Culture Shock (vent) .... - Page 2

[ErikaG]

Not that I have time to read it right now, but a number of people have suggested the book Mother Shock to me.

And it was a big change. The worst and scariest part, (maybe the second worst/scariest after the whole "you're not making enough milk" thing which is a story unto itself and thank goodness for a good IBCLC who is helping us with that) is the way she and Daddy have bonded and the way I feel like I can't do that. My Doula, when we were chatting a few days ago, however pointed out that it's like the difference between a new toy and a new job.

It's been a life changing experience and I'm not sure I've accepted all of it yet.

[oyinmama]

Originally Posted by ORLY?

Let me clarify... Usually, I probably wouldn't feel guilty BUT it's Finals week, and he works all day and has actually been getting less sleep than me.

oh oh oh! i see i started my little spinoff thread prematurely - i thought you guys were talking about guilt from putting the child down or letting anyone else care for him/her. . . instead it's the good kind of general run of the mill considerate partner guilt!


anyhoo, motherhood. right. a little overwhelming in the abstract, particularly when i think about all the things that have changed and how permanently and irrevocably they have changed. but our babe has been kind enough to make the transition relatively seamless with his easygoing nature; and our mothers each stayed with us a little bit during the first 1.5 to 2 weeks encouraging, advising, helping out, and easing our way into things. i am soooo thankful.


sending ((( hugs )))

[suzukiaustin]

Article for Ishereal

Hi, lurker here...

Please take the time to read this article...I hope it helps you with your baby's reflux. He may not need the medication at all.

http://www.health-e-learning.com/articles/Lactose.pdf

I gave my ds#1 reflux meds and I think I made a mistake by doing so. After much reading, I discovered that it made his allergies worse. You need stomach acid to digest your food. And babies don't make that much stomach acid this early, if at all...

When you're neutralizing the digestive juices in his tummy, you're leaving food proteins floating around, and his gut is really porous right now. The less he has a chance to develop his digestive system, the more of a chance he will react to other proteins...especially when solids are added. I hope that makes sense.

Anyway, your instincts will tell you what is right. But, please take time to read this article. I wish someone would have sent it to me when I was going through this the first time around.

Good luck.

[ishereal]

Originally Posted by suzukiaustin

Hi, lurker here...

Please take the time to read this article...I hope it helps you with your baby's reflux. He may not need the medication at all.

http://www.health-e-learning.com/articles/Lactose.pdf

I gave my ds#1 reflux meds and I think I made a mistake by doing so. After much reading, I discovered that it made his allergies worse. You need stomach acid to digest your food. And babies don't make that much stomach acid this early, if at all...

When you're neutralizing the digestive juices in his tummy, you're leaving food proteins floating around, and his gut is really porous right now. The less he has a chance to develop his digestive system, the more of a chance he will react to other proteins...especially when solids are added. I hope that makes sense.

Anyway, your instincts will tell you what is right. But, please take time to read this article. I wish someone would have sent it to me when I was going through this the first time around.

Good luck.

Thank you sooooooooooo much !!!

[sparkly]

Here is my cloth diaper plan (I hadn't any experience with it either). It was planned based on being on a tight budget and not having a lot of time or patience for unnecessary fuss. I exclusively breast feed, so his poops are quite pleasant.

24 diapers. I use unbleached prefolds from greenmountaindiapers.com. 24 means I have to wash them about every other day. By now, you would probably be in the infant size (we started with newborn). I washed them twice before using, and that seemed to be plenty to get out the water repelling natural oils.

6 covers. I have 5 super whisper wraps, plus one wool one I made. We did have 3, but that resulted in lots of emergency washing. We have 6 diaper pins.

That's all! To wash them, this seems to be working for us:

Wash in cold, then wash again in hot. I use a partial scoop of Trader Joe's detergent (plant-based, so it's better for the Earth, and it's fragrance, etc. free, and not too expensive). I found a lot of stuff online about avoiding all sorts of things like optical brighteners, etc., because people were getting all worked up and saying that these things destroy the diapers' absorbency, etc., but I haven't found that to be true. As long as there's no fragrance, softeners, or petroleum products, it's a good enough detergent for me. We use it with all our laundry.

If they smell, I will try using vinegar to remove the ammonia smell. So far we haven't had that problem.

I dry them outside on a line. This removes stains naturally and is free!

We change the diapers about every 2 hours during the day, and maybe every 4 hours at night. I dip him in warm water every other day or so to keep him clean (no soap or lotion), and put lanolin on occasionally if he's looking red. I try to keep the cover off of him for a little while whenever I think about it, and sometimes loosely wrap a diaper on him so he can air out. I do these things probably every other day; when it's hotter and humid, I'll probably do it every day.

Cloth diapers are way cheaper, better for the Earth (especially if you are careful with washing water usage and don't use bleach or a dryer), and better for babies' skin.

[3for3hb]

and you may want to try other kinds of diapers/diapering systems too.

it's relatively inexpensive if you buy off the tp here or at a place like diaperswappers (i forget if i'm allwed to mention them or not). and it's relatively risk free because if you buy something that just doesn't work you can turn around and sell it, yk? so oftentimes you aren't out the $$ you spent on it.

to everyone feeling a liitle shell-shocked with motherhood! i so wish any one of you lived near me and i would get together with ya and just listen

[ishereal]

nm

[ishereal]

Originally Posted by Organicavocado

Let me know what kind of diapers you're using and I'll help.

Motherhood hit me like a mack truck too. Its getting easier.

Hey!! I use indian prefolds and I have wool covers. But at the moment I am using the pampers that I said I did not want form my baby shower, LOL.

[3for3hb]

hee hee

[Alpaca Wacka]

Ish-I totally understand your position. I was all gungho to do cloth diapers with my first LO and wound up feeling SO overwhelmed with just negotiating life with a baby that even one more thing was too much for me. We did one or two and then I was sucked in by the sposies. What I wish I'd have realized is that:

#1 You don't have to be a purist about it. Even if you only use a few CD a day, you're STILL doing better than doing all disposables

#2 You don't have to just give up on the whole idea if it's a little too much to deal with at the moment. Even if you don't start till your LO is 6 months old- that's OKAY!

and FWIW- As long as you're trying your best and your child isn't starving or critically ill... you're probably doing a GREAT job.