Aw, Hummingmom. 
Don't beat yourself up.
I'm interested in what Panserbjørne has to say...
I've never had a low supply problem - just an oversupply problem (gluten?) but I still feel for you. It's a hard issue to figure out, in either direction.
My sister had her first baby last May and had a good initial supply, but the baby had trouble latching & being a first-timer, my sister didn't realize that the baby wasn't emptying the breast enough. So the baby lost a lot of weight & my sister's supply became less and less. She was vegan at the time and finally agreed to try adding certain animal fats like wild salmon and pastured eggs and butter & also took a TON of fenugreek and her supply made an amazing comeback. My niece is now 10 months old & super plump & healthy.
It's an interesting idea that your baby was on the smaller side because of the diet (but not in a negative way.)
It sounds like he's thriving, which is what matters the most. Your children are all fortunate that they have a Mama so in tune with how their optimal diets affects them.
I want to thank you again for starting with (& keeping up with!) this thread - it's so helpful to have a community of support when trying to try out or stick with such a different diet.
Of all of the diets, this one seems to make the most sense to me. Carbs are not my friends. If I'm eating potatoes or grains or sugar, I have terrible cravings and awful insulin/blood sugar swings. I played around with my Dad's glucometer and found that my blood sugar would actually DROP after meals with any substantial amount of carbs. This is called post-prandial hypoglycemia and it's a result of too much insulin being released to try to deal with the carbs' effect on the blood sugar.
If I stick with very low carb eating, I don't notice blood sugar/insulin issues and I'm not starving every hour or two. I can actually skip breakfast AND lunch and not even get shaky or nauseous.
I also realize that fat is what I need to get over carb/sugar cravings. I made a paste of cocoa powder mixed with a teeny bit of hot water & mixed it into a quart of pastured cream. Then I added 10 drops of stevia glycerite, some vanilla & put it in the freezer. Before it was completely frozen, I drizzled some peanut butter for a ripple effect. This has been my go-to snack when i feel snacky & it really hits the spot. No idea how it would rate on the Optimal Diet, but it doesn't cause a noticeable blood sugar reaction and it leaves me feeling satiated.
I've been eating REALLY high fat these past few days - lots of eggs, bacon, lard, butter, cream, bone broth, chicken skin, coconut oil, etc & a few times, I've ended up in the bathroom.
It's kind of funny, ODing on fat.
One point I'm confused on is veggies. I don't crave veggies and don't particularly love them - I'm definitely a meat & fat kinda gal. I wonder if I eat enough raw liver on a regular basis, if it's that important?
Our CSA will start in May, so we'll have an abundance of veggies, and I fully intend to use every bit, I just worry about the fiber thing. I do think that fiber is a "menace" and since I'm not drawn to a lot of veggies, I feel like my body isn't needing them. Maybe juicing is something to look into, like Tanya said. I've always been skeptical because it doesn't seem like the natural, whole way of eating them, but who knows.
Don't beat yourself up.I'm interested in what Panserbjørne has to say...
I've never had a low supply problem - just an oversupply problem (gluten?) but I still feel for you. It's a hard issue to figure out, in either direction.
My sister had her first baby last May and had a good initial supply, but the baby had trouble latching & being a first-timer, my sister didn't realize that the baby wasn't emptying the breast enough. So the baby lost a lot of weight & my sister's supply became less and less. She was vegan at the time and finally agreed to try adding certain animal fats like wild salmon and pastured eggs and butter & also took a TON of fenugreek and her supply made an amazing comeback. My niece is now 10 months old & super plump & healthy.
It's an interesting idea that your baby was on the smaller side because of the diet (but not in a negative way.)
It sounds like he's thriving, which is what matters the most. Your children are all fortunate that they have a Mama so in tune with how their optimal diets affects them.
I want to thank you again for starting with (& keeping up with!) this thread - it's so helpful to have a community of support when trying to try out or stick with such a different diet.
Of all of the diets, this one seems to make the most sense to me. Carbs are not my friends. If I'm eating potatoes or grains or sugar, I have terrible cravings and awful insulin/blood sugar swings. I played around with my Dad's glucometer and found that my blood sugar would actually DROP after meals with any substantial amount of carbs. This is called post-prandial hypoglycemia and it's a result of too much insulin being released to try to deal with the carbs' effect on the blood sugar.
If I stick with very low carb eating, I don't notice blood sugar/insulin issues and I'm not starving every hour or two. I can actually skip breakfast AND lunch and not even get shaky or nauseous.
I also realize that fat is what I need to get over carb/sugar cravings. I made a paste of cocoa powder mixed with a teeny bit of hot water & mixed it into a quart of pastured cream. Then I added 10 drops of stevia glycerite, some vanilla & put it in the freezer. Before it was completely frozen, I drizzled some peanut butter for a ripple effect. This has been my go-to snack when i feel snacky & it really hits the spot. No idea how it would rate on the Optimal Diet, but it doesn't cause a noticeable blood sugar reaction and it leaves me feeling satiated.
I've been eating REALLY high fat these past few days - lots of eggs, bacon, lard, butter, cream, bone broth, chicken skin, coconut oil, etc & a few times, I've ended up in the bathroom.
It's kind of funny, ODing on fat.One point I'm confused on is veggies. I don't crave veggies and don't particularly love them - I'm definitely a meat & fat kinda gal. I wonder if I eat enough raw liver on a regular basis, if it's that important?
Our CSA will start in May, so we'll have an abundance of veggies, and I fully intend to use every bit, I just worry about the fiber thing. I do think that fiber is a "menace" and since I'm not drawn to a lot of veggies, I feel like my body isn't needing them. Maybe juicing is something to look into, like Tanya said. I've always been skeptical because it doesn't seem like the natural, whole way of eating them, but who knows.
But still... argh! This is definitely not what we had in mind.
