I was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism almost a year after giving birth to my first daughter. The symptoms really started after a bad bout of flu but it took me months to do anything about it. I attributed my fatigue to lots of sleepless nights with a demanding breastfed baby but after spending ten days on a beautiful beach where I slept every afternoon and should have felt wonderful, I remember returning home feeling nauseated, yellow, constipated and exhausted. My hair was also falling out, I had lost my appetite and…

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It’s just starting to dawn on me, now that I feel half normal again, that I need to start pumping. I pumped with my last child and one of my fondest memories is a trip I made to LA for work five months after giving birth and pulling out my pump in a diner bathroom because my boobs were literally aching. Pumping is not a very sexy activity in my humble opinion but for working mothers who are still breastfeeding and more importantly for a woman who just wants to…

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I love Aviva Romm, and her book “Natural Health After Birth” (available in my reading materials section) is a must read for new mothers. I know you can’t plan your birth and a new baby can bring many different experiences so it makes sense to give yourself the best start possible in those last few weeks before a baby is born. (The image is of the Nettle plant - read on for its beneficial qualities).

Aviva writes, “Excellent nutrition and adquate rest in late pregnancy improve…

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I was just watching Ellen DeGeneres on TV…. no not the Oscars, one of her stand-up comedy shows. She was talking about how dreadful TV is these days and how adverts for Paxil and Prozac asking if you are depressed, suffering from anxiety and sad while you are watching the horrors on CNN are just meaningless. I mean, isn’t that just part of the human condition? Aren’t you supposed to feel like that when you watch CNN? Obviously she was trivializing serious problems to show how the…

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I didn’t know about Arnica as a general recovery herb but a friend who had a C-Section swears by it. It is used externally for aches, strains, bruises and injuries where the skin has not been broken. Arnica can also be taken internally in minute or homeopathic dosages and is best prescribed by an experienced practitioner. All the same, I found a great book “The Homeopathic Childbirth Manual” (I just added it to my reading list) that recommends dosages of Arnica taken homeopathically during labor and after…

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Two weeks into the “recovery period” and wondering about the sleep thing. The problem for most of us somewhat ambitious “‘yes-I-have-a-life” women is that we want to do MORE than breastfeed and change diapers. So as much as we know getting some shut-eye would probably make sense if the baby has fallen asleep, a new entry to my blog seems even MORE appealing.

I wonder what drives us to do such unsensible things? Is it a strong desire to feel like we haven’t lost our old lives entirely? From a…

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Last night I went out late, yes I am 38 weeks pregnant, but it was a friend’s birthday and I thought what the hell, I feel good. I got home around 2AM and my daughter had just woken up so it took a few minutes to put her back to sleep. Then I decided I fancied a snack and since I am a bit of an insomniac at the moment I went downstairs to surf on the net (great for sending me to sleep) and have a slice of toast…

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I have to confess, I have not really suffered from constipation during either of my pregnancies, in fact, frequently I seem to suffer from the opposite, especially when I indulge in lots of leafy greens. Still, the BIG C is definitely a common complaint and it seems you have to try out a few options but rest assured something is going to work.

I took a look around and the usual advice seems to be focused around, yes you guessed it, leafy greens, drinking lots of water (6-8 glasses a…

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There seem to be a lot of very varied opinions and experiences around pain medication, specifically epidurals. I found this really interesting site that has all sorts of personal experiences from professionals and mothers who talk about their impressions. Take a look, it’s a fascinating read.

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I had a very interesting and long chat with a friend of mine who is just nine weeks pregnant. She lives in the UK and was just trying to muddle through how and where she wanted to give birth. She said, “what’s a birthing plan, I can’t seem to figure it out?” I breezed over the question telling her I never bothered with it and anyway, no one can plan a birth. But when I put down the phone and started to research the whole subject, I realized that actually…

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