One of the first questions people ask when you're pregnant is "will you breastfeed?" My answer was "yes, I will." It turned out, for me, things weren't so simple. I didn't have adequate milk flow and wasn't able to feed my baby. I cried and cried and kept crying. I started pumping every two hours (as recommended) and it wasn't always easy. I'm writing this for moms who pump and get 0 mL and 5 mL. Yes, thats a total of 5mL I would get sometimes. IT BROKE MY HEART. I remember pumping out 20 mL... it was both exciting and sad. I was excited to get out SO MUCH and sad because I knew it still wasn't enough for a feeding. Luckily, I had people who cared about me who encouraged me to keep it up. They told me that the milk will come. They said for now the small doses of breast milk was better than nothing. So thats what I did. I had UPS and DOWNS. Sometimes I felt good and other times I felt like giving up. I started recording the amounts I pumped to see if there was improvement. Spoiler Alert: At one point I was able to feed my baby only breast milk. Not only that, but I was even able to store surplus in the freezer. I never thought that would happen, especially in the beginning when I was getting 15-20 mL out. So, if you're struggling ...there's hope. Keep going! And you're doing great Mama! 2 Weeks of Pumping:60 Days:My goal is complete 6 months of recording amounts. Producing more Breast Milk:1. Pump every 2 hours. (At times it would be 3 hours, especially at night. Also, I moved to every 4 hours once I was making enough milk.) 2. Pump for 20 min. (I used a double pump) 3. Every time I pumped I drank 500 mL of water 4. I drank Fennel tea or Weleda tea (with fenugreek, fennel, etc) three times a day. 5. I made sure to eat often. 6. I played classical music while pumping to relax me. 7. I tried to have my baby near me while I pumped. This post is random but because I had a hard time finding the info online I decided to write a post.
Do you need: Single Status Affidavit/Certificate or Certificate of No Record of Marriage (Basically Proof of Single Status or Free to Marry Statement) Step 1: Go to the County Clerk's Office 50 W Washington St, East Concourse Level, 312-603-5656 Step 2: Request a copy of a "Marriage Certificate." It costs $15 for the first copy and $4 for additional copies. They will do the look up and if you haven't been married then you will get a "No Record of Marriage Certificate." Step 3: Go to the Secretary of State, INDEX department, 17 N State St Set 1010, 60602, 312-814-8218. Bring the "No Record of Marriage Certificate" from the County Clerk. Step 4: They will have a form there for you to fill out. It is called the "Application for Authentication or Apostille Certifying Documents for foreign Use." Fill it out. The cost is $2 per document. You will then receive the Apostille, which contains a seal. Hope this helps! I just finished going through my website and it spoke to me. On my homepage my eyes watered to read "Hold On. It's not over." You see a lot has happened since my last Note.
I was happy. I was hopeful. I felt great. I knew things would work out. Then came the struggle. First, I lost most of my belongings when I stored my things in a storage unit. This company knew there was an issue with the pipe and didn't tell me so they took zero responsibility for what happened. I threw away most of my shoes so going into this cold weather I have no shoes to wear. On the plus side I get to go shopping, but that's not the point. My life is changing and I feel like I am in a transition phase in my personal and professional life. I thought I was ok with not knowing. Do you know what it feels like when you work so hard to move forward; it feels like forever, but then I stand still and its like I haven't moved, not even an inch? Then you look around. Yes I am grateful. I go back and forth from being content to wondering what's next. And on top of all of this I have been watching the news which reminds me why I don't like to watch the news. What's going to happen in 1o years with this climate issue change? What are we doing to our Earth? And then #MeToo, hm, women who speak up and then instead of believing us we are questioned. The irrelevant parts of our lives are used to discredit a truth. Questions requiring detailed information, but how could we and why would we remember every single thing. Wouldn't it be more suspicious if we could answer every single of your detailed questions?? Why am I writing this? Well, because I also have my bad days. I love my life with all my heart and soul...even so I still have bad days. This moment in time is happening for a reason and maybe I don't understand it but thats ok. I have to focus on being the light and shining. Maybe for now I am meant to relax, catch up on sleep, spend time with family, and finish school. In March I was focusing a lot of my energy in one place. I voiced the desire to take time off to focus on another major area of my life (one that is coming to an end this year). Things didn't exactly work out the way I thought they would.
I did what few could do. I took a chance on me. I said my goodbyes and I began a new journey. Currently life is filled with so many unforgettable moments (even if I have moments of being scared of whats next). I don't have everything planned. I only know what I am doing these next few weeks and then life will change again for me. I don't know everything. And I don't need to know. I trust. Life is greater than we imagine it to be. And anything is possible. I have felt overwhelmed lately. Normally I can juggle a couple of things and manage just fine, but recently I've had too many things....and I was afraid I would drop the ball.
One area of my life has been my everything and I mean everything. The last couple of months this one area took priority over everything else. At the same time 2018 brought on more than one project as I began a class and my practicum and starting my thesis. And moving. And this and that. And feeling like as much as I try I can't keep up. And when I come up for air, at times someone was trying to push me down and I was unable to take a breath I needed to keep going. I don't cry and I wanted to cry. As I take a moment right now to pause and reflect (while I listen to music) I realize I am lucky. Everything I have done in the last six months has been hard work towards something greater. I am creating my future with all the things I have been doing. It doesn't matter who noticed and who hasn't. I'm not drowning. It could be that others aren't helping, but thats ok because I can just move past them. I won't be held back. Maybe I can't see the results of my hard work now but thats because I am still building. There's still more work to do and I am ready. Ok so maybe I haven't worked out in a long time because I chose to sleep whenever I wasn't working or studying. That's fine. I love sleep and I needed it. My body thanks me. Things are slowing down a bit soon and I'll be able to juggle a few things. I can handle that. I've caught my breath. I stopped long enough to look back and see how far I've gone, this is why I felt tired. Ok, so I can smile and keep going. This is my metaphorical marathon and I'm about halfway done. I can do this! And so can you! Keep going. I know what it feels like when you heart feels like its broken into a thousand pieces. There's a loss that no person can replace because that person was irreplaceable.
You try to distract yourself with other activities but then when you are sitting quietly alone it comes back. At first the denial makes is so much better because you think, "No, no this is not real. I'll get a call." And after the denial fades it hurts so bad! SO BAD! And you want to scream. You just want to throw yourself on the bed and bury your tears, your sobs, your misery...bury all of it in the comfort of a pillow. You need some time to be alone. As the day comes to an end, the darkness and shadows of the night become a close friend. In this darkness you fade into sleep with a hope that you'll wake up and it will all just be a dream. Out of this same darkness and shadow something magical may happen. A person appears to you like a light you needed all along. Its the comfort of a person who cares enough about you to think of you and to say, "I know you are in pain." It starts with a feeling in your heart. You become thankful. You smile. You remember all the good things of the person no longer in your life. You feel a sense of calm in your heart. Pain is real, but it doesn't have to last forever. It'll change. For some broken hearts, like an ex, it means slowly forgetting. Or you may slowly let go of the pain of a friend who's no longer a friend. Or the pain of losing someone transforms into great love... because thats what their life stood for, it was love all along... it was the love they had for you. That love is so much greater than the pain, so if you allow it... hold onto that great love in your heart. This great love gives you life. Love always, Sandy. Dedicated to broken hearts, especially for you dear friend, and those who have lost a parent. It's been a long time since I wrote and I want to share with you a few things.
I'm working as an RN, working on my Masters, finished a Plant Based Nutrition Program through eCornell, and am working on my next book. I want you to be healthy and happy. I only work with a small private group of people right now but hope to expand in the future. I want you to be physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually healthy. Please feel free to reach out to me. Until next time. I can remember not to long ago being rejected over and over again. I worked hard and it wasn't paying off. It seemed as if nobody was able to see my hard work and efforts...it was frustrating. Luckily I kept going knowing in my mind it would take time.
I completed a very intense program where I learned so much. I was able to get ahead in life, let go of many terrible evil people in my life who were all about destruction, lies, and deceit.... and I became stronger. Now I am off to new challenges and projects. Things I could not even dream of. I want to tell you to keep being the person you are no matter where you are in life. Maybe your environment is crap. Maybe the people around you are crap. Maybe your job is crap. None of that matters....because in the end you have the choice of how you choose to live your life. I still get mad and frustrated at situations but I do not let it affect how I treat myself or others. I'm not exactly where I want to be but I am very close to getting my foundation set up just right. I am in a very good place and I have to keep going to really take off. It wasn't my time before and it still isn't quite yet, but soon. So for you, be the good person I know you are. Love, always. Sandy Happy New Year! Here's the deal. I've taken on a year long project ending December 2015, for now my long and VERY thick hair was getting in the way, literally weighing me down (nothing could hold it back not even a ginormous claw clip I bought). ....Anywho, I wasn't working out and I was spending too much time fixing my hair so I cut it! What do you think? I recently embarked on a new journey, one that is going to last a little over a year. It's both exciting and nerve racking. The thrill of what's to come after this challenge makes me strong on the days I feel weak. Yes, I have days of feeling like this was all a bad idea. What did I get myself into? Have you felt this way?
Here's the thing, each moment that feels like a setback becomes an opportunity to figure out a different way. Just look at the picture above with the phone in pieces! Oh boy! I tell ya, there have been days when I tried to piece it all together and I couldn't. I had to let it go, sleep on it, then approach it with a new perspective..... because thats how things go sometimes. This year long journey is more than I imagined it would be. I chose it. It is allowing me to grow in so many ways as a person, for which I am grateful. Things haven't necessarily gone as planned, but they sure have been fun (hindsight). I'm still at the start of it all and I wonder how things will be in 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, 12 months.... I wonder..... And I also think back to a year ago today and how never in a million years would I have believed you if you would have told me that I would be where I am today. So there. That's life. |
Got the world figured out?I did, until it came crashing down. I had no choice but to start over and rebuild. Featured:
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