This is only my second post in this forum, and I decided to make it a truly bizarre question that just crossed my mind this morning. Can you breastfeed after menopause? Has anyone ever seen it happen?
I know it's possible to induce lactation, using a variety of methods, like particular herbs (fenugreek, etc, I think). I know it's also possible for *men* to breastfeed - it has been observed occasionally in primitive societies, and they too can use herbs to do it.
The reason this crossed my mind is because, I am WTT (probably the only acronym I'll know for a while - all the acronyms confuse me and I forget what they mean, every time), and at this rate, I might be WFTT - waiting forever to try. Basically I can't get my life situation and boyfriend situation settled enough to have children, and I'm 40.
But it occurred to me that I might adopt a child someday, even if I never get to have my own children, and if that happened, if I could get a very young child, I might still want to try to nurse it, even though it would miss out on the colostrum and the benefits of nursing in its first few weeks. And this could theoretically be happening after my menopause.
So it seems like if it's even possible for *men* to lactate, then it should be possible for a post-menopausal woman to lactate, too, perhaps more easily? Has anyone ever seen it done?
I know it's possible to induce lactation, using a variety of methods, like particular herbs (fenugreek, etc, I think). I know it's also possible for *men* to breastfeed - it has been observed occasionally in primitive societies, and they too can use herbs to do it.
The reason this crossed my mind is because, I am WTT (probably the only acronym I'll know for a while - all the acronyms confuse me and I forget what they mean, every time), and at this rate, I might be WFTT - waiting forever to try. Basically I can't get my life situation and boyfriend situation settled enough to have children, and I'm 40.
But it occurred to me that I might adopt a child someday, even if I never get to have my own children, and if that happened, if I could get a very young child, I might still want to try to nurse it, even though it would miss out on the colostrum and the benefits of nursing in its first few weeks. And this could theoretically be happening after my menopause.
So it seems like if it's even possible for *men* to lactate, then it should be possible for a post-menopausal woman to lactate, too, perhaps more easily? Has anyone ever seen it done?
