BFing and pregnancy

[lillylove123]

so i have read alot that you probably have to supplament with formula if you get pregnant while still nursing. is this true?? Nursing my son is very important. so important that if i HAVE to give him formula if i get pregnant i will put off TTC for at least another 6-12 months.

right now im just tracking my cycles and doing the research about nursing and pregnancy.

if i do get pregnant and get a decrease in milk production, is it possable to boost production by pumping between nursing sessions and taking a herbal or prescription milk booster??

i bet this is a question alot of woman who visit the sight have so if anyone has anything to add.. go ahead please.

[cassslyke]

No, you do not have to stop BFing if you get pregnant. I breast-fed baby#1 for at least 3 months while pregnant with baby #2. They are 1 year apart. My doctor did reccomend me not breastfeeding so my body could focus on the new life inside me rather than producing milk, but from what I understand there are many times no problems.

[Macabe]

You don't have to stop bf if pregnant, but your supply may plummet. Many people have experienced a major decrease in supply during pregnancy--you cannot count on your supply staying up, because you just don't know how your body will react.

I know that some supplements to increase supply, like fenugreek, are not allowed for use during pregnancy. Something like eating more oatmeal is obviously okay during pregnancy, but won't be enough if your body just decides to lower production drastically.

Many people nurse right through pregnancy and then tandem nurse after the new baby is born. But in many cases, the older child is over a year old, and not relying on breastmilk for primary nutrition any more.

[lillylove123]

i hope and plan on tandem nursing one day. i dont really see a time i want to wean at lol

[suzy]

I got pregnant while nursing my ds. He was about 21 months when I concieved, and my supply pretty much stopped in my 2nd or 3rd month. We kept nursing intill he was 25 months.

[busy_i_am2007]

Aaron was the longest I breastfed any of my kids, and I never got pregnant while doing so. He was alittle over 2yrs old when we stopped.

[suzy]

I was going to mention that. It took me 8 months to conceive while I was nursing. And four months before that we weren't preventing. So, I would try to keep that in mind if you decide to try.

I should take my own advice:D

[kohlby]

I would strongly suggest that you wait to ttc until your son is at least a year since it is a big concern for you. There is a chance that your supply will be fine. But it sounds like it might not be a chance you want to take. I've been pg 4 times when breastfeeding. (2 miscarriages in there). My supply drops very quickly to the extent that 3 of the 4 times, there wasn't enough to swallow by only 4 weeks pg! For some odd reason, there is enough to swallow still this time around and I'm 5 weeks pg.

I did have to cut down my breastfeeding to get pg after having my first child. But, he was breastfeeding 12 times in 24 hours at 18 months! So, it wasn't exactly the norm. Once my cycles returned, my LP was too short for a couple cycles and then it was right back to normal. After having DD, I did not have to cut her down, but I did have to wait. I got my first post partum period when she was 16 months. With DS, it was 18 months, a couple weeks after I started drastically cutting him down. Since I didn't cut DD down but she naturally nursed like an average toddler, I've had months when I'm not sure if I ovulated or my cervical mucous wasn't as good as I liked. So, it was a bit of a guessing game despite my cycles being back to normal length.

For me, tandem nursing was super easy. It would have been harder to not tandem nurse. If you're engorged once a newborn is here, the older child can help you out! I told my son that DD's birth would make me have more breastmilk. And since that was his most favorite thing in the world, he welcomed DD's birth enthusiastically! He knew that every time she nursed, I'd make more milk. I'm really glad I was able to tandem. My son now only nurses a few times a week. He'll be 5 in May. My daughter will be 2 in a couple weeks and nurses 4-5 times a day. And as I mentioned, I'm pg now. I have a hunch my DD will wean once my supply plummets but only time can tell!

Good luck in your ttc journey whenever you end up taking it!

[lillylove123]

so you had a decrease but you were still able to tandem nurse....... did your supply go back up after a period of time?? im confused

[suzy]

Some children will continue to nurse even though there is no milk, and others stop and begin nursing again once the baby is born and milk comes back.

[kohlby]

so you had a decrease but you were still able to tandem nurse....... did your supply go back up after a period of time?? im confused

My supply increased to enough for a couple swallows at 24/26 weeks. This is also the point where some kids wean since the taste changed. DS was so excited to get more that he didn't care. Once DD was born, I had LOTS more milk. Some kids will nurse when there's little or no milk. Eventually, with a baby's birth, there will be lots! (I'm not sure if tandeming is what did it, but DD's very first nursing session including swallowing and milk running down her chin. She nursed for 10 minutes that very first time).

[mamaschramm]

I was able to BF DD#1 during my pregnancy with DD#2. She stopped nursing when she was 18 months. I was 5 months pregnant at the time and she decided she was done. But I never really checked to see how much I was producing since she never complained and I not pumping at work anymore since she was onto drinking rice milk/soy milk. My OB never advised me to wean. He said that if it caused pre-term labor later in the pregnancy or if I felt I was contracting with a nursing session we may have to wean her at that point but until it happened he wasn't concerned. I am TTC now with a 7 1/2 month old so hopefully we will still be able to continue and then tandem when the new baby comes.

[rachelandtyke]

I was able to BF DD#1 during my pregnancy with DD#2. She stopped nursing when she was 18 months. I was 5 months pregnant at the time and she decided she was done. But I never really checked to see how much I was producing since she never complained and I not pumping at work anymore since she was onto drinking rice milk/soy milk. My OB never advised me to wean. He said that if it caused pre-term labor later in the pregnancy or if I felt I was contracting with a nursing session we may have to wean her at that point but until it happened he wasn't concerned. I am TTC now with a 7 1/2 month old so hopefully we will still be able to continue and then tandem when the new baby comes.

If you get pg with a 7 1/2 month old you may have to supplement with formula if your supply dips way down before babe turns a year (breastmilk or formula is primary nutrition for first 12 months). Just because your DD nursed for 5 months does not mean you had milk for that long (as you admitted you had no clue if she was getting much or any), and every pg can be different.