May - August 2006 Lowcarb Nursing Moms

[LunaAshling]

to the group ladies!

I will post a new thread every 4 months. The last thread can be found at: January - April 2006 for "Present and Soon To Be" Nursing Moms We had 1693 views and 68 posts as of 5/29/06 and 8:10 am my time... so alot of ladies were interested in what we had to say!



Some of you may remember me from early 2003 when I ran the "Mommies and Nummies". It has come back and forth over the years and alot of people still ask me to start it up again. So here we are!

I am a WAHM mom with three boys (13yrs, 4yrs and an April baby). My 4 year old weaned at 3 1/2 when I became pregnant. I am the last person on earth that I would have EVER thought would end up an extended nurser! It has been an interesting road!

Most of our early "Nummies" threads are gone now... along with a ton of great info! But there are still some left and you may browse them here:

January - April 2006: January - April 2006 for "Present and Soon To Be" Nursing Moms



September 2005: http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/s...ad.php?t=375062

August 2005 (a great month): http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/s...ad.php?t=369524

January 2005: http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/s...ad.php?t=306748

Links to a few of the old threads in 2003 & 2004: http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/s...threadid=306745



Here are the Nummies rules:

Every mom on here is looking for support, help and advice on breastfeeding. Every mom on here has chosen their own lowcarb path and some moms may or may not eat the way you do and some may even choose ketosis. Our goal here is NOT to flame anyone but to SUPPORT all moms in staying healthy through lowcarb living and to help them breastfeed as well as they possibly can. If you can NOT deal with varying points of thought.... LEAVE now. If you don't agree... then walk away.

If you come in negative and flame moms... you are out. If you get nasty you WILL be reported!




I look forward to meeting everyone and to seeing all the "old" moms!


You can also follow the links in my siggy if you are PG or TTC and want a support thread... or if you are doing lowcarb with your kids and need new ideas!

[LunaAshling]

Hello again ladies! I have not been around the boards much lately...been burned out! My newest little guy is 8 weeks old today and nursing like a champ. My eating has been really off the last two weeks... depression rising I think (I am bipolar). So this week I am going to step up my game and try some new things.

I am not sure how active I will be on this thread... at least for awhile. But anyone reading this can find a WEALTH of info by reading the OLD threads!!!!!!!!!!! Almost every question you could possibly have HAS been answered in them!



Good luck to you all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[LunaAshling]

For anyone who wants to know... I am going to be doing a mix of Atkins and Nourishing Traditions.

[razorbackmama]

I'm nursing too! I'm currently nursing my 20mo. I've nursed 3 other babies (one till 14 months, one till 15 months, one till age 2). This is the first time I've ever had to watch what I eat. (Whatever LOL.) I guess TECHNICALLY I'm in ketosis, but I usually have just TRACE amounts of ketones in my urine, whatever that means. I've been losing about 2 lbs. a week this way (about 60ish grams of net carbs per day).

[LunaAshling]

The oldest threads with a TON of "heated" discussion on being in ketosis are gone. BUT if you read the older threads that are still around (I have links posted above), you will still see several moms that did just fine in ketosis. I even found it cleared up some health issues for my little guy.

Remember ketosis is a natural thing that happens... ketoacidosis is a bad thing that is entirely different.




If you are naturally in ketosis while puking your guyts out the first few months of being pregnant.... during that "critical" time of fetal growth.... and NOTHING Happens to your fetus and we as humans have not gone extinct.......... ask yourself how ketosis would affect you if you are naturally in it as a result of good eating.... how would that be bad????


Doctors will always cover their butt legally....... no one tells pg and bf'ing moms that anything is ok or a normal fluctuation!


Listen to your body and good whole foods... don't worry what that little stick says!

[razorbackmama]

Originally Posted by LunaAshling

If you are naturally in ketosis while puking your guyts out the first few months of being pregnant.... during that "critical" time of fetal growth.... and NOTHING Happens to your fetus and we as humans have not gone extinct.......... ask yourself how ketosis would affect you if you are naturally in it as a result of good eating.... how would that be bad????

I hear ya!!! What about the cultures that are in ketosis all the time? Makes me want to scream! I'm trying not to lose too much too fast so the toxins in my fat don't get dumped into my milk.

[dreamseeds]

I am not actively low carbing right now due to having surgery to remove cancer. I kinda went low carb AWOL for awhile trying to sort through info. I need more fruits and veggies at this point.
I have been able to maintain though AND keep breastfeeding my toddler who is 27 months. Woo Hoo!

After treatments are over adn I am recovered I will probably jump back into the swing of things as I have a few more pounds to lose.

[moonmirror]

Hi everyone,
I'm nursing a seven week old and had to go back to lowcarb. Despite the nursing, I was binging on sugar and gaining VERY fast postpartum, so I'm cutting the grains and sugar again to get control back.

I'm eating as many vegetables and meats/fish that I want....which is lots of veggies!....and adding in one fruit for dessert after dinner. I'm sure it adds up to a lot more carbs than induction levels.

[LunaAshling]

Originally Posted by dreamseeds

I am not actively low carbing right now due to having surgery to remove cancer. I kinda went low carb AWOL for awhile trying to sort through info. I need more fruits and veggies at this point.
I have been able to maintain though AND keep breastfeeding my toddler who is 27 months. Woo Hoo!

After treatments are over adn I am recovered I will probably jump back into the swing of things as I have a few more pounds to lose.

Nourishing Traditions would be AWESOME for you! Or check out the Weston Price Foundation!





Welcome moonmirror! I remember you from last year!

[Jefinner]

Hey girlies... I didn't think I'd be eligible for the Nursing mommas, but turns out, I'm still nursing my 13.5 month old boy.

[metroames]

Hey there Jefinner! I'm still nursing too! Although, it has diminished quite a bit this past month, but we're still hanging in there and I just past my 20 week pregnancy mark!

Ames

[LunaAshling]

Just saying hey hey!

Good to see you Jefinner!



I am still here and still BF'ing. I have been behind on all the boards so this thread seems to be suffering the brunt of it!



Sorry everyone! At least it is still here with the links for any mom to find! A small light on the horizon... just my little "Public Service Announcement" for the bf'ing community!

[moonmirror]

Argh. So hard to watch what I eat while breastfeeding.

I decide it is too hard to eat just veggies, fruits and meat, so I start eating grains again, then that leads to juice, and sugar, and ice cream, and starches.

I'm still breastfeeding happily...baby is growing so well!!!

But I'm so tired of being fat. So tired.

I have to try again...I think it is ok to eliminate grains, isn't it?

[Orphalie]

Hey ladies! My son was born on July 14th and after a rough start we are still BFing. he nurses around 7-8 times a day and also has 4-5 bottles of formula, about 2-3 oz each. My milk supply seems to be doing good but the little guy just doesnt seem to be satisfied after nursing. He can nurse 30-40 minutes, gulping half the time hes latched on and then after seem to be starving (hense the bottles). Does anyone have any suggestions on what may help?

I'm also not currently LCing but I want to start some time this month as I have gained back almost everything I lost. I was wondering if some of you would be so kind to post your favorite daily menus for LCing and BFing?

Thanks a ton, Orph

[razorbackmama]

Are you pumping whenever he nurses? If he is still hungry after nursing, then your supply isn't quite where it needs to be. Since he's getting those bottles, you'll need to pump to trick your body into producing more.

Congrats, BTW!!!

[metroames]

Originally Posted by Orphalie

My milk supply seems to be doing good but the little guy just doesnt seem to be satisfied after nursing. He can nurse 30-40 minutes, gulping half the time hes latched on and then after seem to be starving (hense the bottles). Does anyone have any suggestions on what may help?

Sounds like a growth spurt to me! Supplementing with formula can be the worst thing you can do right now! My son nursed literally 45 minutes out of every hour for much of the first 6 weeks of his life except for 4-5 hours overnite. The constant nursing has a purpose....it is nature's way of building your milk supply. Just the skin-to-skin contact and sucking produces more milk. If you compromise this contact with "foreign" nipples and/or formula you are also compromising your milk production.

There are rare cases that the mother doesn't produce enough milk, but you really need to give this some time before blaming that. Keep that baby on the boob as much as you can and things will most likely get better in a few weeks. It helps if you can nurse lying down so you can get some rest too! Good luck!

Ames

[randtbrown]

I was one of the rare people that just didn't make enough milk from the start, but as soon as i introduced formula even my little supply started to slow down (they gave me formula in the hospital and told me to feed it to the baby- and I was so tired I didn't fight them as I should have). I was able to wean off the formula for a little while but I pumped and nursed all day. I agree with razer- make sure you have the highest quality pump available and are pumping with every nursing session. The high quality pump is important especially if your supply isn't 100% established because it can help it get established.

Also, you may want to call the hospital and see if they have a lactation specialist that can check his latch and make sure the mechanics are right. It is unbelievable how complicated it all is! Hang in there!

[ajcav062197]

Hi All. My name is AJ. I am a nursing Mom. I am currently nursing Emma (16 months). She is completely attached has no other vices (bottle, bink). Different than my first, Sophie, who I nursed until 16 months. I was able to wean Sophie with the help of a binky.

I am not in any rush to wean Emma. She has a bad habit of pinching me while she nurses though. I think it started out she was trying to get my attention and now it is just habit.

Glad to see the nursing thread. Before I found Atkins I was very depressed, and gained every bit of weight back up to 191 the weight I was when I gave birth to Emma. I had terrible eating habits and was caught in that refined sugar cycle. I was counting the days until I could try some diet drug while nursing my baby. It was terrible. I did South Beach Diet after my first born was weaned and had great success but gave back into eating sugar and refined carbs.

Today I am totally energized... I get so much done in a day and enjoy it. My diet is filled with vegetables, protein, and dairy. I am able to follow portion sizes for the first time in my life. Simply Amazing.

Thanks for listening. I have been so anxious to give my "testimony" to someone who could relate.

[Orphalie]

I was wondering if any of you larger breasted women have any recomendatinos for nursing bras. I want something realy supportive and hopefully something that I can pick up at a regular dept store (i.e. not terrible hard to find). I picked up 2 from JC penny and 2 from walmart and none of them are very supportive and I think it might be the cause behind some of my soreness. Thanks for any help!

[razorbackmama]

I'm not very large breasted (C when not nursing), but I've heard that Bravada bras are WONDERFUL!!!!!

[ljh150]

I'm officially a lowcarb nursing mother now, although I'm really more into Nourishing Traditions type of eating. I've lost 23 of the 30 lbs. I gained, and my third sweet little boy is 2 weeks old today. I gained about 12 lbs while TTC, so I still have about 19 lbs. to lose total.

I got a recomendation for the YES nursing bras sold on ebay, and thay are fantastic. Very comfy and durable, easy to open, comes in all sizes and colors, and only like $13 bucks a piece!

[moonmirror]

My milk supply is better with Atkins than with ANYTHING...lowfat, lowcal, or high carb free-eating.

I'm just having trouble staying on it lately.

[MicheleS]

Hi everyone!
I posted on the "main board" but will introduce myself here...

I'm Michele, working mom of 3. I have 2 boys in elementary school and a toddler DD (16 mos). She still nurses quite a bit (esp at night).

I did Atkins yrs ago (for several yrs) and felt great! I was also as fit as I've been since having kids. I need to lose ~15# (10 from DD 's PG and 5 "other #'s"). Before my last PG, I had slowly moved from maint to allowing more junky carbs to creep in (hence the 5#). Then, I got PG and was sick, sick, sick... I was worried about LC during DD's 1st yr so I didn't do it (mainly bc DD's ped advised against it but I never could find anything definative about it).

Anywhoo, DD is past her 1st yr so I've started up again. I'm eating between 40 and 60 grams a day and feel great. I've lost some water weight but don't think I've lost any fat yet. I *may* drop my carbs down a bit next week if my milk supply continues to be unaffected.

I'm so happy to "meet" all of you!

Michele

[MicheleS]

Originally Posted by Orphalie

I was wondering if any of you larger breasted women have any recomendatinos for nursing bras. I want something realy supportive and hopefully something that I can pick up at a regular dept store (i.e. not terrible hard to find). I picked up 2 from JC penny and 2 from walmart and none of them are very supportive and I think it might be the cause behind some of my soreness. Thanks for any help!

I'm not particularly large for a nursing mom (I'm a D-cup when nursing and an A when not!) but I like Target's bras. I also bought a couple from motherwear.com but honestly, my Target bras are as good and were cheaper...

[ljh150]

Well, I havn't lost anymore lbs in the past several days, so I dropped all grains today. I was eating about 3 or 4 pieces of Ezekial bread daily. Just eating fruits and veggies for carbs today, and I'm going to watch closely to be sure my baby is still getting what he needs. I'm always sure to get some cod liver oil and cocount oil daily, so he gets lots of the "good" fats. So far he is the best behaved baby we've had!

Nice to "meet" you too Michelle! My boys are 5, 3, and 2 weeks. I homeschool my 5 yr. old. I'm very eager to get off this extra 20 lbs I'm carrying around. Best wishes to you on your weight loss!

[ljh150]

Oh, about the Yes bras, they're very supportive for large-breasted women. I have implants that make me about a large C/small D normally, but now they're at least a size bigger with my milk in.

[razorbackmama]

Janelle, please be careful. Most LCs and docs don't advice moms to TRY to lose weight till their babies are 1-2 months old. At 2 weeks postpartum, you SHOULD still be somewhat "fluffier" than normal.