Alcohol and breastfeeding - surely I'm not alone in not mixing the two?

[CantSleepWontSleep]

I don't believe it's right to drink alcohol whilst breastfeeding. I know that many women do, and that it's their choice to make, but I won't do it.

I mentioned on another very small forum that I would have been offended if people had bought me alcohol to celebrate the birth of my daughter, and I have been accused of being very OTT.

Can't really be bothered to get into a debate about it on the other forum, as depite being a long way from having true lentil weaver credentials by MN standards, I seem to be classed as extreme in many of views (trying to wait til 6 months to wean, not drinking whilst pg or bf, not smoking, giving up/cutting down on caffeine etc) on there, and most of the users only know how to hurl abuse anonymously. So thought I'd have a mature discussion about it over here.

So, surely I can't be alone in my beliefs?

I didn't feel like drinking very soon after giving birth - too tired and wired. I think that's normal. But visitors love it, and you can always put it aside for a celebration.

I found the only way to survive a small baby was with regular glasses of red wine.

And a friend still remembers the email I sent her about my first post-natal gin and tonic (while I was still b/fing, I should add) in the terms most people reserve for literature of a somewhat more pornographic kind.

i spent the whole of being pregnant worrying about the alcohol thing i didnt realise i was pregnant til nearly 5 months and i led a very party hard lifestyle and at that time i was away alot with my job and getting seriously hammered most of the time - wasnt a hangover it was morning sickness!!

baby was fine any problems she had health wise were nothing to do with alcohol i double checked with doctors!

didnt drink at all for 1st 8 weeks while breast feeding then got together with brother and sister in law to celebrate baby and between us we drank 4 bottles of wine and a litre of vodka!

breast fed as normal the next day and she appeared to be fine and the following night she slept from 10 til 8!! without a peep the only time she has ever done it!!

so imo it didnt do her any harm!!

unlike the pineapple juice i drank which really did upset her!!

The excellent breastfeeding workshop run by my hospital said it was ok to drink a glass of wine a day so I went with their expertise. In fact I followed it to the letter,

alex8, I'll have to remember that with this next baby.

can'tsleepwon'tsleep, no you're not alone, but why would it matter if you were?

I didn't drink any alcohol while pg or b/feeding.

But I was so uninterested in whether anyone else did or didn't.

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Well, I think alocohol is an inappropriate gift for someone who has just had a child however i would not be offended, it would be kind they went to trouble to get anything at all.
I am adding another view to the thread as i dont drink alcohol at all, have never seen the attraction. As a child i watched someone daily consume far too much alcohol. Having said that I think having A drink whilst breastfeeding does the baby no harm, aslong as you know are still fully functional and in control!

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I did not drink when pg, except for one small glass of wine on literally three celebratory occasions, all of which were in the final trimester. However, I am bf my 16 month old and have been having a glass of wine some/most evenings, after he's gone off to sleep, for a few months now, really since he stopped frequent night waking (except when I've been pg - sadly miscarried twice). I really think there is a vast difference between pg and bf, especially as the baby gets older.

When ds was born I was too nervous to have a glass of champagne, but in retrospect I would really have liked one, and I certainly will if I'm lucky enough to get pg and acrry to term again. And even if you don't drink, I do feel (sorry) it is a bit OTT to be offended at any thoughtful present. he only circumstances in which I would be offended at that are if the giver was absolutely clear on my views on this beforehand.

I'd consider it offensive if I never drank at all, and/or were a recovering alcoholic. Otherwise, I think it's a lovely present.

I was bought a bottle of strong spirit last Christmas when I was 7 months pregnant. I did not drink at all whilst pregnant but was not offended, simply told my generous brother in law that I looked forward to drinking it after the baby was born. It is still unopened but it will be drunk with pleasure at some point. As has been said, I would not be offended with any gift, however unsuitable, how ungrateful!!!!

One of my friends with children decided gifts for the baby were a bit pointless so bought me wine crisps and chocolate instead. Fab. I ended up spilling my wine only just managing not to actually "wet the babies head"

you are not alone on not wanting to mix the two but saying you would be ' offended ' if people had bought alcohol - talk about over reaction.

Thanks for all of your opinions ladies, and especially to those of you who have explained how I can have a tipple without it getting through to DD.

Can I once again stress that I would have been offended not by the alcohol per se, but by the fact that it would have shown how little my friends knew me. Would you expect a vegetarian to be grateful for a gift of meat from a friend?!

Can I also stress, once again, that this is a hypothetical situation, as thankfully my friends do know me well (they did have 5 years of me trying to create DD to get used to the idea!).

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Pruni - I've not drunk since Aug 2004, when I fell pregnant the first time (miscarried that one, DD eventually born Feb 2006). I wasn't a big drinker before that though, as was usually on some sort of diet!

I've been teetotal for years - I still get given gifts of alcohol by friends with no imagination. Dh drinks it, which pleases him no end! It doesn't offend me that they give me alcohol - I've been given worse gifts. It's honestly no big deal to me, I can't expect everyone to remember that I'm teetotal. I'm veggie and yes, I'd be offended by a gift of meat - but meat's not often given as a present, whereas booze is. I'm sure none of my friends mean offence when they give it, so I chose not to take offence.

In my bf class, we were told (by lactation consultant & later by our pediatrician) that if you have a drink and bf immediately, only about 1% alcohol is in the milk which is too little to cause aby effect on baby. If you want to avoid that, then you can wait about 2 hours or 'pump & dump'. I was just told not to go wild. Haven't felt much like drinking since I've been bf. The odd beer or glass of wine is very nice though, And on some days, much needed!

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Pumping and dumping is pointless, unless you do it for your own comfort. It does not clear alcohol from breastmilk any quicker and alcohol clears from breastmilk in the same way as it does from your blood so you don't still have alcoholic breastmilk two hours later after one drink.