Infertility on the brain

I wanted to breast-feed - I didn't even buy any bottles - but I found it impossible. With my condition I should have had too much milk but I had none. (The excess prolactin - the hormone that triggers milk production - caused by the tumour can cause galactorrhoea, which is the spontaneous flow of milk from the breast in women who are not pregnant or breast-feeding.)

I cup fed Alex as I was advised not to use a bottle as this would lead to nipple confusion. But after five days I gave up and put Alex on the bottle.

As everything went so well, we decided almost immediately that we wanted another baby. I could not take the pills I needed for my tumour during pregnancy but another scan revealed that the tumour had shrunk. As soon as I could, I got back on the pills and after only two periods yet again fell pregnant.

The joys of late parenthood
Charlotte is now 13 months and Alex fast approaching three. My life has totally changed but I am happy. I know that being a mum at 40+ has its problems, but I for one would recommend it.

My husband took to parenthood like a duck to water. He was always just a big kid himself - I find that most men are. So now he gets to play with Lego without having to visit our many nieces and nephews.

We are very fortunate in that we have been able to see how our brothers and sisters coped with their children, and we've picked out the bits that seemed to work. It is almost like having the benefit of hindsight.