Archive for the ‘postpartum’ tag
Is the ‘Mom Job’ Really Necessary?
Post-pregnancy bodies marketed as pathology. How depressing. 
Is the 'Mom Job' Really Necessary?
- New York Times
In 1970, “Our Bodies, Ourselves,” the seminal guide to women’s health, described the cosmetic changes that can happen during and after pregnancy simply as phenomena. But now narrowing beauty norms are recasting the transformations of motherhood as stigma.
These unforgiving standards are the offspring of pop culture and technology, a union that treats biological changes as if they were as optional as hair color.
And note: It's the marketing of elective cosmetic surgery to perfectly healthy women I take issue with… (not the existence of the option or the decision some women make about it).
Aggressively marketing some ridiculous ideal to postpartum women, however, is super ick.
As far as me, personally, a few years following three pregnancies and four total years of breastfeeding, I flirted with the idea of a breast lift and augmentation. I didn't like the message that sent to my girls, though, and I couldn't think of any acceptable explanation to give them later…
Baby notes and milestones
Sept 18
On breastfeeding: Jake likes to grab my shirt or my skin and knead at it. Also he is developing this very frustrating habit of popping off and on, off and on the boob- particularly when I'm not letting down fast enough to please him and also when letdown is fast and furious. Augh. He's doing it right now, in fact. It seems also to be something he does when he's overtired and wants sleep more than he wants boobie (but is in denial as to this fact).
ALSO, Jake just qualified as an Expert Level Nurser… for the first time (last night) he demonstrated the ability to latch on in complete darkness (without causing nipple injury from bad latch). This is significant. The less I have to be involved in helping him properly latch at 3 am, the better quality sleep I'll manage to get. Light at the end of the tunnel!
Jake's [Great] Auntie Janice is here today. Which is why you suddenly see a post from me today actually containing some number of words. 
And check out Jake babey in his bumbo seat. He's not really ready for it yet, this was just a photo op. (And a demonstration for his Grandma Karen who will be amazed to see how strong he's gotten – and look at the control of his head he has now! – since she last saw him!)
Sept 17
We've got a giggling babe! Not a full-on laugh, but an occasional darling chuckle. I just love it.
Also, I ask you: Does anyone ever "sleep when the baby sleeps"?? I can't do it. I need time to get stuff done and/or just have some non-baby DOWN time way more than I need sleep. Plus I hate napping. Despise it. Always feel hungover afterwards.
With that said, I got to bed way too late last night and had to be up way too early. On top of THAT Jake had an unusual 4 am fussy period. Result: I got 3.5 hours of sleep last night in total. I'm a dead woman walking.
Sept 16
On entertaining himself: Not much yet; it's the sling for this boy – it's the only way I get anything done most days. I've tried Jake in the babyhawk a few times. I wish he liked it, because it's very comfy for me! So far though he FAR prefers to be cradled in the pouch sling. I think we'll get more out of the mei tei when I can carry him on my back… hope so anyway!
I have a rocker seat by my desk and can get anywhere from 5-15 minutes out of that here and there throughout the day. It has toys hanging above it. He has zero interest in falling asleep there, though, even when it's vibrating.
He likes tummy time for 5-10 minutes at a time also, but he's likely to spit up and face plant into the spit up, so I don't ever turn my back on him like that.
In other news, while enjoying tummy time this weekend, he rolled over to his back! He's amazingly strong already…
Sept 12
Jake seems like he's trying SO hard to laugh. I've heard him do it in his sleep (so cute!). And he squealed for the first time the other day.
Sept 10
Scott gave me some kudos yesterday as he marveled at just how much sacrifice mamas make these first weeks (especially when nursing on demand). "You," he said, "have no life!" God, I know. I KNOW. I survive knowing this too shall pass, and just how fast it all really does go. You blink and next thing you know they're ELEVEN.
We miss Grandma Karen :*-(
Scott's mom left yesterday evening, so the babymoon is officially over. It was wonderful having her with us – she's so supportive in every way. She prepared most of the meals for us every day for three weeks! For three weeks I mostly had my breakfasts in BED!
She helped the girls get ready for school and for bed. A retired grade school teacher, she helped them with their homework. She walked them to catch the bus. She drove them to school when they missed the bus. She helped create a (messy!) (labor intensive!) papier mache dragon for a 4th grader's book report. She deep cleaned a 15 year old's bedroom!
She consoled the baby when he seemed inconsolable. She almost got the puzzle done! She did laundry and dishes and packed school lunches and helped take care of the dogs and kept me company and just generally spoiled us ALL. I could go on and on and on.
I know this heavenly little interlude lasted longer than what most women get and that I'm lucky to have been so totally pampered for more than three weeks (not to mention the week before Jake's arrival!) . Everyone is sad, except Jake who doesn't know any better yet. HM and I both cried before falling asleep last night. We got so attached. And now we're so sad!
I don't know HOW we're going to manage this crazy household plus baby all by ourselves. Ackkkkkkkkkkkkkkk.
Thank you again for EVERYTHING, Karen – we miss you!! (Thank you to Ron, too, for letting us have her for so long. 
The postpartum life
Lots to write about, but not much computering time these days. Here's a summary of some of the things I've done In the past week:
- Nursed and nursed and nursed baby boy through his fussy two week growth spurt
- Took Jake to local mama/baby shop for weight check – he's regained his birth weight, plus half a pound (as of today he's 8.5 lbs)
- Bought Lily Padz nursing pads. Tried them out this afternoon. So far I'm liking! They seem to be pretty effective.
- Bought new nursing bras one size bigger than I had on hand. I'm pretty sure the other ones were just enough too tight to create a problem (see #7 below).
- Brushed teeth daily (sometimes two times per day!)
- Two baths!
- Suffered from cold one of daughters brought home from school.
- Smacked down an encroaching bout of mastitis. Here's how:
After two days of a low-grade fever that made me feel generally miserable, I woke up today feeling MUCH better! I guess it was plugged ducts making me feel so crappy. I had plugged ducts in both breasts and treated them aggressively yesterday. By late yesterday evening I could tell they were starting to clear and they were completely soft and not as tender by the time I woke up this morning – and fever is gone. So glad, because if I was feverish again for 3rd day I was thinking doc appt would be in order. 
Yay, I think I fought off full blown mastitis!
I thought I'd post my treatment routine in case it might help anyone else:
- Braless
- Moist heat – I filled disposable diapers with hot water and used it as a compress against each breast for about 5 min before nursing. I also soaked in a warm bath last night before bed with Jake, nursing him in the tub.
- Massaging the plugged ducts while nursing.
- Usually I nurse exclusively using cradle hold, but I mixed it up with some football hold yesterday (and will continue today, too) so that his nursing would more efficiently access the ducts that were plugged (on outside of breasts).
Right now Jake is snoozing on his daddy's chest while I steal this moment. God, I could sit here and unwind for hours. How I miss my computer time! But the babe wakes like clockwork at 1:30 am, so I should go now and grab as many consecutive hours of sleep as possible.
I don’t want to jinx myself…
…but I think I have the EASIEST babe, omg. Of course, it helps that by this point I have totally realistic expectations about life with a newborn (i.e., I have no life – complete surrender to Operation Chubbify the Baby).
Still, although I wouldn't say he has anything yet resembling a routine, he is remarkably organized for a one week old babe. So far he SLEEPS at night (between nursings). And he sleeps in big enough chunks that I feel like I'm getting adequate sleep to function by day.
He wakes up perky and ready to start his day at 5:30 am. That's when he poops. I told Scott, WOW, he is SO perfect! And he said, Why, because he poops? I said, Because he poops in the MORNING (and all throughout the day, of course).
Now, once he's up, he commences to nurse about 3-4 hours straight, with some tiny intermissions. He does that again in the afternoon and again in the evening. That's a little inhibiting for me – I can't get much done at ALL (except sit around while nursing and obsess about all within my sight that needs to be done, which means according to Scot and my kids that I'm a little, um, bossy right now), but hey, the boy has got to get his chubs on sometime! It's like he understands the concept of normal mommy-business hours. 
Scott just went back to work today for a half day. Tomorrow he's back to fulltime. In the meantime his mom is here through the end of the month. Between them, I am completely pampered. They barely let me out of my bed last week and are still watching me closely to make sure I don't overdo it. It's almost enough to make a girl willing to have another one.
KIDDING. I kid.
One question – when do baby boys stop randomly peeing on the their parents during diaper changes?
Mom to 4 kids and 2 stepkids, I work at home in the heart of the chaos. Founder and executive editor of SheKnows.com and various other sites. Homeschooling. Knitter. Family chef. Gadget geek. Wordphreak. LAZY BLOGGER. 