Tandem Nursing

What is tandem nursing?
Tandem nursing is when a mother nurses more than one child at a time. An example would be nursing a toddler and a newborn or twins.

Is it safe to nurse your toddler/baby while pregnant?
If mom and baby are healthy with no medical complications during the pregnancy then yes, nursing while pregnant is totally safe. Some doctors recommend that you stop nursing once you've reached 20 weeks pregnant no matter what your health is. But as long as mom knows her options and feels comfortable then keep on nursing while pregnant.

Baby is born, now what?
Once your newborn is born your body will still make colostrum for the new baby, so no worries your baby will still get it! Your milk may still take 2-3 days to come back in. (Sooner sometimes) Chances are your toddler isnt staying in the hospital those few days youre there after delivery. Your newborn will be able to enjoy all that delicious colostrum!
Now youre home with a newborn and toddler. Your toddler will probably become jealous of the newborn nursing and not want to share mom. Some simple things to help ease your toddlers jealousy, make one on one time with your toddler by doing things without baby like taking a walk or reading a book, offer your toddler a sippy cup with milk, juice, or water in place of nursing, your toddler probably isnt nursing all day either, maybe just bedtime and naptime so try to stick to a schedule where you nurse your toddler, distract your toddler by playing a game or coloring, and calmly explain to your toddler that the newborn needs mommy right now. A good tip is to always nurse the newborn first, your toddler isnt nursing for the nutrients as much but nursing for comfort more.
Your milk production is based on supply and demand so when mom is nursing 2 children her breasts will accommodate for 2 children. If you had no issues with your supply and nursing into the toddler years then you shouldnt have an issue nursing
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a toddler and newborn, so, dont worry about not making enough milk for your newborn, theres plenty to go around! Sometimes there will be a supply issue then it would be wise to consultant someone about weaning your toddler.
Same goes for nursing twins or more babies. Your body will make enough milk to nurse the babies with little to no supplementation. To make mom comfortable she can always pump after each feeding to trick her body into making more milk.

Overall, tandem nursing can be done, is done, and completely safe to do






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