Nursing through Pregnancy
By Barbara Behrmann, Ph.D.
© 2007
Samantha was happily nursing her toddler when
she discovered she was pregnant. While many
mothers stop nursing in such situations,
Samantha continued to nurse her son through most
of her pregnancy. As her due date got closer
and she was less able to differentiate between
real contractions and Braxton Hicks contractions
(those that don’t dilate the cervix) she decided
to stop. But as soon as her babies were born
(it turned out she was having triplets!) she let
her son resume his nursing relationship. Not
only did it help him from not feeling left out
or displaced, but his nursing actually helped to
bring in her milk when her babies were still too
weak to suckle effectively.
While few women find themselves nursing triplets
and a toddler at the same time, Samantha’s story
is representative of many women who chose not to
let pregnancy be the reason for weaning. You
may choose to wean, but that’s a separate
issue. The bottom line is that in most cases it
is safe to nurse through pregnancy. When you
nurse, your body releases the hormone oxytocin.
This is the same hormone that causes uterine
contractions. Your uterus doesn’t respond to
this, however, until shortly before you are
ready to begin labor. If, however, you are at
risk for premature labor and your doctor has
told you to avoid sex during pregnancy for fear
of triggering contractions, you should consult
with a breastfeeding specialist before
continuing your nursing relationship.
Pregnancy does affect lactation, though, as well
as how you experience nursing. Lactation
consultant Kathleen Huggins, IBCLC, author of
The Nursing Mother’s Companion explains that
the amount of milk women make often decreases
due to the estrogen secreted by the placenta.
Fortunately, by the time you would find yourself
pregnant again, it is unlikely that your
nursling would be relying exclusively on
breastmilk for nourishment.
Some women who nurse while pregnant also
experience physical pain or mental irritation.
In my own case, for example, I chose to
gradually wean midway through my second
pregnancy because it felt as if my daughter,
newly three, was using pliers to draw my nipple
into her mouth! Another woman I know didn’t
wean her daughter, but resorted to deep
breathing to get through a nursing session. Not
all women experience this though and continue to
enjoy nursing.
Nursing Two
So what happens after the baby is born? Is it
ok to nurse your newborn and her older sibling?
Yes. Tandem nursing – breastfeeding two (or
more) children of different ages – is quite
safe. And since milk production works on the
basis of supply and demand, there is generally
plenty of milk for two.
While not for everybody, most mothers who tandem
nurse find the benefits far outweigh any costs –
nutritionally, emotionally, and psychologically.
“My son was an intense nurser and it was very
important to him,” says one mom. “Nursing was
something he was a part of - he wasn’t shuffled
to the back – and it helped him to feel less
excluded.”
Another mother, Laura, had a long labor and was
separated from her 15 ½ month old for almost
three days. Once home, she sat in her rocking
chair to nurse her newborn. Her son took one
look at them, fell on the floor, and started to
cry. Laura reassured him there was room for
both of them and he latched on “ecstatically.”
Laura remembers it vividly. “I was holding each
child in a cradle hold so they were facing each
other. After a few swallows, Andrew’s body
relaxed completely. He opened his eyes and
gazed at his little sister. Then he reached out
and held her hand....I was teary then and I’m
teary now, remembering. Mothering and tandem
nursing two very active toddlers has been a real
challenge but that blessed memory has gotten me
through many a bad day.”
If you think tandem
nursing may be in your future, many excellent
articles are available at:
http://www.lalecheleague.org/NB/NBtandem.html.
A good book is Hillary Flower’s Adventures in
Tandem Nursing, published by La Leche League
International.
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