Breastfeeding
Mamas on Bedrest: We give Milk Nursingwear “Two Boobs Up!”
October 5th, 2011Hey Mamas, Milk Nursing wear is going to be giving away a $40 Gift Card to a Mama on Bedrest!
Milk Nursing Wear is a mama owned company that produces “fresh, modern clothing for nursing moms and sells chic nursing accessories as well!” The company is owned and founded by Elisa Minsk Hartstein, a mama to 4 breastfed babies.
Today Mamas on Bedrest & Beyond is “test driving” a Milk nursing top. Since Bedrest Coach Darline Turner-Lee is well beyond her nursing days, New Mama Heather (and her darling daughter) shares with us how the shirt feels, her take on breast access, styles and colors. We liked the styles. “All of the shirts are chic and you wouldn’t mind wearing them even if you weren’t pregnant”, says Heather.” We also liked the soft cotton material, the lightness of the fabric and the fact that the shirts come in a variety of styles and colors so that you can easily integrate them into your wardrobe. Overall, we give Milk Nursingwear “two boobs up!!”
So here is how you enter to win the contest. You have 3 chances to enter. First, write a comment on this video blog. Include in the comment what you like about Milk Nursingwear and the specific top that you like most. By adding a link to the product that you like, you get another entry into the contest. (Take a look at their clothing and accessory line. It really is wonderful!!) Finally, “Like” Milk Nursingwear on Facebook. It’s that simple.
Milk will choose the winner and that person will win a $40 gift card that can be used to purchase items from the Milk Nursingwear website. Given that many of the items are around $40 or less, this is a great opportunity to get a nice new nursing top at little or no charge!
So enter now! We give Milk Nursingwear 2 boobs up! What do you think?
Mamas on Bedrest: I Breastfed My Children But They Still Have Asthma and Allergies.
August 5th, 2011My Daughter will turn 9 this October. I can hardly believe the tiny baby that I cradled on my forearm is now almost my height (not saying much given that I am only 5ft tall, but still!) and sassing her way into the tween years! At almost 9 she is in the 50% for height and the 95% for weight. Although asthma once plagued her, she has not had an attack since 2007. She has several food allergies, but as evidenced by her growth pattern, she has thrived.
I knew that my children would be at great risk for a myriad of diseases because of my husband and my combined histories. We both have asthma histories, and my husband was admitted to the hospital frequently as a child with asthma attacks. We both have allergies and I have eczema. Both our families have strong histories of obesity, heart disease and diabetes. By some accounts, perhaps we should not have gotten together. But as we did, I wanted to do everything possible to give my children the best possible chance. So I chose to breastfeed.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (www.aap.org) recommends that all infants be breastfed for the first year of life. According to the AAP and the Office of Women’s Health, www.womenhealth.gov, breastfeeding has many benefits for infants and children including:
I don’t know how many (if any) of these potential health threats my children avoided by being breastfed. Some may argue that my breastfeeding was a total failure given my daughter has asthma and food allergies to milk, peanuts, fish and egg, has seasonal pollen allergies and is allergic to many dogs and cats. My son is allergic to peanuts, is lactose intolerant and has eczema.
Despite these apparent failures, my children have never had strep throat. They have each had only one ear infection. My daughter has not missed a day at school for illness in 2 years and my son has only missed a day or two for minor viral illnesses.
So to what do I credit my children’s health? I am sure that there are many reasons that they are healthy, but I believe that a firm foundation got them started and I believe that foundation was created in part by breastfeeding both of them.
Are you planning to breastfeed your children? Why or why not? Share your comments in the comments section below. Need help making a decision? Sign up for a Complimentary 30 minute Bedrest Breakthrough session by e-mailing info@mamasonbedrest.com. Check us out on Facebook and on Twitter, @mamasonbedrest.
Mamas on Bedrest: Breastfeeding Kept Me From Hemorrhaging Post Partum
August 3rd, 2011Immediately after I gave birth to my son via C-section, my OB asked that my son be put to my breast to nurse. I was bleeding more than she liked and she was having some trouble stitching me up. My son, a full term, healthy baby boy latched right on and proceeded to suck my entire breast into his tiny little mouth. Meanwhile my lower abdominal organs, which seemed to be keenly attached to my breasts at that very moment, began to contract. I had never experienced such pain at both ends of my body simultaneously.
I later learned that one of the many benefits of breastfeeding for a mama is that it helps to control uterine bleeding post partum and helps the uterus contract and migrate back down into the pelvis. As such, breastfeeding helps ward off anemia in mamas. I sure could have used this benefit after the delivery of my daughter, when I practically hemorrhaged after her delivery. The attending OB had a really hard time stitching me up after the c-section. Everytime she threw a stitch, blood spurted up like Old Faithful. Add to that I was nauseated and vomiting and things were really complicted. She finally had to further sedate me and inject pitocin directly into my uterus to get it to contract and to get the bleeding under control.
So much data has been amassed on the benefits of breastfeeding that the US Surgeon General, Regina Benjamin, MD, issued a statement reported in this blog post that every effort should be made so that all infants are breastfed for their first year. There are many benefits to a mama who breastfeeds. While not every woman will experience every benefit, most women experience enough benefit to make even a trial of breastfeeding worthwhile.
Faster Return to Pre-pregnancy weight. Many women report that breastfeeding hastened weight loss. I myself found that with my daughter, I lost down to within 6 lbs of my pre-pregnancy weight and then did not lose the final 6 lbs until my daughter stopped nursing at just shy of 11 months. With my son, I actually gained weight. I can only assume that I needed the weight to keep up with his nursing demands (both breasts every 11/2 to 2 hours!). Within 3 months of stopping nursing, I did drop the weight.
Delayed Return on Menses. Again, many women have no menstrual cycles while nursing exclusively. However a word of caution, while exclusive nursing on demand has been associated with decreased fertility, many women do in fact ovulate and end up pregnant while nursing a very young child. If you are unsure, definitely use birth control if you don’t want to become pregnant right away. With both of my children, I breastfeed them both exclusively, yet with both babies my periods resumed by 3 months post partum. The effects of breastfeeding on an individual woman’s menstrual cycle can’t be predicted, so if in doubt, use a reliable form of birth control. (See our blog post, “Mamas on Bedrest: It’s Time to Consider Your Birth Control Options“)
Improved Mood/Prevention of Post Partum Depression. There is a lot of data now that supports the theory that exclusive breastfeeding helps ward off post partum depression. Researchers report that the release of hormones during breastfeeding as well as the bonding that occurs between mother and baby help alleviate (abort) many of the symptoms of post partum depression.
Reduced risk of breast, ovarian, cervical, and endometrial cancers
Protection against osteoporosis and hip fracture in later life
Reduced risk of mortality for women with rheumatoid arthritis has bee associated with total time of lactation
The benefits of breastfeeding are myriad and breastfeeding benefits both mother and baby. Medical societies including as the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Academy of Pediatrics have issued position papers stating that breastfeeding should be encouraged and supported for at least the first year post partum.
Mamas on Bedrest, please consider breastfeeding your baby. If you need support, we are here, info@mamasonbedrest.com. Let us know how we can help.
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