IVF on the Down Low

These are a couple weeks old, but I haven’t posted any in a while

I’m sure you all want to know the status of my boobs 🙂

Good news is that the bleeding problem seems to be behind me. I did invest in some larger shields which didn’t seem to have any impact on output and made things a bit more comfortable.

I think my supply is creeping back up as well. It’s hard to tell as there are high producing days and low producing days, but this weekend, Friday – Sunday, we only supplemented 4 oz total! And I was ready with 4 bottles for daycare today, when I normally only supply 3. Hopefully things stay stable on the supply front. I have been diligently taking my Fenugreek and Blessed Thistle and I’ve made pumping regularly, even on the weekends, a priority. It’s hard sometimes. It feels like everything gets interrupted by the pump! But it’s only temporary and it’s worth it.

On another note, I have a bad feeling about this week’s weigh in, mostly due to lack of diligence on the dieting front for this week.

Starting weight: 144
Last week’s weight: 134
Today’s weight: 132

It’s still coming off!  Gavin will be 6 months in a couple weeks and I think I might make it to the 120s by then.  Hooray!

As for my experiment, I entered my calories into both WW and Sparkpeople today.  I ate 33 points which was only 1,477 calories.  So, my suspicions about the calories being low were right on track.  But, I what I’m coming to realize is that simplicity doesn’t necessarily mean that I don’t need to think about it at all.  My diet today was admittedly high in fat.  It doesn’t need to be high in fat and if it weren’t I’d get more of the calories I need to be a milk making machine.  So, my goal for the coming week is to get back to basic good habits.  More fruits, veggies, fiber, lean proteins and water.  A fun experiment might be to enter calculate the calories again on a healthier day of eating.  A non weight related goal for this week is to write a post about something besides weight watchers, LOL.

Starting weight: 144
Last week’s weight: 137
Yesterday’s weight: 134

Woot!  10 pounds gone!!! And to think I was worried about weight loss stalling.  Seems like things are progressing just fine.

Random thoughts on Weight Watchers…

WW is obviously working for me and I think it’s exactly what I needed right now.  It’s really simple, which is key.  Normally when I diet I count calories, which can be equally simple and it’s free.  However, I get all caught up in the macros.  Meal planning gets really complicated because I get stuck on how many grams of protein I should have at what times of day and what type of carb I should be having post workout.  I’m a geek.  I just don’t have time for that right now and I don’t think that I could just count calories because all the calorie counting tools show you the other nutritional info as well.  A couple other major pluses to joining weight watchers – access to a huge library of recipes and access to the weight watchers forums.  I have really enjoyed some of the recipes I’ve tried thus far.

There is one thing I don’t like so much about Weight Watchers.  It seems to me that the calories are actually really low.  Maybe even too low to be “healthy”.  If I’m calculating correctly, my 30 points a day is about 1500 calories.  Normally when I diet I start at about 1700 calories per day (plus one cheat meal per week) and adjust down from there as needed.  I rarely go below 1500 calories.  Granted, I also normally incorporate a pretty intense exercise routine as well, but it would have to be one heck of an exercise routine to burn as many calories as breastfeeding does.  The really scary thing is that if I didn’t have the 10 extra points per day for breastfeeding, I would get 20 points, which is about 1000 calories.  I have never seen anyone advocate going less than 1200 calories per day even when dieting.  Of course, this doesn’t include the flex points, but that only buys you an extra 5 points, or 250 calories, per day.  In any case, it seems to be working so I’m sticking with it.  I might try tracking in both Weight Watchers and Sparkpeople for a day or two to see how many calories I really am eating.

Well, now we have a 5 month old  baby and by this point many babies have already had their first solid “meal”.  Ours has not.  We’ve decided to wait until he’s at least 6 months old and we’re skipping the traditional rice cereal.

Reasons For Waiting

• Many major health orgs around the world recommend exclusive breast feeding for the first 6 months of life including the:

World Health Organization
UNICEF
US Department of Health and Human Services
American Academy of Pediatrics
American Academy of Family Physicians
American Dietetic Association
Australian National Health and Medical Research Council
Royal Australian College of General Practitioners
Health Canada

Some of you may be confused seeing the AAP on that list.  (“But wait… didn’t my doctor hand me a piece of paper from the AAP talking about solids at 4-6 months???”).  The AAP actually contradicts itself.  The AAP breastfeeding policy statement recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of life but the Committee on Nutrition states that babies may start on solids between 4 and 6 months of age.

• Protection from illness

Breastfeeding at all boosts immunity but the best protection comes when baby is exclusively breastfed.

• Immature digestive system

When solids are introduced before baby’s system is ready it can be quite unpleasant for baby.  The system is not ready to digest starches until about 6 months of age.  Fat digestion is not mature until 6-9 months.  Introducing foods that baby isn’t ready to digest can cause gas, constipation, digestive upset.

• Decreased risk of food allergies

This one has been called into question recently as a new study showed early introduction of solids as the best way to prevent food allergies.  However, the majority of the research shows lower incidence of allergies when solids are delayed until at least 6 months.  Until 4 to 6 months of age babies have an “open gut”.  This means that intact macromolecules are allowed to pass from the small intestines directly into the bloodstream.  This is an advantage when breast milk is ingested as antibodies pass directly into the bloodstream.  But… when other foods (including formula, gulp) are given to baby large proteins pass right on through as well which may predispose baby to allergies.  The gut closes sometime before 6 months, but there is no way to know that this has occurred so waiting until 6 months of age is safest.

• Protection from iron deficiency

But wait… isn’t rice cereal iron fortified?  It is.  And that’s part of the problem.  Full term babies are born with adequate iron stores which are depleted during the first 6 months of life.  Doctors often recommend iron fortified rice cereal to replenish the depleted iron stores.  Probably a sound recommendation for a formula fed baby (although new research suggests that introducing meat may actually be better), but maybe not for a breastfed baby.  The iron in breast milk is extremely well absorbed.  Iron is likely not depleted in a breastfed baby and introducing iron fortified foods may lead to less absorption of the iron in breast milk.

• Prevention of obesity

Some studies show a link between early introduction of solids and obesity later in life.

• Nutritional quality

Breast milk and formula are both far superior nutritionally to solid foods (especially rice cereal).  When solids are introduced early they tend to replace milk in a baby’s diet rather than adding to it.  Ideally you want baby to continue their current milk intake so that they are continuing to get all those good nutrients and solids are simply an addition, supplying additional calories rather than replacing the calories from breast milk.  That is generally what happens when solids are introduced at 6 months or later.

• Convenience

Solids are a PITA.  It means messier laundry, more time in the kitchen, messier diapers and it means that we have to clean poop out of diapers before tossing them in the washer.  Why start any of that earlier than we have to?  (That said, I think it will also be fun and I’m excited to start making some of the purees).

Reasons to Skip Cereal

First, why do most people start with cereal over other foods?
-It is very bland so when mixed with breast milk or formula it tastes very familiar
-It is gluten free (so it can be introduced earlier than other starches)
-Some believe it helps babies sleep through the night
-It provides iron
-It is believed to be easily digested and relatively non-allergenic

And why we’re skipping cereal…

• If you wait until baby is a little older to introduce solids blandness is no longer a requirement.  Baby is ready for texture and flavor. In fact some babies are even ready for stronger flavors like ginger and garlic.
• By six months most babies have lost the gag reflex and are ready for purees at the very least.  I may write a post about baby lead weaning.  BLW skips right to finger foods! We’ve decided against BLW, but it’s also a good option for introducing solids.
• Iron fortified rice cereal can inhibit absorption of iron in breast milk.
• Recent research has called into question whether rice cereal is really non-allergenic (http://adc.bmj.com/content/early/2008/10/28/adc.2008.145144.abstract) and waiting until the gut is closed reduces food allergy concerns.
• Rice cereal commonly causes constipation.
• There isn’t any evidence to support the claim that rice cereal helps babies sleep longer.
• I don’t want to feed baby any solid foods that I wouldn’t eat myself and rice cereal is kind of icky.
• I know that I look and feel better if I eat “clean”, avoiding processed foods.  I really don’t want baby’s first food to be a processed food  (I would consider oatmeal or homemade rice cereal made from brown rice)

What will baby’s first food be if not rice cereal?

Well, we’ve still got a bit of time to decide that, but probably avocado, sweet potato or banana.

• With its creamy texture and mild flavor avocado makes an excellent first food choice.  They are highly digestible, rarely cause allergy issues and don’t cause constipation.  Plus they’re chock full of nutrients and monounsaturated fat. And, no cooking is required.
• Banana is easily digested.  The sweet flavor is familiar for breastfed babies so it may be more readily accepted than other foods.  Plus, no cooking needed.  Just mash and serve.
• Again, sweet potato is very easy to digest and a nutritional power house.  It’s also not associated with constipation and has a slightly sweet flavor that appeals to a young baby’s palate.

Should Solids Be Delayed For All Babies?

No.  Of course not.  All situations are different and there are very good reasons to introduce solids earlier than 6 months.  Readiness for solids is highly individual.  If your pediatrician suggests you start solids early, I would suggest asking some questions before diving right in.  Why do we need to start now?  Is there a medical reason (like reflux)?  Is baby drinking more than the maximum recommended amount of formula?  If there is no medical reason to introduce solids, when to do so is up to you.  Trust your instincts, do some research and make a decision.

In our case I don’t feel that Gavin is ready to start solids.  Outward signs of readiness do not mean that the digestive system is ready, so we will wait until at least 6 months.  If we try solids around 6 months and it doesn’t go well, we might wait a while before trying again.

What are the outward signs of readiness you typically watch for?

• Doubled birth weight (check)
• Weighs at least 13-15 lbs (check)
• Loss of tongue thrust reflex (I have no idea if this has occurred.  I think we’d have to try feeding him and see whether he pushes the food back out.)
• Ability to indicate he is full by turning away from bottle or breast (check)
• Good head and neck control (check)
• Ability to sit unassisted
• Is ready and willing to chew (check)
• Is developing a “pincer” grasp where objects are grabbed with the thumb and forefinger, rather than using the fingers to scrape into the palm

Some people watch for baby having an interest in their food.  Gavin does show an interest in our food but he also shows an interest in anything that might go in his mouth.  Babies are very orally fixated and I’d hesitate to label that as “ready for solids”.  Some people also introduce solids if baby starts waking more frequently due to hunger.  Babies go through growth spurts. Their appetite goes up and down.  They’ll eat more frequently when they teeth.  That’s another that I don’t think indicates readiness for solids.

Whew!  That was long.  But I’m glad I wrote it all down.

I’ve decided to attempt adding exercise back into the routine starting with the 30 day shred and I hurt.

And  on that note, the Wednesday, I mean Thursday, weigh in.

Starting weight: 144
Last week’s weight: 137
Yesterday’s weight: 136

Weight watchers has informed me that I’ve lost 5% of my body weight.  Woohoo!

Weight loss has definitely slowed, which is to be expected.  I’m ok with that as long as the trend continues.  I am wondering if I should change my settings with weight watchers though.  When I started I was exclusively breastfeeding, so that’s what I input.  Now I’m supplementing, so I should probably update my information so that my points are reduced.  That makes me nervous though.  I’m not supplementing that much.  Most days it’s 1 of 7 bottles.  Some days we don’t supplement at all.  I worry that dropping my points will affect my supply.  I want to drop some pounds, but not at the expense of being able to provide the kiddo with breast milk.

I think he’s a pretty darn good writer.  His blog is much wittier and more amusing than mine 🙂

http://themancaveblahhhg.blogspot.com/

We are successfully supplementing.  It took a little trial and error, but the kiddo will eat plain old Enfamil.  I should have known better than to think  he would just eat what I decided he would.  Crazy kid won’t even eat breast milk if it isn’t the perfect temperature.  At first he had a 3 oz formula limit and then I had to provide him with a breast milk chaser.  He’s gotten used to it though and he doesn’t even seem to notice the difference any more.  We don’t supplement a ton.  Usually about a bottle a day (1 of 7).  Some days we’re lucky enough to not supplement at all.

If anyone’s wondering, we have not introduced any solids yet and don’t plan to until he’s about 6 months old.  We also plan to skip cereal and go straight to purees, which I plan to make myself.  Maybe one of these days I’ll type out a blog as to why we’re waiting and skipping cereal.

Starting weight: 144
Last week’s weight: 138
Yesterday’s weight: 137

The good:  I lost another pound and tried some new recipes.

The bad:  This week I have not been so stellar about tracking points.

Goal for this week: Track points every day.

I would do things a lot differently.  I would not cloth diaper.  I would probably formula feed.  I would eat even more frozen food.  I might look for a less stressful job.   I would live closer to my parents.  Shawn left me alone last week and I made it, but it was HARD.  There was exhaustion, tears and relief when my lovely husband finally returned.

I started the week feeling like super mom, but that quickly ended as Monday we were sent home from daycare with a note asking us not to return the next day as Gavin might have pinkeye.  Friends quickly gave advice, reminding me that breast milk can supposedly be used to treat pinkeye.  I figured, what the heck.  Might as well try it, right?   So I pulled some of my hard earned milk into an eye dropper and put a couple drops in each of Gavin’s  eyes (I likely will never tell him that there was breast milk in his eye).  I put the little guy to sleep and got to work as I was working against a deadline and now was facing a day at home rather than a day at work.  At around midnight, my head finally hit the pillow, but not for long.  I was up to feed Gavin at 1:30.  His eyes were gunky enough that he couldn’t open them.  I cleaned his eyes, put in a few more drops of breast milk, fed him and put him back to bed.  I was up to start the next day around 5:30 with my morning pump and emails informing managers where I would be.

Gavin woke for the day smiling as usual.  His eyes were looking better already!  I started my day of craziness, trying to work and take care of a baby at the same time.  I contacted the doctor’s office, describing his symptoms.  Or symptom.  Really, the only issue was gunky eyes!  They determined that it must be clogged tear ducts because he had no other symptoms.  So, I kept cleaning his eyes with a warm wash cloth and they kept getting better.  By the end of the day he seemed to be pretty much back to normal.  I stayed up until midnight still desperately trying to meet my deadline and the next day Gavin went back to daycare.

But that’s not the end of the pinkeye saga.  Shawn returned from his trip late Friday night (after many delays).  Gavin and I headed to Greeley on Saturday for my Grandmother’s 99th birthday and left Shawn behind to do his homework.  Sunday morning I got a text.  All it said… “I think I have pinkeye”.  The pinkeye has since been confirmed and Shawn is basically quarantined.

So what does that mean?  Who knows.  Maybe Gavin did have pinkeye and just got over it really fast.  Maybe breast milk really is magic.  Or maybe it’s all one big coincidence and Shawn picked up pinkeye on an airplane somewhere.  The world may never know