Newborn mommy chatter.

[lovelyshoes]

Since so many of us are in a similar boat, I figured maybe some of us have some complaints/concerns like I do😉.
I still look pregnant. It wasn’t like this the first time around so I figured, it’s the second time give myself some time, but it’s 2 months now and my stomach is still big. I am not exercising yet, but I don’t think that would even help. I asked my ob if I had diastasis recti and she said no, that it will take a long time to come back to my old self. I don’t know, it’s really bumming me out. I don’t have any clothes really to even dress for this weird new body. I don’t feel like myself at all. And I kind of worry going back to work and looking this way. I know I shouldn’t care, but I do.

[noodleoo]

lovelyshoes , ugh, I’m in the same boat. I hope this doesn’t make you feel worse, but DD2 is 9 months and I still have a huge belly and honestly I look 3 months pregnant. I know people say the baby weight is much harder to lose the second time around but I’m pretty depressed about it. For the first time in my life, I really feel fat. It took me a long time to look normal again after DD1, but I SAH for a year so I don’t think I noticed it as much. Going back to work after DD2 sucked. Honestly, just buy some new clothes. I got a few pairs of stretchy ponte pants for work. They are actually already loose, so I know my body is slowly going back to normal. I’m going to wait until I stop BFing at a year and then really start exercising. I just don’t have the time, energy or motivation to do it right now. I’m trying to give myself a break since life is hard with 2 kids and I know it will get easier as they get older and I’ll have more time and energy later. But it sucks and I know exactly how you feel. 

[woodgnome]

I’m in the same boat. I don’t remember feeling this way as much with my son but my daughter is almost 6 months & I feel like I don’t recognize my body. I’ve lost the pregnancy weight but am nowhere close to fitting into my pants and honestly, the size up is snug too. I definitely still look pregnant because of the lower belly pooch. It’s a bummer.

[suzv]

I’m super struggling with body image issues right now as well and my son is nearly 6 months old. I had a sort of sick and tired moment yesterday when i went to the zoo and didn’t have many hot weather clothing options to wear. I don’t want to be this uncomfortable next summer.

[lovelyshoes]

I bought new clothes, but nothing fits right. It’s really discouraging, my actual shape is so different and my stomach is huge. It’s so odd. I keep buying and returning things, which I hate doing too.
I hate seeing myself in the mirror and hardly even have any pictures with the baby. I’m going to remedy that because I want to preserve these memories, but it’s rough.
Thank you for sharing, I hate that all of us feel this way.

[namasteak]

I’ve been wearing high waist underwear with slight compression because a) I like the support b) I like how it smooths things out

[lovelyshoes]

Jul 7, 2019 14:25:51 GMT -5 namasteak said:

I’ve been wearing high waist underwear with slight compression because a) I like the support b) I like how it smooths things out

Won’t help me, I look 5 months pregnant🙁

[Mrs.flang]

lovelyshoes, DD2 is almost 7 months and I felt the same way for a while and still do to some extent. I’ve been back to working out since she was around 4 months and someone at the gym said to me how great it was that I was able to work out while pregnant 🙁

I bought a bunch of new tops for work and still feel limited in what I feel comfortable in, but I am also starting to see a difference. It’s not the same as before and part of it is that I feel more accepting of this is just how it is now. I didn’t want to hear this at the time, but you really just have to give yourself some credit for growing another human and give it some time.

[namasteak]

Ugh a friend was supposed to come watch Ds3 at 230 so I could nap but she texted me her h would drop her off so I asked if she was at brunch (I had a feeling she had been drinking) and she didn’t answer. Pretty sure she knew what I was asking ...I so I had to lie to her and say “don’t worry about it I got a nap in earlier” because I knew she was drinking at brunch (we have talked about my concern over her drinking before, she doesnt think it’s a problem).

Now she’s headed over to a previously planned girls movie afternoon and on one hand I hope she doesn’t ask why I didn’t have her come over but in the other hand I hope she does. Really not ok with people drinking and coming to babysit!

[poppyseed]

I am almost 4 months postpartum and I am about 10 pounds less then pre-preg weight which sounds great but I am not in shape at all. I’m flabby and nothing fits right and I hate how I look in everything. I also eat like shit so I mean, it’s my fault. I am still so hungry all the time from nursing and while I eat my fair share of healthy foods and drink a ton of water, I also eat around the clock and treat myself way too much. It’s embarrassing.

[Patsy Baloney]

Yeah, I go back to work in a couple of weeks and I’m huge and embarrassed. I really thought I would be back on the healthy food and exercise bandwagon a lot sooner than this. I gained a lot while pregnant (about 50lbs) and 40 of it stuck with me. I was looking at photos from vacation last year and omg, it hit me really hard just how far I have to go...after this trip to McDonald’s, lol.

I’m just having a lot of trouble focusing on me and good food. Me and shitty food are a little too tight right now.

[katespade]

I’m going to have a bunch of loose skin forever, aren’t I? I got back down to PP weight pretty quickly, but there’s just so much loose skin hanging out in all directions of my torso.

[hazel]

My son is three months old and I'm having trouble feeling healthy. I know part of the problem is that I'm not truly committed enough to the process of feeling better and fitting into my clothes. I enjoyed being able to eat what I wanted without too much concern. It's going to be a hard habit to break.

[gastro]

Jul 7, 2019 16:44:00 GMT -5 katespade said:

I’m going to have a bunch of loose skin forever, aren’t I? I got back down to PP weight pretty quickly, but there’s just so much loose skin hanging out in all directions of my torso.

This is me right now. I hate it.

[zarapipe]

Can I join? Baby girl three will be here on Thursday. I bought some pp underwear to wear at the hospital and home and they are too small I even sized up. I’ve gained so much weight this pg and I hope it comes off without too much trouble.

[gastro]

Jul 7, 2019 18:39:07 GMT -5 zarapipe said:

Can I join? Baby girl three will be here on Thursday. I bought some pp underwear to wear at the hospital and home and they are too small I even sized up. I’ve gained so much weight this pg and I hope it comes off without too much trouble.

I had number three six weeks ago. Weight came off super quick. With three kids it's hard to eat. I found toast in the toaster I wanted the next day - that sort of thing. It's the flabby skin I'm dealing with now. Hopefully it's just my uterus still shrinking

[hamster]

Jul 7, 2019 18:46:34 GMT -5 gastro said:

Jul 7, 2019 18:39:07 GMT -5 zarapipe said:

Can I join? Baby girl three will be here on Thursday. I bought some pp underwear to wear at the hospital and home and they are too small I even sized up. I’ve gained so much weight this pg and I hope it comes off without too much trouble.

I had number three six weeks ago. Weight came off super quick. With three kids it's hard to eat. I found toast in the toaster I wanted the next day - that sort of thing. It's the flabby skin I'm dealing with now. Hopefully it's just my uterus still shrinking

I have a really long manifesto to write when I feel like I can give it the mental space, but the inability to get in a meal is one of my chief complaints.

[katespade]

Jul 7, 2019 18:58:16 GMT -5 hamster said:

Jul 7, 2019 18:46:34 GMT -5 gastro said:

I had number three six weeks ago. Weight came off super quick. With three kids it's hard to eat. I found toast in the toaster I wanted the next day - that sort of thing. It's the flabby skin I'm dealing with now. Hopefully it's just my uterus still shrinking

I have a really long manifesto to write when I feel like I can give it the mental space, but the inability to get in a meal is one of my chief complaints.

I’m convinced that DD has a sixth sense about this. I don’t even have to say it out loud, I just have to think about making food for myself and that’s her cue to need something ASAP. Usually, an extra long nursing session.

[hamster]

Jul 7, 2019 20:21:16 GMT -5 katespade said:

Jul 7, 2019 18:58:16 GMT -5 hamster said:

I have a really long manifesto to write when I feel like I can give it the mental space, but the inability to get in a meal is one of my chief complaints.

I’m convinced that DD has a sixth sense about this. I don’t even have to say it out loud, I just have to think about making food for myself and that’s her cue to need something ASAP. Usually, an extra long nursing session.

Yes! Add in a hovering toddler who demands eating what/when you do and snacks are out the window too.

[vlinder]

I’m only about a month out from birthing a 10+ lb baby with extra fluid, so I’m trying to give myself a lot of grace. I’m just so oddly shaped right now—the top half of my belly is still up and out, but the bottom half is deflated and hanging. My postpartum underwear from last time doesn’t fit my belly this time even though I weigh less, so I’ve had to try out several different kinds.

[namasteak]

Big hugs everyone! Postpartum body image is so hard. On one hand our bodies did amazing thing and on the other that thing is done so let’s get back to how it was before. I know it’s easier said than done but we should try to give ourselves some grace.

Tbh I thought I’d go back a bit faster since I’m not nursing (fewer hormones and not ravenous) but no luck. Pretty disappointing.

[namasteak]

OMG BABY GO TO SLEEP!

Woke up at 130 to eat/diaper change and was back down by 205. Then woke up at 245 and it has been a battle ever since. Every time I think he is sleepy enough to put down he wakes up again 🤦🏻‍♀️

[scm1011]

With #1 I dropped all the weight and then some almost immediately. After I stopped BFing I gained the extra back and leveled out at my normal healthy weight. That is not happening this time, unfortunately. Womp womp.

[scm1011]

Also the night sweats are killing me. Im so over the constant sheet changing. I don’t remember it lasting so long last time (I'm 5 weeks PP).

[namasteak]

Ugh a 2 hour long wake up for no discernible reason. Even if he falls asleep soon he will probably wake in about an hour to eat. Of course it’s in a solo parenting night and I can’t tag anyone jn

[latte]

I feel like this baby will never sleep longer than 3 hours. She woke up yesterday at 4:45, and didn’t go back to sleep for 3 hours and then she napped for only 40 minutes at a time. Tonight, she is only sleeping for 2 hours at a time. It’s exhausting and I really thought by 6 weeks she would be eating more and sleeping longer. Clearly I know nothing.

[namasteak]

3.5 total hours sleep fir me last night 😢😴 hopefully he settles enough I can get a decent nap

[Susie]

Hugs to everyone dealing with body image postpartum. I’m there too, I’ve been dead stuck at the same weight since 1 week pp, I’m now 5 weeks pp. Of the 35 lb I gained, I’ve lost 17 and have 18 to go, with absolutely no trajectory of progress to give me hope. I’m not even eating crap, just maybe too much? How do you really know when EBF+? I say EBF+ because not only am I EBFing but I’ve got a freezer stash on track to hit 100 oz in a day or two., so I’m producing in excess of his needs by a decent margin. I can’t be starving myself when doing that. I’m dreading going back to work in 3 weeks, wtf will I wear? Even my pp back to work stuff from last time doesn’t fit yet.

[katespade]

DD is six months old and I still don't own any nursing friendly clothes. Every time we leave the house I'm terrified that she's going to decide she's hungry while we're out and I'm going to have to try to figure out how to feed her in public. Also, there are a lot of things that I really love about BFing, but I'm really looking forward to the day when my body gets to belong to me again.

[lillaguma]

I understand all of this. I gained so much more weight with the second one...like almost double the amount. I think I gained around 65 lbs total. The first 25 came off really fast, then I've slowly lost about another 10. I went out and bought new shorts and a few shirts so I'd have something to wear, because the maternity clothes no longer fit right but I'm no where near close to anything else in my closet. I'm trying to not worry about it, DS will be 3 months later this week so trying to remind myself that he's still really little. I've been trying to just focus on moving more and choosing healthier options for meals, without worrying about tracking anything at this point. Doesn't help that my in-laws were staying with us the past two weeks, so that meant less working out and more eating out.

katespade - I just do a tank underneath normal shirts for nursing. Then pull up the shirt and pull down the tank. I have never really found any clothes specifically made for nursing that I like. The harder thing is finding dresses that I can nurse in, and dresses tend to be my summer uniform to be able to function in the heat and humidity.