i feel sooo unattractive and like my body is no longer my own.......

[frazzledfairy]

dd is 6 1/2 weeks old and bf and i feel like a dairy cow

i am enjoying bfing and really wanted to do it (i didn't manage to feed ds 1 or 2) but really do feel bad about my appearance

also the leaky boobs and let down reflex (which i find painful and a bit toe curling) are making me feel that my body is no longer my own.

i really hate having enormous norks, normally i barely fill a B cup, at the mo they are an E!

it probably doesn't help that there is a pretty small gap between ds2 and dd (14 months) so i was pg with ds2 then expressed milk for 6 weeks then had a brief 3 month period when my bod was (kind of!) my own then became pg with dd and now am bf, feel like my body hasn't beloged to me for 2 years!

did/does anyone else feel like this? tia

I definitely felt my body wasn't my own, and it probably contributed to me stopping bf when I did. (I bf both dds for 8 months, but there is only 15 months between them so I was bf and pg at the same time for a while)

At 6 1/2 weeks in you are doing really well, and there is still time for your breasts to settle back to a smaller size while you continue to feed.

I hope someone with more useful advice comes along soon, but just wanted you to know ou aren't alone.

This is exactly how I felt with both my DDs so I don't think you are unusual in feeling this way at all.

I managed to bf with DD1 until she was 11 weeks but I stopped BF DD2 at 9 months.

I think what helped the second time was being out and about with other BF mums, it made it more 'the norm'. I did feel strongest about it all in the early days and I think it does get better as time goes on (although there were always bad days).

hth

Enormous norks are a PITA - why would anyone want a breast enlargement????????

Your boobs will settle down to a more manageable size and as the baby grows, you will be able to space your feeds a bit more.

I felt like this but can i say that 3 years after the birth of my second child i am slimmer and fitter than beofre??

yeah i feel like this, am expressing at the moment as have had problems bf but even feel pressure of having to eat healthy all the time for the milk i produce, you're not alone, think this is a common feeling

I felt like this as well ff.

The leaking will stop. I am stil bfing my 10 month old and haven't leaked once since he was about 12 weeks old ish.

I too hate having enormous norks. One thing that made me feel soooo much better about my appearance was buying an underwired Anita nursing bra.

It does settle down after a while, IME after about 2-3 months. Now at 7 months (still feeding DS2 and I fed DS1 till he was 2) my boobs are back to normal size and most of my baby weight has gone and my tummy almost flat again. Am sure breastfeeding helps you to lose the baby weight and shrink your tummy more easily than if you FF. Lets just say I haven't been watching what I eat (or drink)
Agree with trixy, def worth getting an underwired Anita nursing bra - bought two from Figleaves with 20% discount, worth every penny!