Flax Seasoning for Lactation Support

In the search to find an all-purpose seasoning that didn't contain herbs to which I am allergic or herbs that decrease milk supply, Daddy brought home some of this all-purpose flax seasoning.  Much to our surprise, it actually contains several ingredients that are said to INCREASE milk supply, such as carrot, garlic, marjoram, basil, and flax seed.  So now, we put a little bit of this on everything.  On my eggs in the morning, on my pasta, on my chicken, etc.  Hell yes.  What a great accidental find.  Take that you bleeping oregano!

Ingredients:  Garlic*, Flax Seeds*, Black Pepper*, Onion*, Basil*, Chili Pepper*, Cumin Seeds*, Carrot*, Marjoram*, Rosemary*, Thyme*, Green Onion*

*Organic ingredients

Babywearing

I think it was my husband's comments last year about babywearing that really introduced me to the concept.  He said that babies should be carried or worn and that he didn't see much of a need for a stroller.  As I was deciding what kind of parent I wanted to be before Lily was born, I discovered that babywearing was associated with attachment parenting, just like many of the other choices I was making.  Dr. Sears talks about benefits of babywearing, including that a baby that cries less and learns more.   I had this grand vision of Lily's first weeks being full of easy breastfeeding, cosleeping, picking up on elimination cues, and babywearing.  Well, breastfeeding wasn't easy, I still can't figure out her elimination cues, and she basically hated being in a carrier at the beginning.  It's been a journey, but we take a break and then we try something again.  She's slowly getting accustomed to the carriers, which allows us more versatility.  It's great to be able to get up off of the couch and use two hands to do something every now and then.

We have a Moby wrap, a Baby K'tan, a Balboa ring sling, a Baby Bjorn, and a Sleeping Baby Productions (SBP) ring sling.  I used the Moby a bit when Lily was little.  The K'tan is really easy to get on, and it has front carry positions, too.  I was really disappointed with the Balboa sling, because while it was recommended by Dr. Sears, it isn't very functional.

I just purchased a SBP ring sling.  It is all the rave with the moms I've come into contact with online.  It's affordable, durable, and custom made.  She really does a great job with them.  We went to Ikea last weekend, and I was able to breastfeed Lily discreetly in the sling while we walked around.  We even got to have dinner out! Babywearing win!

Lily got to see Ikea.  So many new things to explore!

Breastfeeding in the ring sling.  You can't event tell!

Dinner at a local restaurant!

Daddy is having more success with Lily Bean in the Baby Bjorn.  She loves to face front and see what is going on.

Increasing Pumping Output

I returned to work 10-ish weeks ago.  The first day at work, I pumped every chance I had, even though I assumed that I'd produce in those 9 hours what she ate while I was gone.  I was shocked when I only pumped 5 ounces of milk during my work day.  I estimated that Lily would eat 9 oz.  So, I started pumping around the clock.  Some days that week, I left for work knowing that I didn't have enough milk to leave for my baby girl.  Now, she's eating around 12 oz per day, and I've gotten myself up to pumping 8 oz at work. 

Pumping output is not at all an indicator of how much milk someone is producing.  Babies get out way more milk than a pump can.  The average woman can only pump from 1/2 to 2 oz total per pumping session.  Any more, and a woman is considered to be over producing.  But, that means that to meet the needs of a baby eating 12 oz, a woman needs to pump 6 to 24 times per day. Egads!

I don't need to increase my milk supply.  Baby is gaining well and has good diaper output.  However, it is exhausting pumping 7 to 8 times per day for 15 to 20 minutes each time.  From set up to clean up, I spend around 4 hours pumping!  This is done 5 days a week, and then I still pump on the weekends.  Like most women who pump at work, I need to increase my pumping output for my sanity.  It's common for women to try to increase their pumping output so that every day isn't a fight to provide milk for the baby.  So that maybe in a couple of months, there might be one day where we could relax.  Or, maybe so that we aren't spending every meeting or work moment thinking about how the heck we're going to get out of here to pump. 

There are so many galactagogues to try, and since some of them can take a few weeks to have any noticable effect, it's common for women to take a handful while not knowing what is working and what is not working.  Different methods yield different results in different women.  Here's what I've done to increase my pumping output:

1. Remove as much milk as possible.  I pump 7 to 8 times each day.  From what I've read, women should pump for at least 10 minutes, but really from 15 to 20 minutes if you're trying to increase your pumping output.  And, make sure to pump 2 to 5 minutes after the end of your last let down, because that puts in the request to your body to make more milk.  I also read that it is better to pump more times for shorter periods than to pump less times for longer. 

2. Use a hospital grade pump and get the best flange size for you. 

3. Apply pressure during a let down.  I squeeze my breasts a little during a let down, which makes more milk come out.  More milk out means that your body will make more milk.

4. Pumping when I will get the most milk. My first weekend after going back to work, I tried to pump during or after every feeding to build up a stash for Monday.  That left me sore, frustrated, and without very much of a milk cache in the fridge. Pumping during or after every feeding will help increase milk supply.  But, it was not something I could keep up with every day.  So, if I was going to pump 7-8 times per day, I was going to pump when I'd get the most milk.  I pump as much as possible at work.  I pump one breast while feeding when I wake up, one breast while feeding two times overnight, and I pump both breasts if she is down for a long nap.

5. Watching food and water intake.  It is common for women to produce less when they eat and drink less.  I am the opposite.  I have been drinking a lot of tea and was trying to get 60+ oz of water on top of that.  Well, I got very sick at the end of December, and I noticed that I could pump more milk when I wasn't drinking much water.  We think a hormonal imbalance causes me to produce LESS milk when I drink MORE water.  Oxytocin, one of the hormones involved in milk production, is also involved in the transportation of salt.  We think that more water drowns out something in this process, so I am also trying to consume something with electrolytes in them everyday in hopes that maybe this helps.

6. Power pump.  This is where you pump for 10 minutes on, 10 minutes off for an hour.  Some women do 20 minutes on, 20 minutes off for two hours.  This can be done a few days in a row to stimulate milk production.  I do this if Lily is down for a LONG sleep and I can be home and up and moving around, which is once in awhile.

7. Avoiding herbs that decrease milk production.  I discovered that I was consuming a lot of foods everyday that were made with herbs that decrease milk production.  My lasagna and the pizza I would eat for lunch, while organic, still contained a lot of oregano and parsley.  My prenatal vitamin, which I heard was still a good idea to take while breastfeeding, contained lemon balm and peppermint.  I chowed down on a candy bar one weekend that had a lot of peppermint in it.  I learned to be careful about what I was eating to make sure that it wasn't going to work against me.

8. Taking supplemental herbs that increase milk production.  There are many options available, so I would suggest doing a google search for herbs that increase milk supply.  I was taking fenugreek in capsule form for a few weeks, and while I saw a major increase in my milk output, it started to give Lily green diarrhea, so I stopped taking it.  I am now taking blessed thistle: in capsule form and a goat's rue tincture.

9. Cooking with herbs that increase milk production.  We're trying to use basil, marjoram, tumeric, and fennel seed in our cooking.

10. Drinking teas that increase milk production. I am currently brewing mother's milk tea, nettle tea, and I'm going to throw some alfalfa tea in the rotation or mix it with nettle.

11. Eating foods that increase milk production.  Oats/oatmeal is said to increase milk production.  Some women do well on lactation cookies.  A coworker shared an oatmeal bake that I like.  Hops is another substance that increases milk production.  We've been drinking some hoppy beer to help boost my milk output, too.

Cross-Nursing

For any woman breastfeeding a baby, it is apparent at times that two moms would be much better than one for the sake of sanity. After reading a mention somewhere about how there were usually several lactating women in an extended family that could care for a baby, I had a thought. What if humans were supposed to cross nurse by design, and what if a component of our immunity was missing as a result?  Me being a crazy hippie, it was just an interesting thought.

The Le Leche League advises against cross-nursing for several reasons.  These include supply issues for the mother, disease concerns, and  psychological risks.  While they are things to keep in mind, I don't agree that cross-nursing should be struck out all together.  In exploring cross nursing, I was surprised that there were many women on the internet practicing it on a quick google search.  I wouldn't just run off and arrange for someone else to nurse my baby, but I was also thinking that wouldn't it be better for Lily if someone else nursed her while I was at work?  Maybe.  Maybe not.  I haven't fully processed this idea yet. 

One women speaks of why she cross-nurses:

The benefits of co-nursing and milk-sharing are unending. What are the benefits of breastfeeding? Those are the benefits of co-nursing and milk-sharing. An added benefit is Community. Yes, I feel a great sense of pride in knowing I'm helping families who are dedicated to breastfeeding thrive. But, most importantly, I feel ever connected to my community knowing that if I were ever unable to nurse my baby there is a network of other mamas who would be there for me in my time of need. It's an indescribable feeling but one that drives me to continue to co-nurse and milk-share as much as possible.

From the Mommy Files: 

When Sarah is at work or running errands, Morgan steps in to breast-feed her best friend’s son. Morgan initially nursed her friend’s son when he was three months old. She was caring for him, and he was fussy and inconsolable. When she put him to her breast, he was immediately happy and relaxed. Sarah says she would be comfortable feeding Morgan’s son but when she has tried he refuses.

Toys for a Green Baby

  

In my efforts to not crowd Lily's life with a bunch of crap, we don't have many toys.  We don't have an activity center.  We don't have a play mat.  She has a rattle, some stuffed animals, and that's pretty much it.  I don't want her having plastic toys that she's just going to suck on.  I try to pick up wooden items that preferably don't have paint or finish on them.  In reading about milestones and what we can do to help further her development, I realize that I might have been a little too minimalistic. I asked a question on one of the crunchy mommy forums: What toys did you buy your little ones in the first year?

One mom commented: 

I was not really into the whole toy thing, but I learned pretty quickly how important toys are. And by toys, I don't mean you have to buy cheap toys at Walmart, I mean, anything that baby can play with and explore, so be creative. My LO (little one) loves washcloths, socks... it's just something he loves to flail around and suck on. A very wise woman said to me, "toys are learning", and after that, I never looked back. My LO  loves most of his toys. We have a rotation, so we switch them out so he doesn't get bored with them.  Basically, toys are for visual stimulation, tactile stimulation, coordination, etc-- milestones include reaching, grasping, switching toys from one hand to another, hitting two toys together, etc.

Toys suggested by crunchy mommies for the first year:

• soft cloth blocks
• wooden blocks
• wooden stacking rings
• musical instruments
• stuffed animals
• board books
• things they can push along and crawl after or next to (i.e. little cars or animals on wheels)
• balls

Stuff from around the house their kids played with:

• bamboo/wooden spoons and utensils
• pots and pans
• blankets (make tents, houses, peek a boo, etc)
• couch cushions are fantastic for building forts, climbing on, rolling off the couch safely
• ball of yarn
• empty paper towel tube
• empty (and clean) yogurt cups
• bowls
• oatmeal canisters
• washcloths
• socks

Some of the crunchy moms still bought and highly recommended play mats, bouncy chairs, or activity centers. They commented that we could find some eco-friendly ones.  Someone picked up a used play mat with dangling toys on Craigslist.

Hello, Daddy

So, I wrote before about some of the trials and tribulations in our relationship that caused our split during my pregnancy.  Well, Daddy figured out what was going on and fixed it.  Instead of being a crazy person, Daddy turned out to be a real person with some issues to work through.  It's a long story, and if you run into us, we'll tell you all about it.  Things have been super great, and Lily loves her daddy very much.  I have been a lucky mama to have my wonderful husband back.

At the Verizon store.  Bean was not in a good mood.

She is putting our fingers in her mouth!

Lily foot and Daddy hand

She is seriously starting to take up the whole bed.

Hello!

Making mommy dinner

Getting ready for a walk.

Making Mommy breakfast!

Oh, that's a big yawn for such a little Bean!

Surprise attack!

Pumping Sucks

Pumping sucks.  Pumping really sucks.  For those moms who want to make sure that they feed their baby the best food for them (i.e. breastmilk), pumping is the way of life.  It is a bitch.  But, I will do it to the end of the earth, because that means that little baby Lily gets the best food for her.  My advice: if you can be a full time mom for the first six months to a year of your little one's life, do it. That, or move to one of the third world countries that have better maternity leave than the U.S. Almost every country in the world has better maternity leave than the U.S.

Let me tell you some of the complicated things I've learned about pumping:

Many women cannot pump colostrum.  It is better hand expressed.  Lily wouldn't latch well for the first three days because of the birth trauma she experienced.  So, I had to hand express everything until she would latch.  The pump couldn't express the colostrum.

It kinda hurts.  I mean, seriously.  Duh.  I would expect it to, but the fact that we spend hours a day and months upon months doing something that hurts is just crazy.

I should have started pumping sooner.  I played with the pumps a little bit, but I didn't really try to pump much until a week before I had to return to work.  Sure, I want to only feed baby girl refrigerated milk (frozen milk kills the antibodies present). But, I had no idea how much I could pump in a day or in that 8 hours I was gone at work.  So, when that first day, I only pumped 5 oz, and that started to decrease as the week went on, I was in a full panic. She was eating 9 oz per day then.  I've done a lot to increase my pumping output, which I'll talk about later.

Pump flanges come in more than one size!  OMG!  Standard is a medium.  You could need a small, large, extra large, or bigger!  And the size corresponds with your nipple/breast, not with your bra size.  So, you just have to try a few out and see what works for you by extracting the most milk.

You should pump for no less than 10 minutes.   Really 15 to 20 if you want to stimulate milk production.

You should also pump for 2 to 5 min after the end of your last let down to stimulate milk production.

Let down can occur immediately or after a few minutes. Sometimes, I am leaking milk before I even start to pump.  Sometimes, it takes a minute or two.

It is not uncommon to have multiple letdowns per session. I have three; one occurs immediately, one at around seven minutes, and one at fourteen minutes. 

I have to pump 7-8 times per day to keep up with baby girl.  Lemme tell you about running around.  I don't feel like I get a break.  Just to keep up with my baby girl, I spend nearly two hours pumping just when I'm at work.  That's not to mention the two additional hours I spend at home.  Even if the baby slept through the night, I'd still have to get up and pump!  I don't have time to go to Starbucks.  If I wasn't just bitching, I couldn't write this blog post this fast.  In fact, it's taken me two months to finish this post!  I can barely go to the bathroom or find something to eat.  Working out?  Forget it, until I stop breastfeeding.  If you see me at work, and it looks like I'm gonna run someone down, just get out of the way.

Forget something or it breaks?  You're probably screwed for a day.  We forgot to pack one of my flanges for a day at work.  I had to try to pump both boobs with one flange in the time it took me to double pump.  I forgot my flanges at work one day, so I had to use a smaller size at home.  Ouch!  Or, my husband was going to have to drive an hour and a half round trip to find them at 9pm at night.  Some gals have ripped membranes or cracked tubing.  I have some extra parts, but if something goes wrong at work, I'm SOL.

More notes on how to increase one's pumping output and/or milk supply soon.

Wonder Weeks

 Some moms on the Baby Center attachment parenting board commented about "wonder weeks" and after looking into it, it sounded like something that would help us through our little ones fussy times. There is a Wonder Weeks book, a Wonder Weeks app, and a Wonder Weeks website.  I downloaded the app and previewed the book on Kindle before deciding to buy.  After getting mega attached to "Super Baby" and then finding that I really disagreed with some of the things it suggested, I'm reluctant to assume that any one person has any answers or believe that any concepts in one person's book is true or will apply to us.  So far, the biggest lessons from "Wonder Weeks" is that little one will be super fussy, cranky, and have mood swings for a few weeks.  She will be more clingy and have some trouble sleeping.  And, this is just a phase, which will also pass.  Oh, and it's nothing that we've done to cause her this distress; this is just a necessary part of growing up.  We recognize these frustrating periods.  This especially when you just want to give this little, precious baby anything she needs, but you can't figure out what she needs.

 developmental periods chart
from the android app

She's going into the period where she learns about events.  This is where she puts together several smooth transitions to become an event.  An event is something like putting something in her mouth, understanding a bouncing ball, or being able to pass something from one hand to another.  This is a precursor to being able to roll over and crawl.

Anyhow, we're just taking it one day at a time, holding her super tight, and excited for the new skills she's developing right before our eyes.  It's amazing how she is about the same size for awhile, and then all of a sudden, she just looks bigger and her clothes are tighter.  It is also amazing how one day she doesn't know what to do with her hands, and then the next day, she's got her thumb in her mouth and she can put her hands together.  Wow!  She holds my hand as she falls asleep, and it's my favorite thing.