Nursing and Pregnant
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My babies were fairly close in age - 19 months apart, as a matter of fact - so I was pregnant with my son before my daughter was even a year old. I was still breastfeeding my daughter when I found out I was pregnant with our second baby, and since she had never so much as taken a bottle I figured I would just keep going, at least until she hit the one year mark. I had read stories about pregnant women’s milk tasting so different as a result of pregnancy hormones that their nursing babies stopped nursing, but apparently that didn’t happen to my milk because my daughter didn’t change her nursing habits at all.
A friend of mine got pregnant around the same time as I did, and she was also nursing her first-born. Her doctor told her to immediately stop nursing, but my doctor told me I could keep going as long as my energy held out. I’m not sure why her doctor said one thing and my doctor said another, but I kept nursing my daughter until she was fifteen months old and I was five months pregnant. Never in my life had I felt so much like my body didn’t belong to me, but I was glad that my daughter was still getting the benefits of breast milk.
So what’s it like to nurse while pregnant? I was exhausted most of the time, but I think I probably would have been exhausted anyhow since I was pregnant. The biggest factor I remember is how incredibly hungry I was all the time. I could attack food like a champ because I was burning calories from nursing while also growing a baby. If you’re thinking about getting yourself into the same situation you should know that it certainly can be done, but it helps if you have unlimited access to healthy foods and the opportunity to take a daily nap. I’ve heard of instances of women who actually nurse their toddler and newborns at the same time, but I knew I wouldn’t have the chutzpah for that. I certainly applaud any woman who can do it!
