I know what "they" say about it. The doctors, studies, books, etc. But do any of ya'll have real life experiences to share? I'm not talking cocaine or acid or anything hard like that. I mean, a glass of wine and a bowl once in awhile. Ivy is six months, three weeks, five days. I've abstained thus far. But I'm so tempted. However, I WILL NOT stop breastfeeding just because I want to get drunk or smoke some weed. But I would like to know if anyone has gotten high and breastfed, or had a drink and breastfed, and how did it affect your baby? I'm not judgmental, my friend smoked pot a lot while she was pregnant and her little girl is six now and seems fine, but...
Occasional use of alchohol isn't a problem. Watch the baby, though. Some babies are sensitive to alcohol, and may refuse the breast, or get really cranky or sleepy. As for weed, I won't condone it's use, but the evidence seems to prove that although the baby gets a significant dose of THC, it doesn't cause any short or long term problems. I wouldn't smoke every day. I get alcohol and weed phone calls almost weekly. Most womyn are so afraid, as they already did it and think they have "poisoned" their milk, which they haven't. No matter the case, your milk with a little substance is it is better than artificial milk. If you get DRUNK, wait about the number of hours to breastfeed as you had drinks. Five drinks, wait five hours, it takes about this long for your breast and liver to detox the alcohol. And unless you had a LOT to drink, there is NO reason to Pump and Dunp, your body cleans the milk, and most of the milk is made during the feeding, so don't worry about pumping while you have been drinking, unless you get really full. One thing to keep in mind about alcohol, it can inhibit your letdown. It lowers the amount of oxytocin in your body, so letting down may be harder. Just don't get "drunk" having a few drinks is usually OK, as long as it doesn't effect your baby negatively the next day. Cocaine is an other story though. It is VERY dangerous in breastfeeding. Can cause seizures in babies, stay far away from it. LSD is believed to get into milk. I wouldn't want to see a baby on a trip, so save that until the baby is weaned.
It's nice having Mags around, cause we don't have to guess about what passes into the milk, and what doesnt I always went with the philosophy that you can never be too careful. I wouldn't put alcohol or coke (as in a caffenated beverage, lol, not the other one) into a baby's bottle, so i didn't want it anywhere near my breasts either, but...weekends at the in-laws are very difficult without at least a few drinks, lmao. When i was nursing Willow, my husband's aunt insisted that a glass of wine would actually help with letdown--she insisted said her doc told her that (20-some years ago, of course), so she drank every day, lol, sometimes it's funny to get advice from another generation. I did have a drink, because i had just fed Willow, and wanted her to know that i did appreciate the advice, however crazy it sounded at the time (besides, i could really use a drink at that point, haha). I read somewhere that so long as there is at least two hours until the next feeding, there was no evidence that a drink or two was harmful. I certainly would not recommend drinking enough to effect your judgement though, in case there was some sort of emergency. I also wouldn't smoke weed. Again. I admit, i did that once, and regretted it big time. Not that it's actually harmful to the child (i sure haven't found any evidence of it), but i felt soo guilty about leaving my baby upstairs asleep (in a housefull of grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, but alone in my mind) while i did something so childish. Not something i want to be remembered for.
A friend of mine used to do both, me I abstained. What she would do is just seriously pump out everything after a night of drinking and not give any to her son (he was 8 months when she started this). But, considering that weed takes longer than alcohol to flush out of the system I don't think this helped very much. Me? This time I'm going to abstain again. It's a matter of what's more important. Having a bowl or my baby's health. When it comes to my kids, I don't take chances. All too often you'll find that one source says, "It's OK!" and another says, "Don't do it!!!!" So, IMO wait until you're no longer breastfeeding. If that means you have to wait another 2 years (depending on your philosophy on bf) then wait 2 more years. It's no biggie. You'll miss it, sure, but your kids are so worth it! *hugs*
http://www.kellymom.com/health/lifestyle/alcohol.html that's the rule of thumb that i've always gone by ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ i dont smoke pot http://www.kellymom.com/health/lifestyle/marijuana.html
That isn't neccesary or even beneficial. Human milk is self cleansing and VERY little is stored in the breast. MOST of the milk in every feeding is made during the feeding, so pumping and dumping isn't neccesary. If you get drunk, by the time you are sober enough, your milk will be fine. (Probably was fine while you were drunk as well....) Pumping is only neccesary if you skip a feeding or start to feel full. I can't imagine trying to work a breast pump drunk, but that is an other story. If the baby is sleeping, just go to sleep and by the time he or you wake up, it should be fine. If you only had a couple of drinks and are just tipsy, it isn't even neccesary to wait at all.
At the risk of sounding like a complete prick, here's my thoughts. If you care about your baby at least as much as you care about yourself, you'll wait until you're done breastfeeding
Um...are you sure about that? I mean, there are instances of babies dying because they got drugs from their mother's milk (talking about hard stuff, not pot). Most of the breast milk is produced BEFORE feeding and whatever is put in your body will go into it. Breasts do produce milk durring feedings, but only after what is actually in the breast is used up. I'm sorry, but it seems that you just gave some very dangerous advice. And if I'm wrong then please let me know, but let me know with proof (studies or research prooving what you said).
I myself abstained from everything...I wouldnt even take something for a headache when I nursed my 4 babies...I didnt want to take a chance with them...had something happened , I never would have been able to forgive myself.
Maggie is correct. As far as alcohol is concerned, the amount of alcohol in your breastmilk at any given point in time is the same as the amount of alcohol in your bloodstream. So even if you are slightly intoxicated, that means baby is ingesting less than 1% alcohol. But lots of babies have aversions to the way it changes the flavor of the milk. Dr. Hale is about the only expert on this subject (mostly as regards prescription medications). Any good lactation consultant would have a copy of his book, and anyone can check his website online for the safety of any particular drug. http://neonatal.ama.ttuhsc.edu/lact/
Yes, Dr. Hale's book is about the Bible on Medications in Mother's Milk. All GOOD doctors have this book in their offices as well as at home. My ped makes sure every nurse, every doctor and everyone who anwers the phone has their own copy. I turned her on to it years ago. Even my Neurologist has a copy. He's a palm pilot nerd and wanted something for his hand held, but Hale hasn't put that out yet. As a result, (and his commitment to helping breastfeeding womyn fight their neuro conditions) all his MS, Migraine, Epilepsy and Sleep Disorder pateints can continue to nurse their babies and still be comfortable. Wow, this thread is over a year old.
