It’s been a while…a little over four weeks to be exact.

I’m sorry I was M.I.A. for so long. I’ve been away because our baby arrived earlier than anticipated. Recovery has been a long process for me, and I wanted to focus on being present and bonding with our baby. Plus, I was catching as much sleep as I could with a newborn. It’s been exhausting, but I wanted to share a few ‘what to expect’ tips during your baby’s first month.

Mom Wrist

Pregnancy carpal tunnel was nothing compared to the current pain shooting up and down my left wrist and thumb. Apparently, this is mom wrist, a common condition you get from holding, picking up, and carrying your kid. Your wrist is kept at weird angles and the condition creeps up quick. We are at a point now where my wrist locks, and you can hear it click and see it pop as I move it around. It’s horrifying.

It makes it difficult to pick up Grayson sometimes. To help alleviate the discomfort, I use the Boppy pillow when I breastfeed, and use this Baby Björn carrier as much as I can. Using a wrist brace to limit movement was also recommended by my OBGYN.

Baby Blues

My hormones were all over the place after we got home and I kept having bouts of sadness that would come and go. I cried several times a day and felt like I wasn’t doing enough for Grayson. These feelings went away after a couple of weeks, but it’s important to note that Baby Blues is totally normal. As is Postpartum Depression. Baby Blues can sometimes turn into PPD if it doesn’t go away after two weeks, so it’s important to keep an eye on it.

As soon as I felt a pattern of sadness emerging, I told Pat and my mom about it. I wanted to make sure to keep lines of communication open and be honest about my feelings. Best decision I made. My mom dropped everything and spent a lot of time at my house helping me with chores and cooking. Pat altered his work schedule so that he could help me whenever I needed a minute to myself. You’d be surprised how rejuvenating a quiet postpartum shower can be.

If you think you may have PPD or if your have concerns about Baby Blues, talk to your OBGYN. Don’t wait.

Increasing Milk Supply

Breastfeeding is a full time job, an Olympic sport, and never ending. It can get really frustrating when Grayson is cluster-feeding or when he’s feeling gassy (which is always – he’s a fart machine.) To this day, I wonder about whether or not he’s getting enough to eat – even though there’s no longer a reason to worry.

For some background, because of some delivery complications from hypertension, Grayson was loosing too much weight after he was born. It’s normal for babies to lose up to 10% of their birth weight after they’re born. But Grayson had already lost 10% at this first pediatric appointment and they were very concerned. We had to supplement feedings with a couple ounces of formula and do more skin-to-skin. Now, he’s gained back the weight and then some! Baby Gray is our little fat boy.

Supplementing with formula needs to be done after a breastfeeding session, not en lieu of one. The goal is to increase your milk supply and stop supplementing, so it’s important to have that stimulation. It lets your body know to keep producing more milk. What worked for me was letting Gray feed on one breast while using a Haakaa on the other. Whatever I was able to pump, I stored in these reusable storage bags for supplemental bottle feedings. (We added breast milk to formula – our doc said that’s perfectly OK to do!)

Eating well, staying hydrated, and using the Haakaa, I went from pumping less than half an ounce to over two ounces with every feeding! I also started taking Cash Cow supplements for increased milk supply and Sunflower Lecithin for clogged ducts. It’s also hard to pass up a cup, or two, of lactation tea throughout the day.

Minimal Sleep & Loads of Laundry

Newborns wake up every 2-3 hours for feedings, so expect little-to-no sleep. Babies start sleeping for longer stretches around month three, so it’s going to be a rough few months but it gets better, or so I’m told! I try to nap when Grayson sleeps but that’s not always realistic. I have chores that need to get done.

However, chores are very hard to accomplish right now, but Grayson goes through so much laundry. I think I’ve done his more than our own. When I redesigned our laundry room, I definitely didn’t know what to expect…loads and loads of laundry. Thank goodness we made this space so organized & peaceful – I still think it’s my favorite room in the house.

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Right now, I spend most of my time enjoying Grayson’s company. I love playing with him and taking way too many photos of him, then spamming them to friends and family. I’m that mom now and I don’t care, haha! I wasn’t really sure what to expect during the first month, but we made it through and it’s really not that bad. It flies by quick!