Strange Question - Miami,FL

This also happened to me . And I totally understand feeling weird, I hated the fact that my shin bones showed so much. But without trying the weight all came back on quickly. This happened with all 4 of my kids,and I think I gained 5 extra pounds with each ! So my advice is to enjoy it while it lasts!

I forget to eat a lot. I have to remind myself to in fact. If you are nursing, you need to eat more, so eat before you nurse. If you are not nursing, just go and eat a snack, like cheese and crackers, or a turkey sandwich or hard boiled egg, peanut butter on celery or crackers, tuna salad sandwich... something healthy with carbs and protein while you are preparing the bottle.

I lost my baby weight too... but my body definitely moved around, so even though I got smaller again, I still didn't feel right with a loose and saggy tummy!

I swear by the High Protein Ensure drinks. When I was breastfeeding they were a lifesaver because they have the vitamins you need plus lots of protein. Sometimes after the 3AM ish nursing I would feel faint with hunger and they were the perfect thing to down in minutes. They taste good too (old fashioned vanilla was my fave) and you can add fruit etc to make a smoothie. I try to have some on hand even now because if the kids are ever up sick all night and I get hungry it is a great way to get nutrition with little effort.

Hi there! Get your thyroid checked. The same thing happened to me after I gave birth to my son. I lost 25lbs in less than 2 weeks. Turned out to be something called Graves Disease, which was a thyroid issue and the pregnancy just brought it to the forefront. Talk to your doctor and they will do any appropriate bloodwork and get you back on track so you can be feeling your best with that new baby you have! :)
Good luck!

The best way to gain weight is to diet and exercise. I know. Fairly backwards, isn't it? But while the best way to lose weight is to exercise and eat constantly, restricting your calories and continuing to burn them grinds your metabolism to a halt.

You'll probably lose about 10-15 more pounds... but then it will spring back plus quite a bit more as soon as you go back to eating healthily instead of being in starvation-mode. The longer you don't eat (but not long enough to cause organ damage), the longer your body hoards calories.

Right before getting pregnant I was 6'1 and 123 lbs. I was eating *maybe* 400 calories a day tops (long story, omitted) and doing high impact exercise 4-14 hours a day (my job for over a year created this circumstance). It took 3 YEARS of eating 5-6 times a day and moderate exercise before my body began to trust that maybe I was going to continue to feed it enough to keep it alive.

If you aren't nursing then your body isn't giving you the normal signals to EAT(!!!) (that's the body talking, not me..) that Mother Nature designed for us to have to go along with the CONSTANT use of all our energy that mothering a newborn is.

So you are probably doing a lot--even if it seems like you don't get much done with a new baby--and burning all kinds of calories, but too tired to think about eating much, and since your body isn't overriding this with the powerful need for calories that a breastfeeding mama is meant to have to balance it all, you are understandably losing weight. I think with some women--me, for one--there is an evolutionary gene to hold onto body fat when one is breastfeeding and drop it quick when one is not. My ancestors come from cold climates where hunger was a regular thing in the winter, and I found that, contrary to many moms, I kept ALL my baby weight while I was nursing and dropped it precipitously when my toddlers weaned. Maybe that is your genetic makeup as well, so since you stopped nursing in the early weeks, your body just triggered a weight loss as well.

I would urge you to increase fats, complex carbs, and proteins--you can get a lot out of liquids like soy milk if you find it easier to drink than eat solid foods yourself when you are on the go. Keep snacks like nuts at hand all the time. Have a snack every time your baby does.

You don't have to eat a lot, just enough to keep up with whatever energy you are burning while caring for kiddo.

Honestly you may want to get checked out by the doctor. There could be something going on causing the loss of appetite. It could be that your not getting enough sleep or stressing over the new baby, etc...It also could be a medical reason. Women's bodies change when they have a baby. It could be your thyroid. I would talk my doctor if it were me. I wish I could lose weight that easily but I do understand where your coming from. I am overweight and wish it was easier to lose. Good Luck!

Check on WestonPrice, or the book Nourshing Traditions, and eat the right food, and your weight will normalize. Are you exercising? Putting that in will help- muscle weighs more, and besides you need the muscle - motherhood requires it!
Very important to put the weight on with healthy food, this is NOT the time to eat junk.
best, k

Most likely it's your thyroid. You need to have a blood test to confirm it, but you won't be able to keep any weight on until you get this addressed. Just go back to your OBGYN and have them do the test.

L.

Don't worry too much about the weight loss. You are busier than you realize, caring for a newborn, home. Just make sure you eat right, it does not have to be a lot. But you have to eat. Good luck and lots of happiness with the little one.

I had the same thing... turned out to be my thyroid. In my case I lost a TON of weight. (Im 5'7 too, and got down to 132...) We finally caught it because I was having some uncontrollable anxiety issues (panic attacks while riding in a car...blegh) which is another sign of thyroid issues. Got a blood test, got some meds, and got to a comfortable weight... Now I'm having to fight to stay DOWN where I want to be! lol.

If you haven't talked with your doctor about this, I urge you to do so. There could be a medical cause for your lack of appetite. Asking about appetite and weight gain or loss is always one of the questions they ask when doing a physical exam. Your hormones could be off. My first thought is that your thyroid may be producing too much of something. You could also have postpartum depression. Loss of appetite and weight loss can be symptoms of both of those conditions.

Also remember that you body shape has changed with the pregnancy and delivery. I envy your weight loss but also wonder why you want to be at 150-155. I'm 5-6 and at one time in my life weight 120-125 and am still told that is a good weight. For a few months I lost weight and went down to 115 and was told that was still acceptable. I liked being 115 but it didn't last. I'm up to 160 and feel fat. I'm also 67 and find that it is now difficult to lose weight unlike when I was in my 30-40's.

After many tests, I was told that there didn't seem to be a medical issue that caused my weight loss. I was anxious and lost much of my appetite. At that time, when I was anxious, I unconsciously decreased the amount that I ate and without realizing it, increased my activity, trying to get rid of my anxiety.

Could you be anxious? You're certainly busier than usual with a new baby. When I'm faced with something new I usually focus on the new stuff and forget to eat. Even now I can lose 5 lbs. before I realize that I have only been eating once/day.

Back when I wanted to gain weight, I ate all the good stuff that I thought I should avoid. Food like all sorts of ice cream in all forms. Dessert every day. Cake, cookies, pie. Unfortunately I got in the habit and put on 20 lbs. that I didn't want. I can "trick" myself into eating a healthy meal first by telling myself that I will eat healthy before I eat that ice cream.

If this were me, I'd rule out any medical or emotional cause for the weight loss and then buy some new clothes. lol Sorry, if this is what you didn't want to hear. I agree that if you want to be 150 then you should find a way to gain weight.

I would not do anything at all. But, are you sure you may not be depressed? I am the type that could just look at a Twinkie and gain weight...but, after I had my baby, I lost almost 40 lbs in a month. I was happy about it, I thought it was my breastfeeding, but it turned out I was very depressed and did not realize it, and that was why I had no appetite. It was only after the baby was about 4 months old, and after frequent fights with my husband to support me more (whcih he finally did) that my depression started to lift, and I could look back and say, oh wow, I was much sadder than I thought. After the depression faded I gained some of that weight back. I never gained it all back, but I am pretty much back to look at Twinkie-gain weight, so I have to be careful about my caloric intake as usual.

I had a similar situation after my second son was born. I lost all of the baby weight and then some really quickly. Also no appetitie. I think the post partum hormones had a lot to do with it. Happened with my first born as well. I ate a lot of protein bars and smoothies to try and maintain weight. My OB also put me on an antidepressant which helped alot (didn't have the traditional signs of PPD, but loss of appetite can be related) Hope it helps!

I wish I had that problem!! ;) *lqtm*
(Please know I am saying that in jest - not judgementally!)

Seriously though, you might try some protien powders or weight gainer products at a health food store. My brother with a crazy high metabolism used to drink the stuff. I would ask a nutritionist or your doctor to see what they say just to be sure you are doing it in a healthy way.

Are you nursing? If so, you need to increase your calories anyway. Eat high calorie, dense nutrition foods. I would avoid increasing fat, as this is bad for your heart and arteries.

Yes, please get your thyroid checked! If your general practicioner or ob/midwife doesn't know enough about it, go to an endocrinologist!

It's most likely coming from your fluctuation of hormones. You may find that in a few months, you'll regain your appetite and will be back to your old self. Honestly, it's too soon after birth to really tell. Congratulations!

hi, my name is T.; i cant say/nor know why your lost alot of weight, but i can say that i too lost my appitiete when i had my son. i still, after three and a half years, dont get very hungry in a day. why that is, i dont know, i never asked my dr. you might want to ask yours. they would know more than i.

I agree, call the doctor. Our bodies turn so weird after having children. Could be your thyroid or something.

Have you considered weight training? The first benefit is that you will want to eat more because you body needs to nourish the new muscles you are working on. also, muscle weighs more so you will gain the weight too. You may also want to talk to your doc, maybe something else is going on that needs to be addressed.

Good luck!