10/26 Mommy Milk Monday

[dmorgendorffer]

Oct 26, 2015 16:22:09 GMT -5 lilyelayne said:

I started exercising again. No supply change that I can notice but I'm starving all the time again didn't miss that!

I've noticed that I want to eat everything on the days that I run. And then I usually do. So much for losing weight! 

[cougarette]

agm04 I don't know that I'd say we dealt with constipation, but he was uncomfortable for a couple of days. Prunes worked well.

He's picked up a 2am feeding here recently. I don't know what's up with that, but I'm not doing anything to try and wean either.

He seems just as interested in nursing, but we haven't really pushed the solids. Not sure why, laziness maybe? I wish I knew how much he should be getting in both milk and solids.

[seamonster]

Oct 27, 2015 8:48:53 GMT -5 agm04 said:

Anyone else having problems with constipation?

Related:  anyone else feel like LO is suddenly less interested

Who else is still feeding MOTN regularly?  How many times?

Mashed or pureed plums or prunes. Plums seem less forceful for some reason even though prunes are dried plums

He's less interested when we're out. Too many distractions. Which leads to reverse cycling at night. Eat during the day kid.

Most nights he has one wake up. Two sometimes with the second an hour to two hours before we need to be up for the day.

@lilyelyane I have the Phillips Avent manual. It's a great pump. Really squeaky though.

cougarette Plain, full fat yogurt. Mix in pureed fruit to flavor. As far as US brands, I like mountain high

[agm04]

seamonster thanks. we've tried prunes but maybe i'm just impatient!

[aggiebug]

How old is your LO? 9 months

Are you nursing, pumping, supplementing?
mostly nursing, occasionally a pumped bottle
Solids? yup we have bumped up to 3 times a day following her lead. She is still off dairy but we will reintroduce it after our trip and hope for the best

Questions/AW? is anyone else counting down the days until you are done bfing because I am ready to be done. Really I am ready to be released from bedtime duty.

GTKY: if you could go 10 years in the past & describe your life now to your past self, what part do you think 10-years-ago you would be most surprised about?
that I am married to my H. He and I dated the spring of 2005 and then broke up for a year an a half so yeah the thought of being married to him would make me laugh.

[aggiebug]

danitaec I would drop a line to your pediatrician that sounds like a possible milk allergy to me. It is very possible LO doesn't react to your bm but does to dairy when fed.

[seamonster]

Oct 27, 2015 18:52:06 GMT -5 aggiebug said:

danitaec I would drop a line to your pediatrician that sounds like a possible milk allergy to me. It is very possible LO doesn't react to your bm but does to dairy when fed.

If it's not the milk, it's another ingredient common to both things.

[cougarette]

aggiebug Yes! I am so ready to have my body back.

[lilyelayne]

I'm not ready to be done BF at all. But I will like for it to be more... optional? If that makes sense? Looking forward to not being the main source of nutrition and worry worry worrying about it. But I get really upset when I think about weaning, so hopefully we won't do that for a while.

[lilyelayne]

Also I'm aware that my UO for the week

[agm04]

Oct 27, 2015 19:17:45 GMT -5 lilyelayne said:

I'm not ready to be done BF at all. But I will like for it to be more... optional? If that makes sense? Looking forward to not being the main source of nutrition and worry worry worrying about it. But I get really upset when I think about weaning, so hopefully we won't do that for a while.

I'm very surprised to say I'm with you on this.

[kaydee0402]

Oct 27, 2015 19:18:17 GMT -5 lilyelayne said:

Also I'm aware that my UO for the week

UO is my new favorite thing

[seamonster]

Oct 27, 2015 19:24:50 GMT -5 agm04 said:

Oct 27, 2015 19:17:45 GMT -5 lilyelayne said:

I'm not ready to be done BF at all. But I will like for it to be more... optional? If that makes sense? Looking forward to not being the main source of nutrition and worry worry worrying about it. But I get really upset when I think about weaning, so hopefully we won't do that for a while.

I'm very surprised to say I'm with you on this.

I go back and forth. It depends on how much teeth are involved. But I know I won't go beyond 15 or 16 months. Both TTC then and not wanting to nurse a verbal toddler. I'm hoping he'll start weaning himself after a year.

But I'm looking forward to not worrying about how much milk I'm giving him.

[mishka29]

I'm not in a hurry to be done but just looking forward to not being tied to LO 24/7. Once LO starts daycare I will probably continue morning and night but I don't know when I will stop.

With DD1 I stopped bc we were ttc and I planned a trip for DH and I. That sounds a little selfish I'm sure but after 15 months of only BFing I figured it was enough and I wanted my boobies back.

I'm not sure how it will turn out this time. All I know is that once LO takes milk in a cup at bedtime DD1 is suddenly going to need some too!

[cougarette]

I feel very fortunate that breastfeeding has worked. It was a big struggle in the beginning, but we powered through. But it's always been about the fact that I'm too cheap to pay for formula. Therefore I'll keep going as long as needed, but I'm not really enjoying it. I don't feel any more bonded and whatnot than my sisters were with their kids who were ff.

This is feeling like a UO.

[Deleted]

How old is your LO? 7.5 months

Are you nursing, pumping, supplementing? Nursing. DH just spent almost my entire freezer stash of BM when I was away for the weekend so I probably need to get pumping again. lilyelayne I have the Philips Avent pump and love it!

Solids? Yes, 3 times a day. She'll a little for breakfast and lunch and then it's like she doesn't have a bottom at dinner.

Questions/AW? I am also ready to be done. Last night it took me 1.5 hours of (almost constant) nursing until baby girl was asleep. I wish I didn't have to be the only one responsible for bed time.

GTKY: if you could go 10 years in the past & describe your life now to your past self, what part do you think 10-years-ago you would be most surprised about?
Probably my job. 10 years ago I didn't even know it was a viable option.

[hollydfromtn]

Oct 28, 2015 8:40:24 GMT -5 cougarette said:

I feel very fortunate that breastfeeding has worked. It was a big struggle in the beginning, but we powered through. But it's always been about the fact that I'm too cheap to pay for formula. Therefore I'll keep going as long as needed, but I'm not really enjoying it. I don't feel any more bonded and whatnot than my sisters were with their kids who were ff.

This is feeling like a UO.

I could have written this myself. You are definitely not alone.

[nbad311]

8.5 months, pumping and EBM still, likes the purees/finger foods/LOVEs picking off our plates...... however......

He has pretty much stopped nursing in the past week or so.  Totally. done. get out of my face boobs!  He will ONLY nurse in the MOTN if he wakes up, or if he wakes up very early (5am ish), and he's half asleep... he will lay with me and nurse. He will no longer sit with me and do it.  not even when I am trying to put him to bed.   I know I should relish in the fact he's happy, healthy, and my supply has lasted this long, but it breaks my heart a little bit.  We used to have a great nursing relationship, albeit not super frequent due to my work schedule/him being at daycare.  He is taking a bottle just great and fine.  He is definitely way distractible in the broad daylight and isn't super snuggly, but I didn't know he'd protest if he was hungry.  

-Anyone else go through this? 

- Do babies really "wean themselves" this early?

- Why does he suddenly hate my boobs?

[lilyelayne]

nbad311 will try to respond better later but short answer is usually no babies do not wean before 12 months. Kellymom link about nursing strikes:
kellymom.com/ages/newborn/nb-challenges/back-to-breast/#strike
Strikes are awful! Sorry you're dealing with one!

[cougarette]

nbad311 I agree that it sounds like a nursing strike. They totally suck!

As much as I'm ready to be done, I hate when he rejects me like that. It just breaks your heart.

Do you think it may help to go into a dark room and maybe rock him, sing or hum, try different positions?

[Deleted]

nbad311 I'm sorry you are going through that. Hugs.
We had a few days of nursings strikes (not nearly as bad though), and what helped was sitting by ourselves in a darkened room with minimal distraction. Also, giving her something else to start sucking on (eg the paci or a bottle) and then sort of slip the boob in there could help sometimes. I hope you can find something that works for you!

[agm04]

nbad311 We've gone through a couple of nursing strikes, and they are so emotionally draining. I'm so sorry - hugs. We had some success with lots of skin to skin snuggles and offering often, but in low pressure ways. Like I took a bath with her, and offered while she was in my lap there. Or lying down and playing, I'd casually take a boob out and she'd latch for a minute. Mostly, it took a ton of patience on my part, and I had to try to keep my cool. Freaking out only made it worse for both of us. I think ours was related to frustration waiting for letdown, so getting things going before you offer might help too?

[lilyelayne]

nbad311 add me to the list of nursing strike veterans. We've had two bad ones and one mild one, and DS exclusively nurses, so it's not like he can prefer a bottle!

What helped us was offering super frequently and if he refused saying that's fine and not fighting him about it. This roughly translated to playing with him on the floor / in the bed / on the deck in the backyard / in the hammock outside either in just a bra or no top at all so it wasn't a production to offer. You both could use the reminder that momma's chest is a safe, fun, stress free place, so do some skin to skin play time without even offering.

Nursing while rocking or bouncing on a yoga ball in a calm dim room with white noise also sometimes helped.

Wearing a necklace he could play with while nursing.

DS really likes when I sing (I assume he's tone deaf!) so I made up a song about how I love him and he loves me and he loves milk. This was mostly to keep me from sobbing my way through the first strike we ever had, because if I was upset absolutely no way would he latch.

Of course if he's starving and super upset about it, give a bottle. You may find success giving 0.5 or 1 oz and then finishing up nursing, but I'd probably express to let down if you do this so he goes from milk to milk, if that makes sense.

In our worst one I basically let him reverse cycle and eat a ton at night just to make sure he got his calories, since he won't take a bottle.

LO loves you and nursing, he's just going through a phase. Be more stubborn than he is & you'll get through, even if he's breaking your heart in the meantime.

[agm04]

oh yes, what lilyelayne said about singing! that was huge for us.