I remember when my son was so tiny, I’d nurse him in one arm while typing with the other. Now his legs flop over mine, his free arm plays with my hair, and he takes occasional breaks to clap his hands. Then he’s off and running again. As he eats more food, we nurse less. I hear that eventually some babies lose interest in nursing…we’ll see how that goes!
Anyway, I’m noticing how many interesting habits I’ve picked up through this whole pregnancy/breastfeeding thing. I’m assuming a big life change throws off anyone’s game, right? Time to bring back some mindfulness. For me it’s this:
My friend emailed me the other day, as my friends often do, asking if I’d heard of the latest weird health trend:
“You didn’t eat your placenta did you? I am just reading about January Jones doing that. Dude, i have seen that thing up close and personal and I just don’t think I could do that.”
Gettin’ Real About Food & Health for Breastfeeding For women new to the world of breastfeeding
Location: Virtual! Wherever you are.
Date: April 3, 2012
Time: 8:00pm ET Can’t make it? That’s ok. A recording of the call will be sent along with PDF materials to everyone who registers, so you can listen later.
When I was pregnant, I took a breastfeeding class.
Which was really hilarious. They had a stuffed boob to demonstrate. Let’s be clear. No one will ever be able to learn to breastfeed from a stuffed boob. It’s really a learn-on-the-job thing.
And while you and your baby fumble around and learn what’s what, you’re going to be hungry. Really hungry. And probably pretty tired. And I wouldn’t be surprised if there are some tears. It’s normal, and beautiful, but you might not notice the beautiful part in the beginning.
So on this call we’re going to talk about nutrition in an easy-to-understand way. A way you can implement even in those early, sleep deprived days.
I’m also going to get real with you about nursing a baby. Why it’s awesome and why it can sometimes be hard, and why it’s so rewarding.
Gettin’ Real About Food & Health for Pregnancy For women considering and already pregnant
Location: Virtual! Wherever you are.
Date: March 27, 2012
Time: 8:00pm ET Can’t make it? That’s ok. A recording of the call will be sent along with PDF materials to everyone who registers, so you can listen later.
There are a lot of things no one tells you when you’re pregnant.
And sometimes, they tell you too much! Like exactly how many grams of protein you need per day. Or that you should only gain 25 lbs. or else you risk all kinds of complications. Or that you need 47 tests and screenings performed on your 10 week old fetus.
Of course we want to be healthy during our pregnancies. But let’s cut through the blah blah blah and get real.
For instance, there were days when I could only stomach raspberries and chocolate pudding. Really.
On this call we’re going to talk about nutrition in an easy-to-understand way.
I’m also going to give an overview of your choices when it comes to prenatal care – an essential piece of your healthy pregnancy.
Holy crap. I got up at 6am to take a spin class. That’s right – I woke to an alarm that was not a baby crying. It’s a big deal. I have not been up and out of bed willingly at 6am in years. I have not put on my workout sneakers in an embarrassingly long time either, typically preferring the yoga mat.
It’s a breakthrough day.
Been thinking, man, losing the baby weight was pretty easy but pulling my body shape back, um, into shape? That doesn’t just happen on its own. At least not for me. Term of the day: diastisis recti, or the separation of the stomach muscles. Yeah. That. I don’t have a fancy name for flabby legs, but that too.
It’s funny – people always expect me to be a vegetarian. Well, I’m not. However, I’ve noticed that lately I am leaning towards a blend of 2 main dietary theories:
Veganism and Weston A. Price
There couldn’t be two more opposite approaches to “healthy” eating. In fact, they downright contradict each other, with vegans staunchly opposing the use of animal products in their food and WAP followers adamantly demanding traditionally prepared meals with grass fed beef and raw milk.
Um. What gives, Michelle? You are a seriously messed up diet flip-flopper!
I’ve been feeling very passionate about confronting the health issues women face. Especially those that aren’t spoken about often, the ones we hide and feel shame and sadness around. Many times I’ve said that eating broccoli isn’t the end-all-be-all when it comes to good health. It’s so darn true! So to women everywhere, hello! Please take note of the call for submissions at the end of this post.
Here’s what happened. I knew it was over during my 10am yoga class. I was teaching at a gym in Cambridge, felt something wasn’t right. Well, you can’t just walk out of a class when you’re the teacher.
An hour later, I drove home. I sat on the couch with my feet up. Maybe if I just rested a minute. I’d been working too much.
Just the previous evening, we’d started thinking about names. Boy names, girl names, either way it would have to be short and sweet to work well with Pfennighaus! We searched the internet as if we were looking for a recipe, or the weather report. But this was different because we were just starting to consider our new reality. A baby.
After months of alternating between feelings of anxiety, anger, confusion and sadness I finally heard what everyone was whispering to themselves and no one was saying to me:
I’m dealing with postpartum depression.
There you go. No more whispering. It’s a thing. A thing that happens. To a lot of women. And no one talks about it, except in shameful whispers.
That stops here. I HAVE POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION AND IT’S OK. I mean, ha, ok, it’s not great. For sure. But it’s ok. I am going to get through it. I love my child more than anything, I am not going to hurt anyone, I’m simply struggling with this gigantic life transition.
Notably, some women experience PPD in a much more severe way. I don’t mean to minimize it, this is written from my personal experience only.
Breastfeeding is hard. There. I’ve said it. It’s actually one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to learn to do, including some very bendy yoga poses.
Because, like, if I don’t get it right, my child starves. How’s that for pressure?
This is pretty much my favorite topic lately, the whole breastfeeding thing. After all, I do it 8 hours a day or more. A new hobby, of sorts.
What really pisses me off is that I’m 31 years old and until now I have never, ever seen a child being fed at the breast. Ever. Among family and friends, or just in my general experience in the world, I don’t recall ever seeing a mom feeding her infant. How is that possible? Every single baby needs to eat, every woman has two breasts, and this type of exchange has been going on since the beginning of time.
Total blackout on breastfeeding though. It’s all secret-like, happening behind closed doors or, as you see above in my first public breastfeeding adventure on the Washington Mall, under a little curtain.
I’m off dairy again. Had to happen. During my pregnancy I craved milk, cheese, yogurt. And that’s fine because in organic, full fat, unsweetened form that stuff is great for growing a baby!
But come springtime, it’s not so good for my sinuses. Nope. Dairy creates mucus in the body, and I definitely do not need more mucus in the spring. Another reason to get off the white stuff is that milk protein can be notoriously difficult for little ones to digest. By staying off dairy, hopefully Danny and I both will be free of tummy upset and stuffed noses. Hooray!
Have you ever gone off dairy? Do you find it difficult?
I help busy people find balance in their over-worked, over-stressed lives. Trust me, it's not an all-or-nothing situation! A few shifts in diet and lifestyle can rock your world like they did mine. (And if you're a health coach, I can help you do the same for your own clients.) Read on
