link love, more thoughts about postpartum life, and a few pictures from this week

Posted on 03. Jun, 2010 by in baby, links, photos

A few websites and articles I’ve been reading/browsing/enjoying:

Other surprising (to me) and sometimes inelegant (don’t read, Grandma) things about postpartum life that your comments on my last post reminded me of:

  • It’s normal to get really painful hemorrhoids. They won’t kill you.

  • Nursing hurts and isn’t necessarily easy.  It seems like so many factors have to work together in perfect concert (my milk supply, her latch, my pain tolerance, her positioning, etc) for successful breastfeeding. I feel lucky and proud that it is working out for us, but even though I consider Alice a “good eater,” there are feedings that are less pleasant than others. I wanted to quit nursing up until about two and a half weeks because she was such an aggressive eater and it hurt me. Then I got over it and recovered just as she had a growth spurt and began eating twice as often as usual and then nursing hurt again. And that’s okay–it’s just my body taking time to adjust. I do pump occasionally and she takes bottles well from her dad or from me when I am too sore.
  • For me, personally, “bouncing back” energy-wise after Alice’s birth was not hard. Three days after she was born, I was leaving the house, and four days later I was at the store with her running errands. From seeing new moms in movies and on TV, I expected to be in bed “recovering” for weeks, but it’s not like being sick. I didn’t push myself physically but walking around a store to pick up a few things and lifting a few grocery bags was not beyond my capability.
  • I would have been so regretful if I hadn’t prepared for birth by learning not only about natural birth and pain management techniques but details about possible medical procedures. Just save yourself the stress and confusion of having any surprises at the hospital (What’s an internal fetal monitor? What should her heart rate be? What’s Cytotec? What are the risks of carrying group B strep? What if the doctor wants to rupture your membranes?) because that is the time you will least want to deal with making decisions and learning about any new terms or procedures for which to give informed consent. If you ask questions and assert your preferences, no doctor or nurse will think you are annoying or bothersome–they will be impressed by your curiosity and active participation in your own birth experience.

  • Do everything you can in the months coming up to birth to avoid tearing. I tore in two places and the stitches can still hurt for the first few weeks and they can pull uncomfortably for weeks after when you sit in the wrong way. The way that is most comfortable for my back to feed Alice is also most uncomfortable for sitting on my stitches so everything is still kinda sore.
  • My pregnancy cravings completely vanished. I went three months eating popsicles every day and I haven’t really cared for one since Alice came.

be your best today!!

xo

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16 Responses to “link love, more thoughts about postpartum life, and a few pictures from this week”

  1. Creole Wisdom

    06. Jun, 2010
    10:14 pm

    Girl, you’re so real- I love it.

    I hope your adorable family will come up to Mpls for a visit someday!

    The link about not offering discounts… brilliant. I needed to read that today!

    Thank you!

    Reply to this comment

  2. Pamela

    05. Jun, 2010
    5:06 pm

    Kegels help a lot with the tearing. I had 4th degree tears (after an episiotomy) and wasn’t healing. Once I started doing them, things started clicking.

    I think there’s not a lot of info on postpartum, because every woman has a different experience and it’s hard to predict. Every baby is a different experience. I could barely walk for two months after my first, while I bounced out of the bed immediately after my second. The bleeding was different, nursing was different. I forgot that I went to La Leche for a few months before my second, I was determined to make it work with him.

    And for more too much info, you could get your period next week or in a few years. You can still have milk leaking long after you finish nursing. I think it’s good to be honest about it and put it out there. I just remember when I shared mine with my first, I got looks like I had grown a third head. Not until I went online did I read a few other similar stories.

    I’m excited to see what you do with CAMP this summer and I hope that Alice continues to sleep well!

    Reply to this comment

  3. Annie Cristina

    05. Jun, 2010
    3:45 pm

    Even though I’m not a mom yet and don’t plan on getting pregnant anytime soon, I’ve enjoyed reading your postpartum posts because you’re so frank about the whole thing. You’ve cleared up a lot of my fears and confusion about pregnancy — before and after — and for that I am grateful. :)

    Reply to this comment

  4. Cheryl

    04. Jun, 2010
    3:43 pm

    I liked Melissa’s post about discounts. I’m self-employed as well. I once had an acquaintance stop by asking for a special “friend” quote for their wedding and when I gave them the full price I would normally charge I didn’t hear back from them nor was I invited to the wedding. I agree with her– friend discounts only apply to people who you would have in your own wedding.

    Reply to this comment

  5. Bree

    03. Jun, 2010
    6:58 pm

    Great job, Megan! I’m happy to read that you’re staying so optimistic about everything. It’s refreshing to read about post pregnancy issues from an honest and open perspective and you’re setting a great example for all mothers and potential mothers to be. I don’t have a child… but it’s definitely interesting. And kudos to you for not being ashamed to talk about ‘hemmies’. LOL. Rock on, girlfriend.

    Reply to this comment

  6. elise

    03. Jun, 2010
    6:42 pm

    wowee!
    I love reading about your experiences about all things Alice!
    Its great that you can be so honest and open about it all.

    Thats a great photo of Dave at the computer and Alice’s little socks are gorgeous!!!

    Reply to this comment

  7. LidaRose

    03. Jun, 2010
    2:22 pm

    Hi, Meg–

    I had an aggressive eater too, and found that starting a feeding before the baby asked for it took away some of the viciousness. It’s obviously a trick you can only try once the baby starts to be somewhat predictable, and you’ll probably need to adjust as she grows.

    Also, while breastfeeding does take getting used to, I found that it’s easy to do wrong. I spent weeks being sore before learning that all I needed to do was get my nipple farther into the baby’s mouth. The soreness was gone in a couple days.

    The nurse taught me to watch for a nipple that looks like a new lipstick (slanted on one side) to know that you’re not getting a deep enough latch. Sorry if that’s too much information, but it’s a little trick that saved me a lot of pain!

    Best of luck to your new little family.

    Reply to this comment

    • aimee

      03. Jun, 2010
      9:34 pm

      LidiaRose, I totally agree with what you said about breastfeeding being easy to do incorrectly. One thing that I did wrong was to pump with the wrong size flange! I was getting so sore from pumping at work, and my lactation consultant helped me with new flanges which greatly improved the situation!

      Reply to this comment

  8. Caitlin

    03. Jun, 2010
    10:26 am

    Thanks for sharing your insights. Something for people to keep in mind, though, sometimes no matter how much you prepare or are planning to prepare for birth and motherhood, sometimes the unexpected can happen and there was no possible way to prepare for it. (like your baby coming three months early, how could I have planned for that?) I do agree that we had done some preparing, so we weren’t totally unprepared, but sometimes things don’t go as planned. =)

    Reply to this comment

  9. Myra

    03. Jun, 2010
    9:24 am

    I am so happy with these tips! Was there a specific book you read/would recommend about giving birth?

    Reply to this comment

  10. VeganPretty

    03. Jun, 2010
    7:41 am

    All good information and things I will add to my list for when we start trying. But how exactly do you avoid tearing? I thought either you take your chances and posibly tear or you have an episiotomy neither of which appeal to me but I figured it was just something that was going to happen so pick the lesser of two evils.

    Reply to this comment

  11. Jennifer

    03. Jun, 2010
    7:38 am

    I totally loved that post at Melissa Jill Photography. I can’t stand negotiators that try to haggle for everything and creatives deal with more than any other industry. I’ll look through the rest last as I am off to work. They look interesting.

    Hemorrohoids can be eased with some cold witch hazel (keep it in the fridge) or after stitches come out a sitz bath.

    At about 3 months we hit out best stride with nursing, and then about the day he started walking he quit cold turkey, that was painful.

    Cravings are funny, while I was pregnant, the 2 foods I despise were the 2 I craved, pop tarts and butter pecan ice cream. The pop tarts had to be crumbled on the ice cream, had to happen twice a day. Haven’t touched them since. I also had food aversions which I ironically I think reflected issues we had post birth, but my ob and pediatrician said it was coincidence or because of the stage of pregnancy i was in. I could eat bananas the texture made me physically ill my entire pregnancy. Around month 5 by sheer accident we discovered my son has a latex allergy. Bananas are a food that can trigger it. In my late pregnancy I couldn’t consume any dairy without getting violently ill (they said it was because of the pressure on my belly), but he had gerd issues and dairy was his trigger. WIthin about 2 weeks of not nursing, the desire to consume those foods returned. I think there is a connection wether they do or not.

    Reply to this comment

  12. aimee

    03. Jun, 2010
    6:56 am

    Megan, I know you are proud of yourself for nursing! I have a 20 month old, and we are still nursing. I agree that its so much harder than people think when you begin. Its awesome that you are sticking with it!! The first three weeks are the hardest- its all downhill from here.

    Reply to this comment

  13. jennifer

    03. Jun, 2010
    6:05 am

    I have to say i love these posts. My husband and I are soon going to start trying for a baby and i have to admit i am so scared of the unknown and what to expect. I love hearing what you have to say about it! Congrats again to you guys. She is a beauty!!

    Reply to this comment

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