Greeting from the throes of Hormone Hell! (If you are reading this and are a dude, you MIGHT wanna bail now. That means, YOU, Dad! And YOU, Uncle Dan!)
Ok, anyways. It’s that time of the month. Ever since my period returned when Sophie was 10 months old, my hormones have been torturing me. So I write this as I am on day THREE of a terrible headache. The cramps weren’t really that bad his time around, for which I am thankful! But unfortunately, this isn’t the only time during my cycle when the hormones and I duke it out. They also smack me with a nice headache or two when I’m fertile. These are sometimes accompanies by puking. And then there’s the zits. Giant, sore, swollen spots on my forehead. One is either starting or healing virtually ALL the time. I get one when I’m fertile and one just before my period. I am starting to get scars. I never had acne like this when I was a teenager, but now that I’m thirty, well, they are making up for lost time.
Finally, there’s the mood swings. The night before I got my period this time I was seriously so depressed, I just wanted to crawl into a hole and disappear. I am normally an upbeat person, but these hormones just make me crazy sometimes. I knew it was totally irrational. All I could do was go to bed. I knew I would feel calmer in the morning (and I did). But I’d rather just skip that feeling altogether.
There are two solutions to this problem: get pregnant (Hee-ell no, sorry Mom!) or wean Sophie and get back on the ol’ birth control pill. I seriously care MORE that it regulates my horror-moans than I do that it prevents pregnancy.
So. I need to wean this girl. She is 20 months old for goodness sake, I think I’ve done my duty.
But she’s my baby.
And she’s very strong-willed.
And she loves her some nursing.
And she really does not like the idea of giving it up.
And the sound of her screaming makes me want to jump off a bridge.
But I’m tired of my hormones taking me from this:
To this:
So tell me, world wide interwebz, what do I do?
I’m sorry you are having “horror moans”! Maybe the best thing would be to get back on the pill, if that helped you before. Guess I really need to wean mine now, he already seems too attached. Poor Sophie, she looks so upset in that picture!
i would quit nursing 🙂 you have been a great mommy and done it for a long time, now she is just addicted!
Wear a blindfold and earplugs so you don’t have to see poor Sohpie’s face and hear her crying as you wean her.
Other than that, I’m fresh out of ideas!
I recognize you with the claws out and all…but who is that other women in the other picture?
I know going back on the pill helped me IMMENSELY! Good luck!!!!
it will probably be hard for a week but she will survive…..you will too….. maybe you could start when we go away for the weekend in oct. if you can wait that long..
I know that can’t be fun- but, speaking as someone that likes to nurse longer : ) have you considered other natural options like herbs and things that will do the same work as the birth control, but have no side effects for baby? Just an idea, but ultimately you need to do what is best for you and your sanity!
Steph
I have yet to figure out how to wean my kids without getting pregnant with the next one. Jacob weaned at 19 months…I was 7 months pg. with Ellie. Ellie weaned at 26 months…I was 5 months pg. with Emmaline. Emmaline is still happily nursing at 17 months. We don’t plan on having any more for a few years, so hopefully she won’t still be nursing when she starts kindergarten.
And I totally agree with my face breaking out more since I turned 30. I’m attributing it to being pregnant or breastfeeding for the past 6 1/2 years. The pill isn’t an option for me because it turns me into a moody mess, but if it works for you, I’d say go for it.
Personally, I’ve never been on the pill {yes, I know, that would attribute the 7 kids 😛 }, but medication in general has funny effects on me, so I would be wary of taking anything like that.
I’m sorry to hear your cycle is causing all this madness. After being pregnant/breastfeeding for the past 10 years, I’ve never reallly had a long cycle {just long enough so that we could have our next baby 😉 }, so now that the baby is done breastfeeding, I’ve gotten to your point. I do find the hormones are awful, and the break-outs are weird! I have more zits at 30 than I ever had as a teenager, I’m with you there also.
The suggestion to look into natural herbs is a very good one, where you wouldn’t need to wean your daughter until she was ready, and it might be more gently on your system.
Good luck with whatever decision you take!
I’m open to the whole herb thing, if anyone could point me in the right direction, speak up!
Delurking to say hi! And also to mention that there is an estrogen only birth control pill that you can take while nursing. My doctor mentioned it to me after I gave birth. It’s not as effective as the combination pill for birth control, but for hormonal swings it might just do the trick. You might want to ask about it.
As I type this I have a raging zit on my chin. Nasty! And I agree, more zits now than when I was a teen. And I AM on the pill. Actually, I skip placebo pills so I only have a cycle two or three times a year (yes, this is doctor approved)
No advice for you other than think about Lunapads and/or a Diva Cup. I’ve read testimonial after testimonial about people who have much better periods using natural products. (shrug)
Get an UID!!!
No Periods, no cramps, no weird moodswings!!!
I haven’t been through any of this since I got pregnant Feb 2006. Daughter was born in Nov had the IUD put in in Dec.
Think of the money you would save on pads/tampons, migraine meds, zit cream..
As you know, I read books about the pioneers and mountain women, and they weaned stubborn nursers by putting something distasteful on their breasts, like vinegar. Those ladies were ahead of their time- adversive conditioning, anyone? Try pickle juice, but knowing Princess Sophie, she would love it.
When I had menstrual headaches, I took an iron pill each day. They really helped with the chocolate and sugar cravings. Less sugar equals more stable moods. A multi-vitamin wouldn’t hurt, either. In fact, a good prescription pre-natal vitamin might help a lot. ( I take them and I am not trying to get pregnant.).
If that doesn’t work and your hormones are still wild, you might want to go to a doctor and get your blood levels checked. An older doc might be better as they’ve lived their lives and have less to lose if you get a bit wild. 🙂
When my girls weaned, it was super allergy season. I started taking sudafed, which was recommended by a doctor, but it DRIED ME UP! There wasn’t any milk there for the girls, so they didn’t want to bother anymore.
Boy, Bobby is a lucky man to wake up to the 2nd picture of you every morning.
to go along with DeeDee’s idea, I have some nasty stuff that was perscribed by Faith’s dentist to put on her thumb to stop her from sucking it. It smells like a mix between nail polish remover and funiture polish, but is ok to ingest. If you want some for Sophie let me know.
White Castle burgers are pretty nasty…maybe you could stick one of them on there.
Sorry, no advice on weaning…luckily Avery finally just quit. I am in the same boat with you on the acne and moods/emotions, though. Face is blechhhh and I actually CRIED on Monday because Ashlyn’s teacher isn’t teaching this year! For me, the IUD is NOT helping all the “side effects” of that monthly cycle!
I had and IUD put in 4 years ago also. My last period was about a month after I had it put in. I haven’t had a period or any side effects from it at all. I just love it.
Maybe you can look into that option. It will save money with no tampons or pads to buy. Plus you and hubby can have relations whenever you want. Hehehe that is the best part. 🙂
I was gonna say the same thing as Anne-Marie…there may be other factors besides nursing (ie. thyroid, anemia, etc….) so maybe some bloodwork would at least point you in the right direction. And as far as weaning Sophie, I always tell myself that whenever something “tragic” happens to my kids, they won’t remember it later in life anyway =) She might be upset for a little while, but chances are she won’t bring it up on her first day of school…Praying for you =) ps.=by the way, after reading your post about finding odds and ends in Sophies diaper, that very same day I found a McDonald’s toy in my son’s!!! I laughed so hard!!!
I’m sorry to hear you’re having a hard time. See if you can find a good chiropractor or herbalist in your area to give you some direction.
Also I didn’t know if you were aware, but your dr. probably would never tell you that the pill or any form of horomonal birth control (the patch, IUD, Depo shot, etc.) can have an abortificant affect. Sorry to break it to you.
As a Christian, we’ve come to the conclusion that God doesn’t mean for us to use any birth control – and we’ve been so blessed not to have to worry about that! But that’s just me and where I am in my journey. I just wanted to make sure you were aware of the facts.
I do not have any weaning advice for you, but I WOULD like to know what concealer you use? Your face looks awesome! Can’t even tell anything zit like is there! You must share your secret formula……pretty please?