can wean him without guilt. He might be upset for a couple of days, but I'm sure it will be fine after that. Every time I've worried that my son won't move on to the next stage of something without a battle--he does, and he does it without much complaint too. I have found that if you present a positive stance, whatever you are introducing goes well. You just have to say "no more nursing, you are a big boy, now you can drink from a cup! What a big boy! Hooray for milk in a cup!!!" You know, make it a big deal that he's soooo big!

:-) Good luck!
D.

My daughter nursed until she was 25 mos old, I was 5 mos pregnant when she weaned. She weaned because a) she knew it was starting to hurt me and b) no milk was coming out. Personally, it all worked out perfectly for all of us.

Best wishes whatever you decide,
M.

I nurse while up to five months pregnant, unfortunately my pregnancy was terminated due to health stuff. During the time I was hoping my 7 month old would wean herself off but she kept wanting to be nurse. She is now 13 month and I decided to wean her off. Started by skipping the nap nursing and day nursing. I now nurse first in the am and before bed. I plan to do this for three weeks and then cut off the am nursing. Then 3 weeks later the pm. I was told by LLL that's its ok to nurse while pregnant but my dr. Advised me to stop the nursing because she believes the body needs the hormones. I can reassure you that my nursing whe pregnant had nothing to do with my term incided. Good luck with your decision.

You can nurse when pregnant and maybe you could do it just once a day but it might be too hard on your body. If your baby was under a year then I'd say keep going, but now hes old enough to be weaned, up to you though. Better eat a lot!

Yes, you can nurse while pregnant but it is very painful during the first trimester. Your nipples become very sensitive and it was excruciating pain for me. I finally weaned my daughter at 21 mos old (4 mos pregnant) because I couldn't stand the pain anymore. It was easier than I expected and I think the reason was my milk was drying up anyways and it was hard for her to get any. And by this time she only nursed for comfort when going to bed. I just told her she's a big girl now and she can dring milk from a cup. I offered her a sippy cup while I cuddle her to sleep. She didn't even want the cup, just cuddling was enough. So cuddling was her new way of falling asleep. As far as the milk tasting different, I don't know. It didn't seem to bother my daughter.
As someone else mentioned, better eat a lot if you do continue to nurse. I was so hungry, I ate every two hours! I had to get up to eat twice in the night due to persistent hunger! And I'm talking about steak sandwich and glass of milk as midnight snacks.
Good luck!

J.,

I got pregnant when my oldest child was 18 months old and still nursing. I have a history of severe preterm labor and my OB was not concerned with me nursing at all. She said I could continue as long as I was comfortable doing so. I ended up miscarrying but I don't think it had anything to do with nursing (I've had a number of miscarriages - I get pregnant easily but I don't stay pregnant very well). There is no medical reason why you shouldn't nurse while pregnant.

From what I've seen on my nursing lists, some kids nurse straight through a pregnancy with no problem. Others don't like the way the milk tastes (apparently it turns back to colostrum and the amount seriously decreases, usually around 4-5 months into the pregnancy) and wean. Some moms experience severe nipple tenderness and wean because of it. You just don't know what will happen so you may have to just see how it goes.

My favorite breastfeeding site is www.kellymom.com I'm sure you could find some good info there on nursing during pregnancy and trying to conceive while nursing.

:-)T.

My son stopped nursing shortly after I got pregnant and yes, your nipples will hurt (like before you get your period). Haven't heard that it dries up your milk. If you want to wean, distract him with other things like having your husband go in to him in the morning (if possible) and getting him breakfast. Taking him to the park after nap (getting out of the house anywhere). We went on vacation with my daughter and that distracted her enough that she didn't nurse after that.

Yes, you can nurse. Find a Le LEche League group nearby or a lactation consultant or group through your hospital. The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding has a lot of info on the topic as well.

I nursed through my second pregnancy and part of my third. Yes the milk really slowed down durning months 4-6 (so bad that my first child was the only one that could get milk when i was pregnant with the second one - I couldn't even hand express any like i had been able to do before) but then as I got closer to delivery my daughter really got a lot of milk again.

In the very beginning my nipples were sore. But just make sure that you're little one is latching correctly again (toddlers sometimes get lazy about that), And sometimes you're nipples are just going to hurt no matter what just because of the pregnancy itself. (I was told that this is because the body is making new ducts for the new baby?)

My first child didn't wean until she was 3.5years old and my son was a year old. So I tandumed nursed both and they are best friends even now! My son did wean about half way through my third pregnancy because he was a tad bit older then my daughter, my milk production slowed way down and he just wasn't as attached to nursing as she was.

The milk does change as you get close to birth because your body is preparing for the next baby. Your body starts making "premie milk" and then after birth makes "infant milk". Or at least that's what the studies I saw said. But mine never did go back to pure colostrom like i had with my first one, it was kind of a mixed milk, more yellowish like colostrom but still runny like real breastmilk for a few days just before and after the births.

hope that helps.
Look at LLLI.com for more info.

You can nurse while pregnant, but I have heard from a few different sources that the taste and consistency of the milk changes and the children stop nursing by themselves.

Yes you can! Do a search on tandem nursing and check out askdrsears.com I would also call a lactation consultant to help you through it! Good luck :)

I nursed through my whole pregnancy, and sometimes it was a little difficult, but I was really looking forward to tandem nursing. My daughter was 15 months old when we found out we were pregnant. She was down to 1-3 nursing sessions a day at that point, and loving every second of each feeding. There was no way I was going to refuse her one of her favorite things.

There are rarely problems with nursing while pregnant... Especially if mom is eating a healthy diet and getting enough hydration. Often doctors will recommend discontinuing while pregnant, but it's usually because they don't have current information on nursing while pregnant. If a mother has a history of preterm labor, it may be necessary to stop.

The milk does change throughout pregnancy. Supply drops during the second trimester, but with continued BFing, it comes back at the end. It is all colostrum at the end, and many bigger kids don't like it... My daughter didn't mind it though.

One awesome thing about nursing while PG is that once baby is here, the milk factory is already in full swing! New baby will lose very little weight, if any, that they normally lose in the first week or two. My new baby lost only 1 ounce during the first 3 days, then went on to gain 10 ounces in the following week. I also have had less issue with leaking this time, and while I do get engorged, it's so nice to have my older daughter nurse me down instead of using a pump!

I'm also told that tandem nursing helps with jealousy issues. So far, we only have jealousy when little one is nursing and older one is bored and sees us, then she asks for milk and sometimes she gets some; other times I know that little one is really hungry and will need more milk so I tell her I can't nurse her at that time. Usually she understands and doesn't put up a fight.

Yes, the nipples do get sore, but I don't think it was as bad as when I was pregnant the first time and it definitely wasn't as bad as when DD#1 was first born. You can also talk to your child and have him adjust his latch to help mommy feel better.

So far, tandem nursing has been a wonderful experience for me and my daughters. I definitely encourage you to continue, especially if your older child is so attached to it!

I weened my baby when I got pregnant because I wanted the unborn baby to have enough nutrition to grow correctly. I gave her a blanket to hold and made sure I rocked her and gave her the love she needed. Good luck. M. R

I nursed my third, who was 14-16 months at the time, up until I was two months pregnant with my fourth. She didn't seem to mind. I finally went away for a weekend and told her that when I left that we wouldn't "nursy" anymore. She gave me "stink eye" the day I left because she was fully aware of what was happening. She survived and so did I. She is a healthy, well adjusted almost 6 year old now. Her baby sister was born healthy as well. While I know some doctors will try to discourage you, if you manage your diet well and take vitamins you should be able to nurse while pregnant for as long as it is mutually desired by you and your child.

i got pregnant while nursing with our third child and my mild dried up with in a month i didnt have to worry about weaning because he did it himself when he got frustrated that there was no milk

J.,

My baby is currently 16 months and I am 9.5/10 weeks pregnant. She has been fighting for her breastmilk! Especially at night- she will cry and fuss for hours! She can now go throughout the entire day without it, but occassionally she will chase after me for it. I usually distract her with activities or snacks.

My OB said that the body will wean her naturally. The milk will just dry up. It is true. I know it is already drying up because, before, when she'd nurse from one side, the other side would leak. This doesn't happen anymore. I no longer wear nursing pads and my bras/tops are no longer stained. I don't know just how much milk she is getting but judging by the amount of time she tries to stay at the nipple- I know it's not much. (She used to nurse about every 3 hours for about 5 minutes each time and only from one side, now she'll stay easily 10 minutes on one side and go looking for the other one because she's obviusly not satisfied.) It's not enough to fill her up- but she still wants the comfort of being skin-to-skin with Mommy and/or she still prefers the the taste. Personally I'm pretty sure it's the comfort thing.