Tandem Nursing a Newborn and Toddler

It was only a matter of time before I spoke about how my breastfeeding journey has changed! As previously mentioned in my post Breastfeeding Through Pregnancy: What It’s Been Like For Me So Far I was nursing Aoife throughout my pregnancy. At the time of the post I was about 4/5 months pregnant fast forward 4ish months and I gave birth to my son (six weeks early!). Luckily, I had been preparing Aoife for a while (especially when it became apparent there would be no self-weaning or slowing down on nursing happening) for the impending arrival of a newborn sibling! Having become accustomed to babies, thanks to the arrival of baby cousin in June, Aoife was showing a great level of understanding that there was a baby in mummy’s tummy! Ways in which I prepared Aoife included talking about my growing belly and mentioning that is where the baby was, discussing with her during feeds that baby will be feeding from the breast too; this was mainly me saying that baby would be having “googie” (Aoife’s name for milk) too, Aoife began repeating this by pointing to a breast at a time saying “Me googie, baby googie” and also by introducing books about new babies! Our favourite was There’s A House Inside My Mummy.

Aoife was also given a “baby” (doll) for Christmas and various accessories which she loves using to mimic mummy and baby especially now baby is here! She even pretends to feed her doll!

Anyway, onto the tandem nursing! One of the biggest advantages to nursing a Toddler to me was the speed in which my milk returned and also the help with fighting how engorged the breasts can get! I unfortunately had to stay in hospital for a few nights following the birth of Cassius so initially when my milk came in I was in a lot of pain! Thankfully, Luke brought Aoife in to see us and she asked for milk! My boobs went down almost instantly and haven’t been like that since (apart from an overnight stay at her grandparents!) At the moment we are still working on positioning, especially at bedtime! Aoife is a massive fidget so trying to feed her and the baby at the same time can be difficult! Aoife often ends up with baby feet in her face, luckily she finds this hilarious!

When it comes to who to nurse when, I will always nurse baby first and at the moment I am trying to keep Aoife’s feeds similar to how they were before I gave birth (wake ups, naps and bedtime!) As she has become quite indulgent and it feels like she feeds more than Cassius sometimes!

I will be very honest and admit to being incredibly touched out at times but this occurs more if I am feeling tired and haven’t drank enough fluids in the day! To tackle this I go to bed with a 20oz bottle of water and a glass of cordial! I also find bedsharing helps with dealing with lack of sleep!

Overall, tandem nursing is a wonderful experience and has helped in creating a bond not only between Aoife and Cassius but between the three of us. I feel accomplished knowing I can meet the needs of both babies!

Thank you for reading!

I have included some sources below for those that want to know more!

Siobhan x

https://kellymom.com/ages/tandem/official-tandem-bf-faq/

https://kellymom.com/tandem-faq/04momnutrition/