Drying Up?

[@llli*mrsbolt24]

I noticed this morning, the stingy sensation that has been present for almost 21 months when my daughter nurses, is going away; also, I found myself almost being aggravated by her suckling and she seemed to be using me as a pacifier. Will nature just cause a dry up of her milk? Does this make sense? Anyone have any support for me? I appreciate all your input

[@llli*mommal]

The stingy sensation was probably your letdown sensation. Moms who experience it tend to feel it more intensely when they have more milk. After 21 months, your baby is probably getting more and more of her nutritional needs met by solids, and is probably decreasing the frequency and intensity of her nursing. As demand declines, supply does, too. Lower supply means less letdown sensation (though the letdowns themselves are likely still present).

You won't just "dry up" unless there's a good reason for that to happen. Supply = demand, even this late in the game! So if your baby demands less, your supply will decrease. If she weans, it will eventually vanish, though many moms continue to see a small amount of milk for months or even years after total weaning. And if you get pregnant again, there's a good chance that your milk supply will vanish due to hormonal changes during pregnancy, even if your child continues to nurse.

A lot of moms ultimately find that nursing and the sensations of nursing become annoying, or intrusive, or unpleasant. It's up to you how you deal with that- if you really don't like it, you may want to contemplate advancing weaning on a faster timetable. If it's a minor annoyance, you can just put up with it and maybe look at imposing some limits on nursing that make it more tolerable for you- for example, limiting how long your toddler is allowed to nurse or where she is allowed to nurse.

[@llli*mrsbolt24]

Thank you so much mommal and I knew you'd be the first to chime in! I guess my little girl is just getting bigger and I myself haven't paid attention to the lack of stingy...........until this morning. Will she eventually just quit nursing? She doesn't use me much and to be honest, not to sound like a bad mother though I feel like it by stating this, nursing gets a little aggravating now is that normal? Should I feel that way?

[@llli*still.here]

Is there any chance you're pregnant? I only ask because I know lots of moms who got that irritated feeling when nursing during pregnancy.

[@llli*mrsbolt24]

well, that's an interesting point you've brought up: i may be pregnant; i started taking some antibiotics for an infected tooth, didn't realize the impact on the birth control and i think i may be, but not positive; can't be any more than 5/6 weeks if i am indeed preggers. any advice? and thank you still.here it makes me feel like a terrible mother because i'm having those feelings! any advice?

[@llli*still.here]

You are definitely not a terrible mother. You can put that thought right out of mind.

My first step would be to take a pregnancy test. I would interpret your situation and give completely different advice if it turns out you're pregnant. Because pregnancy can, and often does, impact your supply. In most circumstances if your supply takes a hit, nursing through it or nursing more frequently will bring it back up, but this is not the case with pregnancy because the supply change is hormonal. You can't bring it back until your milk comes in after the baby is born Some moms choose to continue nursing whether or not their supply drops/dries up, some don't. Some babes choose to wean when the supply drops/dries up, some don't. And again, not all moms lose their supply.

You can cater your solution to each individual situation. If you really can't stand it sometimes, you could try unlatching her and offering a special treat or activity to distract her. If there are certain times or situations where you feel the aggravation more, try to avoid nursing during those times.

For example, when I was pregnant with my son I'd get really bad creepy-crawlies when I nursed my daughter, but it tended to only happen at night. I would get this overwhelming instinct to push her away from me and would have to ball my fists to keep from knocking her off my breast. It got bad enough that I decided the best solution for us was to night-wean her (she was about 20 mos old at the time).

[@llli*mrsbolt24]

Creepy-crawlies is exactly how I felt this morning and I had an overwhelming sense of irritation. Right now, it only happened at around noon today; sequentially, I should have started my period.............I think those antibiotics have nulled my birth control No worries with not wanting another; I've always wanted two, of course this would make three. She doesn't nurse so often at night; instead she curls up with daddy and has for about three weeks now (strange huh?).

I'll appreciate any advice.

[@llli*still.here]

CShe doesn't nurse so often at night; instead she curls up with daddy and has for about three weeks now (strange huh?).

I'm going to go out on a limb and say you are probably pregnant and your milk supply is starting to drop.

I hope you don't mind if I until you let us know one way or the other. Not that you're obligated to tell us anything of course.

[@llli*mrsbolt24]

Are you asking me if I'll let you guys know? Of course I will! I love you gals I just thought she was loving on daddy; not that she didn't love him before or anything but I've noticed her absence............I guess she knows before the rest of the family, huh? Thanks as always!

[@llli*mommal]

AFAIK, the idea that antibiotics impact the effectiveness of birth control is a medical myth, with one exception: a drug called Rifampin, used mainly to treat tuberculosis. Unless that's what you were taking, there's probably no more reason than average to suspect a failure of contraception.