Breastfeeding Sucks: Part II

As always, thank you for all your comments in response to my Breastfeeding Sucks post. I suppose I should specify that I seem to have what I would consider "normal" energy, but then I get ready to do something, like jog, and Ada needs to eat. I feed her for 25 minutes or so.

After that, my energy levels plummet to almost zero. That's why I think it's the breastfeeding -- that the two are directly linked. It very well could be the hormone my body releases during breastfeeding. Or it could be my diet and sleep habits.

Thanks to your suggestions, I plan to:

• Wake up earlier. Like when Ada eats around 5:30 in the morning. I'll do something low-key, like surf the net or take a short walk through our neighborhood, to get my mind and body going for the day.
• Switch vitamins. The multivitamin I was taking doesn't have iron in it (the gummy kind). For whatever reason, I had spaced out and thought that it didn't include calcium, but DID include iron. Not the case. I am now back on my prenatal vitamins.
• Pay better attention to my diet. Forget the multi, I need to eat more protein and iron-rich foods versus carbs to keep myself awake. I'm guilty of munching on cereal, oatmeal, and easy-to-grab granola bars/etc. and forgetting the yogurt, eggs, and leafy veggies. The same goes with my consumption of H2O. As silly as it sounds, it's hard to eat well and remember to drink water with a baby around. She's going through a phase where if I'm not with her, she's screaming.
• Stimulate my mind. One reader's comment initially offended me. She suggested I might not be getting enough mental stimulation. But then I realized she was entirely right. Besides taking care of Ada, I blog, do house chores, exercise, and watch TV. These activities are challenging both mentally and physically, but very different from when I was working outside our home. Mostly, I feel when I was on a schedule, I kept my momentum. I'd like to find a way to replicate that (in a small way)at home.
• Keep my exercise expectations realistic. I think I was literally running on adrenaline after Ada was born. I was running five days a week and feeling great. Now? Not so much, nor should I. I ran 4 days a week most of my pregnancy but in the later months? Maybe 3. With my half marathon training plan, I should be running 5 days, but have decided to switch to 4 because I feel my body and mind need more rest time. On other days, I will walk and do other light activities.

More than a few of you pointed out that I could have a thyroid problem, anemia, or other medical issue. I didn't consider that something more could be going on. So, if these tweaks to my habits don't make much of a difference, I will head in and get a full workup.

In other news, I got my to-try glasses from Warby Parker last weekend. Major fail. I don't like any of the styles. I only semi-liked these two:


But not enough to take the plunge. I had specified four pairs to try out, so they included a random pair as well. That one was the worst of all!


(As you can tell, Ada hated them, too. And I'm not kidding, I don't think she recognized me!) I might try some more pairs sometime soon. But for now, it's back to my old glasses. They're not so bad.

Thank you again for all your comments. Now I'm off to the eternal struggle of getting Ada to take a nap in her crib. Ada: 86; Mom: 2. Not doing so well!

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