> the milk supply.  If a baby is relying solely on a mother's breastmilk, the
> mother would do well to let others donate.  If baby is eating a lot of
> solids and could take a lessened supply and the donation is highly
> important, then donating could be considered.

I had always been under the impression that the Canadian Blood Services
(formerly The Red Cross) insisted that you wait 6 months post-partum, or
3 months post weaning, whichever came last (i.e. if you nurse to 2
weeks, you wait the 6 months PP, if you nurse to 9 months, you wait
until 12 months).  I thought this was probably a bit far-fetched for
someone nursing an older toddler/child who doesn't rely solely on Mom
for food, but I realized that perhaps the person making up these rules
might not have ever thought of someone nursing past a year or so...so I
went in to ask about it on the 8th of January.  I was first told by a
fellow working that I had to wait until *6* months post-weaning.  I said
I couldn't figure out their rationale...I said what if she's still
nursing at 5 years old, and only doing so on weekends and wednesday
mornings (whatever)???  He said he'd go check.  A kind nurse came out to
meet me and said that the rule was 6 months past the BEGINNING of the
breastfeeding...which for most moms is 6 months PP (unless they're
nursing an adopted baby, or whatever).  So we were fine.  She said that
they recommended that you not give if your baby is still relying on you
solely for nourrishment, and that they even recommend waiting until
you're down to only a couple of nursings per day...but that after 6
months it's up to the mom to make the decision.  I decided to donate (DD
was almost 10 months) even though she still nurses frequently and eats
smaller amounts of solids than many 10 month olds her age (about 1 tbsp
or so per meal), in part to see whether it WOULD affect my supply at
all...which would not hurt us really, as I've still got ample milk for
1.5-2 babies, despite being over the worst of our oversupply issues (I
also had a huge freezer stash that I could pick into if I ever needed
it).  In the end, it didn't affect the supply, and it was the first time
I've given blood that I felt very little tiredness etc. afterwards
(compared to usually, I feel dog tired for 2 days or so).  Maybe that
would be because of extra iron stores???  Who knows...

I don't know what the rules are in other countries, but that is what I
was told here...I hope that the rules for Héma-Québec (separate service)
are the same, but we'll see.

Fio.

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