Pregnant and Nursing Support Thread

[TinkerBellesMum]

I thought I'd start up a support group, for those of us pregnant, with an older nursling. If you are pregnant at the moment or tandeming or have done in the past and want to add your support, please post!

I'm 12 weeks pregnant and have a 2 and a week year old. One of the first things I noticed about being pregnant was my nipples felt bruised like she'd bitten me. 8 weeks later not much has changed and I'm still spending every feed saying "gentle please".

Someone please tell me it gets easier!

I'm also starting to feel quite full and hard.

I keep getting told by my family I'll have problems tandem feeding "and how many mothers do you know who have done it?" My dad was grilling me the other day about tandeming and when I'll stop Tink nursing. He's a radiographer. I made him agree with me "Well, you know yourself that when the adult teeth come through because they're in a totally different order to the milk teeth the jaw changes shape" "Yes and around the same time the soft spot in the jaw fuses" "That change makes it impossible for them to continue nursing, that's why they got called milk teeth" lol how could he argue when he'd just backed my argument up!

Sounds like child led weaning to me.

I'm not sure if this thread is still 'alive', but if it is, I'd like to join! I'm newly pregnant (4-5 weeks), still bf 17m DS.

I'm a bit worried about bf though, because DS has become very unsettled since I conceived. He's started waking in the evening and needing an extra feed then; and (possibly for other reasons) has been very upset going to bed/at night - we've just had a stream of really terrible nights, when he's been miserable. I feel that he's hungry for more milk in the evening, and that the waking up is making him tired and not so happy during the day. He's also feeding for much longer than before.

So I'm not sure what to do. I'm scared of the idea of tandem nursing, tbh, really scared - I'm not sure I'm strong enough to cope with the demands of two children at once, and I don't know anyone who's done it. I also hate the idea of giving up bf, and ds loves his feeds - we've just been on two a day (and extras as and when...) for ages, and he comes into bed and sniggles down beside me and looks at me: it's so lovely...

Hi littlefrog

I've been finding the Adventures in Tandem Nursing book really informative and reassuring about the changes to the milk which can happen during pregnancy, and the ways you'd need to look after yourself continuing to nurse through pregnancy, and how tandem nursing might work. And also there are stories in it from people who did wean, or whose children weaned - it's a really non-judgmental non-preachy book.

Hi all, I've been meaning to join this thread for ages but not managed to get a moment to write anything. So just saying hello at the moment. I'm 27 weeks pregnant and have an almost 2-year-old DD.

My DD and DS are still enyoying tandem nursing and no between them yet

i will go and borrow it from the library - thank you for the recommendation!

Hey all, been offline for a few days as Tink has been away and we've been making the most of the time getting things sorted here. I've not got much to add, but enjoyed reading the discussion on weaning statistics. I'm not worried that Tink is going to wean, we met her and her grandparents in a restaurant near home as they've been on the road today, and she got so upset waiting for food that she started crying, turning on her back and saying "me me".I tried to feed her but she was really tired and just dug her teeth in, I told her to be gentle but she shook her head and I didn't have the heart to stop her.

Hello everyone. Not posted for a while, but only 5 weeks to go until ds arrives and dd is still going strong with her feeding. I'm trying to keep her down to just 3 or 4 times a day, rather than the 'all day snacking' that she prefers, and so far so good mostly.

I've started to mention that she'll need to share boo-boo with ds when he arrives, because babies can only have mummy's milk, but she can have other things too, but she grabbed hold of them and said 'Noooooo, my boo-boos!', so I'm not sure that we'll manage to avoid here. Anyone got any tips re this?

CSWS - no "real" advice, but someone once reminded me that toddlers love attention, and new babies give their big brothers and sisters lots of undivided, adoring attention,

If I were you, I just wouldn't mention it again. She presumably knows there's a baby in mummy's tummy, and once it comes she'll be besotted (at least for the first few days! )

CSWS, We read my DD a 'new baby' book frequently. When we got to the page about the baby nursing, I would tell her that the new baby would have mummy's milk and that DD would also have mummy's milk as I had enough for both of them. Repeat 50 times

Now that the baby (DS) is here, I have explained that the baby only has milk, whereas DD can have cheese (favourite food) like mummy and daddy and isn't she lucky.

That's lovely to hear about the tandem nursing going so well Babies. I'm finding nursing through pregnancy really hard, so I hope it'll get better once DC2 arrives.

drama - i'm also struggling with nursing at the moment, and i've still got 6 months of pregnancy to go! But we can get through it!!

Now then - you are all lentil weaving attached types aren't you? Should I buy another sling for dc2? I've decided i really want a mei tai but i've no idea which one to buy! I've been promised the use of a Didymos wrap and i also have a ring sling, but I really like the idea of the Mei Tai for back carrying (when dc2 is older, obviously).

What sling do you have and do you think dh will roll his eyes if i buy another one? I know it's not strictly about pregnancy and nursing, but if i ask on the AN thread i fear some will roll their eyes at me, i can't be arsed starting a new thread, and most of the babywearing types from the Due In Feb thread are here anyway!!

Hi

Apologies, if asking an old question but how do you work around a bump. I'm only six weeks pregnant so feeding my daughter is fine at the moment but what about when i'm huge? How have others found it?

I love Mei Tai's

I have mei tai wise :-

: Kozy (tall and sturdy good for toddlers, DH's favourite)
: Cat Bird Baby (Nice simple square one)
: Eden (Stretchy Velveteen perfect for front carries with a newborn)
: Ball Baby Overall (Wrap wide straps red and white , my most used comfortable mei tai)
: Enchanted Snuggles (Purple and fairy panel, never seem to use this one, shame as it is very pretty)
: Solarweave (Light water sling, also gives protection from sun)

FRAGGLE06, I used a beanbag pillow which moulded around my bump with a rugby hold position, which meant the main weight of my toddler was along the nursing chair arm, not on my bump.

But it did get very uncomfortable for the last few weeks.

BE - what would you say are the advantages of a Mei Tai over a wrap/ring sling?

I love wraps, I make all my own and still using my very first one with 25 month old Tink. I used to walk down the road nursing her under it and no one could see.

Fraggle, I think you will work with each stage of bump and naturally find yourself moving into the most comfortable position. I'm 17 + 3 and getting quite big. I can still put her on my lap and she will work herself into the best position.

Little pest has been biting since she's been back! I'm making her show me her tongue before I put my nipple in her mouth. Now though she licks all over my breast and I can't get in! I have to tell her to let go, because she also has a hand on either side moving it all over the place, and let Mummy do it

Bless the little tyke, she's sitting on the sofa eating a yogurt and singing "moonpig.com" along to the advert!

I was a total ring sling queen first time round asnd transferred to mei teis around 2yo. I retrospect I wish I'd done it sooner, just because of the better weight distribution. I liked my toddlerhawk a lot. They make Babyhawks too. The one which got most use was that sort of design, made by a friend.

wanders off munching lentils

tinkerbellesmum, my dd also loves the moonpig advert lol.

I have a ring sling and a beco baby carrier both of which are great but am thinking of getting another pouch sling before the baby arrives.

Thanks BE and Tinkerbelle.

Aah the moonpig ad, gets me everytime.

I think it's very simple, repetitive and has cartoon pictures so it appeals to little kids who could be singing anything.

Fraggle - I feed lying down in the morning and at night, and during the day she just has to sort of wrap around the bump (am 35 weeks). She's big enough (2.6 yrs) to manage this fine, but I guess it may be slighter harder with a younger toddler.

TSD - I'm sure that your dh will roll his eyes if you buy another sling! I'm thinking of getting a close baby carrier this time, to go with the Baby Bjorn Active that we had before, but am far from being a sling expert.

How many times a day does dd nurse BE? If they both want it at the same time, do you restrict them to one breast each?

CSWS, DD nurses on her own three times a day (morning, before afternoon nap and before bedtime)usually from both sides.

DS nurses on his own usually just one side and then a break and later the other side, loads per day. Except the evening hours (6pm til 9pm) when he feeds a lot.

DD also asks to nurse at other times when DS nurses, maybe twice a day then they have one side each for that feed.

Good grief, that sounds a lot of nursing when I write it down. LOL, No wonder I am so hunger/thirsty all the time !!!

"advantages of a Mei Tai over a wrap/ring sling"
Different slings are better at different times, they all have a place. Which is why I have FAR too many slings

Mei Tais are easy to tie, light not much fabric to wear in summer. Can be used with babies but come into their own with toddlers.

Wraps heavier, more fabric, harder to learn to tie but very comfortable to use with a baby or toddler and many different carries

I have a few different wraps and find that some are fine in hotter weather, I took a jersey to Menorca in the middle of summer with my then 15 month old. We were the coolest of the family. It's also possible to adjust the tie so that less fabric is over the baby. Plus I based what we both wore around the fact we would be sharing body heat and would have extra layers over us.

Once I had wrapped (first thing I did because they're the easiest to make) I was smitten and haven't used any others, I couldn't imagine when I had used it in all weathers (we went to Majorca when she was 4 months - no we don't have a thing for the Balearics - old so I used it in yuck British weather and hot Spanish weather) and on long walks, for long periods that I would want to use anything else.

No experience with mei tais Dryad, but a wrap will be very handy (it's a sling, blanket, something to sit on, toddler hammock...) GOod for back carries, although apparently the learning curve with back carries is less with a mei tai.