How long were you able to breastfeed your 2nd baby?

Question

I will be having another baby in January. My two babies will be 18 months apart. Breastfeeding my first son was very time consuming, I can't imagine being able to have the time to breastfeed my second while chasing around another toddler.
How did you do it?
How long were you able to breastfeed the second?
I did it for 8 months with my first...

Answer 1

I breastfed my older daughter for 14 1/2 months. My younger daughter is just 17 months younger, and I'm still nursing her at 21 months old.

No, it wasn't always easy to have an 18-month-old running around while I tried to nurse a newborn, but we managed. Actually, one nice thing was that my 2nd daughter nursed great right from the beginning, so we didn't have any difficulties with latch, and I really didn't have any nipple pain. I had also already learned to nurse lying down (from my 1st daughter), so I had no problem nursing and resting in the middle of the night.

While I nursed my younger daughter, my older daughter and I would read books or play other games that didn't require me to run around. I made sure that we were in a room that had plenty of toys and was completely babyproofed.

One game we played was "baking." She'd stir up some pretend food in a bowl and bring it to me to taste. I'd say, "Hmmm, needs more cinnamon," and she'd take it back to mix it again. Sometimes, I'd have her taste it, and she'd say, "Hmmm, banana," or some other food. She could play that game forever!

Sometimes I'd pack a little "surprise box" before a nursing session. It was just a shoe box, and I'd fill it with a deck of cards (old ones so it didn't matter if they got destroyed), safe kitchen utensils, a new book, some toy cars, or something else that she didn't play with much. It was fun to be surprised, and she could usually play long enough for me to get through a nursing session.

Of course, there were days that we'd rely on a bit of TV, too -- a few minutes of Elmo or Dora never hurt when I really needed to get something done.

One other idea is to try to nurse the new baby in a sling. My younger daughter was such a spitty baby that it didn't work for us, but I know several moms who did great with it. There were able to nurse hands-free and even walk around to tend to their older kids.

Oh, I forgot to mention that if your older child asks to nurse again, you can let him if you feel comfortable. Odds are that he won't remember how, so he won't be able to do it, but his curiosity will be satisfied. I let my older daughter try a couple times, and she couldn't do it. She really just wanted more cuddle time. However, if she ever saw me pump, she insisted on tasting the milk, and she loved it! Occasionally, I'd let her go ahead and drink it since it was still good for her, too. (And my younger daughter never really wanted a bottle anyway.)

Congrats on baby #2, and good luck! It'll be challenging, but so fun at the same time, for them to be so close in age.

Answer 2

Mine were 25 months apart. Second one nursed until 3.5 years. I did tandem nursing (first one never stopped).

I would highly recommend you try a sling. Eventually you can sling the baby to you and the baby will nurse with you using only one hand, or even hands free (once there's some head control). The learning curve is pretty high for this but well worth it! Keepy trying.

In the beginning nursing can be very time consuming. I would set up a nursing corner. In addition to the things you need for nursing, have at hand special books you read and toys to play with to the older one when nursing or watch a video or sing songs or let your older one finger paint while you nurse the younger. You also might keep non-perishable snacks and water bottles there for both of you!

Before the birth, do role playing games with puppets or dolls so your older one might understand that you'll spend time with the baby. Emphasize what a big boy/girl can do that babies can't do (eat their favorite foods, visit grandma, have special day out with daddy on the weekend, read a board book, whatever your little one enjoys). There are also some great books out there about this to read to an older sibling.

Keep in mind that bottlefeeding is also time consuming and, IMO, less convenient. You'll spend time preparing formula and cleaning bottles if you go that route. Plus bottle-feeding takes two hands. Once your little one gets some head control, you can do more things b/c you don't have to hold your breast (okay maybe some moms do; this is a generality). I've grocery shopped, kneaded dough and tie-dyed teeshirts while nursing. Who says it's inconvenient?

Most of all: ENJOY!!!

Answer 3

I breastfed my 2nd boy for 14 months. I had another boy 8 months later and breastfed for 15 months. Neither boy used a bottle, at 6 months both were started on sippy cups(no valves) for juice or water, and things went great. Remember, you'll only have to nurse a few times a day once solids are introduced, and then probably only at night time once they are a year old and can start regular milk at meals.
First of all preplan a little activity for your first son during nursing time to help him pass the time. TV helps. Set your priorities, if nursing is that important to you, make it no. 1. You may have to interupt a feeding if the other is in trouble, or plan your outings differently, but it is well worth it. Time does pass by fast. Also, give your first the one on one cuddle time just before you are going to nurse or after, so he feels that he is important too. I then let the baby fuss during our time together, so the older one could see there was no favorites.
I also let the older boy watch and sit on my lap too. Once he wanted to drink some of the pumped milk I had to express because I was way too full, and after taking a drink, he never bothered again.

Answer 4

How would formula feeding be any less time consuming? I mean with all the mixing and sterilizing and washing and heating! Yikes. I'd rather just pull the breast out any day; the milk is there and fresh and ready when you and baby are, and there's no cleanup afterwards.

I mean, unless you're actually going to prop bottles of formula (which is a terrible idea for so many reasons) and not even hold and interact with your baby while feeding, breastfeeding is actualy a lot less time consuming.

Having a new baby is going to be hard with an 18 mo to take care of no matter how you're feeding the newborn. Here is a link with some ideas you can try: http://www.lalecheleague.org/FAQ/priorities.html

Answer 5

I've never felt engorged while breastfeeding but so far have breastfed my second son for just over 12 months. I did have a horrible time with my first son and trying to get him to latch on. For the 3 days we were in hospital we fed him with a syringe because he was either too tired to feed or was having trouble latching. We went home and continued to breastfeed with problems up until about 2 months old. With my second son though he was a natural from the start. He fed within 1/2 an hour of birth and latched on greatly. Second time around can be a completely different experience.

Answer 6

It is hard, but what is your option? It's not like you can give a newborn a bottle and let them feed themself, you know? So if you have to sit down and feed a baby, you might as well have it be BF. I am breastfeeding my second right now (actually, literally right NOW) and while it is hard at first to balance that with a toddler, it gets easier - you just engage your toddler in a book or game first. My older one never wanted to nurse again (I nursed her for 14 months so I thought for sure she'd want to try it when she saw me with the younger one), but she does "nurse" her dolls when I am nursing the baby, and has gotten upset with me for not letting her try to feed the baby or use my pump. Kind of cute, actually.

Congrats on the new baby!

Answer 7

My two sons were 20 months apart and I nursed the second son for almost 8 months. LOL, you are woman! Hear you roar!!!
You will manage it. Don't be suprised if child number one wants to try nursing again just because the baby is. One taste was enough to let my older son know that it was not as good as juice or milk in a cup, and he walked away not feeling as though he was missing something. We can't have older sibling feeling as though he is getting left out!

Answer 8

I breastfed my second child for well over two years. I found that using a ring sling, properly fitting tube sling or wrap for baby wearing was invaluable for letting me carry my baby with me while being able to attend to my toddler's needs. This included nursing on the move so it didn't matter how long she breastfed for.

See www.mamatoto.org for great information about a wide variety of baby carriers that are comfortable for you and supportive for the baby. My favourite is a wrap; my toddler always brings me our bright orange fleece tubesling no matter how hot it is :-)

Answer 9

I've managed to do it for 21 months but my first one is quite a bit older.

I suggest purchasing a SuperYard XT so you won't have to chase him far.

The American Academy of Pediatricians now recommends that you try to breastfeed until 2 years of age.

Answer 10

I too am due in Jan. with my 2nd child. I nursed my son for 2 1/2 years. I plan to do the same with this child. It may be time consuming but, it is so worth it for the child.