Breastfeeding and Pregnancy

It is a well know fact (or it at least should be) that it is possible to conceive while breastfeeding. While it is true that you cannot get pregnant until your cycle resumes, it is impossible to know when that is going to happen.

Based on my experience, it seems to be a less-well-know-fact that you can continue to breastfeed throughout pregnancy if you so choose. As long as you are feeling well and there are no concerns on your physician’s end, there is nothing stopping you from breastfeeding throughout your entire pregnancy and beyond if you decide to tandem breastfeed after you deliver. I personally chose to fully wean my daughter by the end of my first trimester, but there really wasn’t any reason why I couldn’t have continued to nurse if I wanted.

My reasons for weaning my daughter were varied. I found the first few months of pregnancy to be extremely exhausting which I am sure was exaggerated by the fact that I was nursing. Toward to the end of the first trimester I started to find nursing to be quite uncomfortable (in fact, it vaguely started reminding me of the early days of engorgement…enough said). From the beginning, I had the goal of 18 months in mind when I started on my breastfeeding journey and around that time I started to feel like I was ready anyway despite being pregnant. Even if I wasn’t pregnant, I think I still would have made the decision to wean when I did. I am proud to say I made it to the 19 month mark and aim to do the same with second…I think.

Breastfeeding takes a huge amount of commitment. Breastfeeding during pregnancy requires something altogether different. Tandem nursing is in a realm that I can’t even wrap my head around. I am proud that I was able to nurse for as long as I did, but I could never imagine nursing with a burgeoning belly and most definitely couldn’t imagine nursing a toddler and a newborn at the same time! Some people do it and my hat goes off to them. I think it is sad that our society has put such a social stigma on breastfeeding beyond a certain age and that mothers who choose to tandem nurse are portrayed as complete wacko’s in social media. There was even a news story recently about a woman being kicked out of a public place for nursing. It completely boggles my mind how such an ‘advanced’ society can be so stupid and judgmental. Okay, now I am ranting…