Trying to Get Pregnant and Nursing...

Hello! Merry Christmas! All I can tell you is that I have nursed two boys & I cannot get pregnant while nursing. My husband and I do not use any protection the whole time I am nursing (one year for each boy), but I do not get my period back until a month or two after I wean. The good news is that I only had one period after I weaned my 2nd son & then got pregnant right away!

The doctors will tell you that you can get pregnant while nursing & one of my friends did, but everyone's body must be different because I definitely can't.

Hope that helps,
C. : )

When I was going through fertility treatment (I was a surrogate, not infertile) I was nursing my son and even though I had my period back, they would not start the process until he was weaned as it CAN impede conception. I'm sure plenty women get pregnant while nursing, but if you have been trying and had no positive results, you might want to consider weaning. 27 months is not an unreasonable age to wean, although I know it is a hard decision (I am very pro-nursing). Maybe think about how long it takes you to get pregnant and find a balance that lets you nurse until a pre-planned time and still have a second child. Now this is just my opinion: Looking back, I would trade a few months of nursing my daughter in order to have my son any day. My daughter agrees (she's 8, he's 5 now).

If you think it is a good idea to compromise your 27-month-old's immune system. You have proven that you are an amazing woman, don't stop nursing now. You are taking such good care of your child. He will be so much healthier for it.

As long as your own physical nutritional needs are being comprimised, instinctively, your body will take care of the metabolic needs as they are in priority. So, can you get pregnant while nursing full time? Absolutely. But you are going to want to find out what you might be nutritionally lacking- you are providing a tremendous amount of your growing childs developmental needs. Sustaining three (you, your toddler, and your growing baby) would be alot for your body under no envornmental or emotional stress at all. As a midwife, it is not totally uncommon to be with women through miscarriage under these circumstances. Meet with a nutritionist who does full blood analysis and see where all of your profiles fall. It may just be you have a few needs that once met, sustaining a pregnancy will be no issue at all. You want to think about the long term, 10 years from now. How you eat and live today will impact your bone density and how your body ages over time. I would trust in the message your body is giving you by the fact that you have not gotten pregnant yet.
Aleks, Licensed Midwife

I have 4 kids all of which I nursed and yes became pregnant every time while still nursing. It is a very personal decision to stop nursing. Your child does not necessarilly need the supplement anymore so it really has to be when you feel you can give it up. I went 19 months with my last one because she truly wasn't ready to stop. It is a long time. You are 38 years old and you have to think about that too. Look at your whole circumstance. Did you conceive easily with your other child? If not maybe you should talk to your doctor about that. I do know the older you get the harder it is to conceive so deceide what is best for you and go with that. Good luck to you

Hi, S.. Wow. This was two years ago, but just saw your request now. Have you gotten pregnant and had another baby while still nursing your then 27 month old? Well, I got pregnant while still nursing my then 13 month old, continued nursing throughout my pregnancy and still nursed my then 22 mo. old baby while also nursing my newborn. Phew! And this went on for several months also. My two youngest are one yr. and about to turn three now. So there is no law in nursing-land that says you cannot continue nursing your baby with a new baby also; nor how long you should nurse. Your baby will obviously let you know. I am still nursing also. It just depends on how your body can keep up with the demands of being able to produce enough milk. Eventually it's a security thing for the baby. But why deprive them of the bonding experience with you even if it is just a snuggling time for a brief moment here and there.
Just wanted to share a little bit of nursing talk with you or anyone else out there who may be in the same boat.
Smiles!

I think you should stop nursing. I think it is harder to conceive if you are nursing and also a lot more work for you which takes up your time to conceive. I think your child will be perfectly fine not breastfeeding anymore. I breastfed my daughter until she was 12 months and she has yet to catch a cold or be sick. I think it's wonderful that you've gone on this long, good for you! But go ahead and stop breastfeeding and i think it will be much easier for you to have another.

The only reason to stop nursing would be becuase you are prone to "preterm" labor or have other medical reasons that would need to be considered if you are nursing while pregnant. Let your OB/Gyn know that you are nursing and discuss with him/her if there is any MEDICAL reason you, personally, should stop nursing. For all normal, low-risk pregnancy's, there is no reason to stop nursing the entire time you are pregnant. Many of my pregnant mommy friends have nursed while pregnant and then actually tandem nursed their children! Very cool! Kudos to you for nursing your baby for so long!

As for getting pregnant while nursing: if you are having menstrual cycles, then nursing while trying to conceive should not be a problem. If your cycle is still a bit out of whack or not regular, it may be more difficult to become pregnant, but it is still very possible to conceive. If your cycle is not regular, you may want to try an ovulation kit to help you determine when you are ovulating. This would be very helpful and could save you some frustration.

As always, it is best to talk to your OB/Gyn about these issues as he/she knows your medical history and can help you determine the best course of action. In the meantime, I hope everything works out and you are able to continue nursing and become pregnant...The best of both worlds! Good Luck to you!

I'm not an expert, but I believe you can most definitely get pregnant while still nursing. They say once you introduce solid foods and your milk is no longer your baby's sole source of food that the possibility is there. If you want to continue to nurse you might want to ask your doctor if it is hurting your chances or not. Maybe there is some other problem.

Hi there,
I had my first at 40 and nursed her for about 14-15 months. All I can say is that it seemed like the very second I stopped nursing, I got pregnant with number 2! Given your age and the increased chances of fertility issues, I'd stop and eliminate anything you can control that might impact your fertility. Two years is great in terms of bonding and immune systems... he'll be fine (and probably super happy to have a little sibling if it works out!).

Good luck,
-K.