When Drew turned 8 months old, I started to drop weight seriously fast. We had a stomach bug, too, so that helped. I’ve always been “athletic-built”, but I’ve never had weight fall off me this fast. I’m down below my beginning pregnancy weight, but I could probably stand to lost another 15 lbs to be at my ideal weight. I haven’t been that since my sophomore year of college, but I’m not freaking out yet.

You are right to see your doctor. I’ve heard some women do have thyroid issues post-baby, and its usually something easy to fix with a pill. I hope its just because you are serving up that liquid gold like I am, but if its something more, I hope its found quickly.

Maybe a few fudge rounds here and there wouldn’t hurt? Just kidding. Good for you being all healthy. I try, but it doesn’t help when I want dessert after all 3 square meals!

I think it could be the reason. But don’t worry. It’s not an issue at all. You can easily put it off. Do regular workout or have some diet plan.
@ http://www.herbaldiet.com

It is the nursing. I (and others I know) have started to drop weight really fast after my babies have turned six months and usually hit a low around a year. Don’t worry – you will likely gain it back when you stop nursing :-) I am still nursing my 18-month old (who is my second), but now I am down to one feeding a day and can feel the weight creeping back on.

I have the same problem. Amelia turned six months in early December and I lost ten pounds over the holidays! Despite tons of food I’m not regaining. I’m glad to know I’m not the only one.

when my daughter turned 6 months i had lost 34 pounds of the 40 i had gained during the pregnancy. Without changing a thing i lost another 23 pounds in the next two months. The weight just fell off of me. Then it stopped when she was 8-9 months old. I think seeing your doctor is a good thing to put your mind at ease. I use myfitnesspal.com and also the myfitness pal app on my iphone a couple times a week just to make sure that i am eating 1800 calories or more a day. 1200 is the lowest a non breastfeeding woman should ever go and since you are breastfeeding you are probably buring around an extra 600 cals/day. I would shoot for above 1800 and if you are still losing weight increase it to 1900-2000. That is if you are not exercising, if you are burning calories exercising as well you will need to add those back in to your diet. Good luck!

I’m the same way. I saw my GP when my son was about 6 months old for a physical. I was so thin that he asked me if I had an eating disorder (I don’t!). I was just breastfeeding. The same thing happened when I had my daughter but the weight loss has been more pronounced this time. I’m slowly starting to gain some of it back which is nice. I was looking sick before. My son is not nursing less which seems to have help with the weight gain. Good luck at the doctor.

I remember when you first posted about this issue a while back on Dear Baby. It’s kind of an awkward thing to post about because I’m sure there are a lot of people that read it and roll their eyes out of disbelief or envy. But I was in your same boat and thank you for your honesty in addressing a very real situation. Let em’ roll their eyes. I lost a lot of weight breastfeeding. I’m very thin, naturally to begin with, so when I lost a lot of weight it was more than I wanted/could stand to lose. I’m pregnant again, just started my second trimester, and am still under my first pre pregnancy weight. I don’t think you have any reason to worry and I wouldn’t necessarily go have your thyroid checked out, but that’s a personal decision. You, of course, know what’s best for yourself. But, based on the comments, I don’t think what you are going through is abnormal. You just have to increase your calorie intake. The baby will take from you whatever he needs at the cost of your own nutrition so you have to really concentrate on eating smartly. If anything, I would hook up with a nutritionist and have them suggest some foodsd that offer more calories but are still healthy. Good luck!

ashley @ http://www.thestorkandthebeanstalk.com

Thank you for this! As a naturally thin person normally I have lost an extra 10 pounds past my pre-baby size and my butt is no where to be seen. My jeans hang off me and I feel like I look too thin. I have added smoothies (with yogurt, protein poweder, spinach and misc. fruits) to my morning ruitine and while I try to eat healthy during the day I never pass up a treat if it is offered! Declan will be 1 next week but I don’t think breastfeeding will end for at least another 6 months. Be sure to share if you find any great weight-gaining tips!

The weight loss thing is a little scary. My weight dipped super low at 6 months and I was just unhealthy in general – excessive hair loss and brittle nails. But I started to gain around 9 months and I seem to be at a healthy weight just one month later. I did start eating more protein in between meals and actually, it’s given me a lot more energy.

I had a very similar problem, Melissa, but for me the dramatic weight loss started only a couple of months after my daughter was born. By the time I went back to work 4.5 months post-partum, I was skinnier than I’d been EVER in my life. At that same time, I also started to struggle with producing enough milk. It all came down to not eating enough calories. Here are some pretty simple things I started doing to both increase my calorie count and my milk production:

1. eat a bowl of oatmeal every morning (in addition to whatever you normally eat for breakfast an hour or so later). the bowl doesn’t have to be huge but oats are good milk makers!

2. every single time i sat down to pump, i ate a handful (or a few!) of almonds or some other type of nut and drank a big glass of water.

3. i started drinking a beer every night after my daughter went to sleep (since i knew it would be 3-4 hours before i’d need to BF her again). the whole “beer is a good milk maker” thing isn’t proven but i did notice a difference. it’s the brewer’s yeast!

4. eat an extra cookie everyday. i tried to eat a “healthy” cookie like oatmeal or wheat germ or flax. i really like these cookies http://www.milkmakers.com/ but they can be pretty expensive. you might be able to find a recipe for something similar. edit: just googled and found this recipe (looks yummy): http://www.food.com/recipe/oatmeal-chocolate-chip-lactation-cookies-by-noel-trujillo-192346.

I know it’s hard to find the time to eat extra calories when you can barely consume normal calories. good luck!

oh, BTW, i’m now pregnant with #2 and still nursing #1 (at 18 mos). talk about having to eat for 3!! so far so good!

YES! oh my gosh, me too!! I thought I was the only one. NONE Of my pants fit- all too big, and I keep losing weight. I’m short and petite, so I usually hover under 110, (which is still “underweight” for my bmi) but now I’m closer to double digits. Every time I try to ask questions about it to other mothers, I get the sarcastic “wish I had that problem” or “we know you’re skinny and we hate you for it”. Said with a smile, of course. I feel like I am eating enough. I sometimes out eat my husband! My son is ten months old, and I’m sure hoping that I stop losing weight soon! Please let us know what you find out!

why don’t you just eat more??? I am confused.

i had a similar problem, but my weight dropped off almost immediately. i weighed 145 giving birth. 3 months later, i weighed 108.. but i had only gained 20lbs during the whole pregnancy (and lost 37!).

it was definitely from nursing, and having a newborn. lack of sleep & not stopping enough to think about feeding myself also.

may all your tests come back normal & things level out for you :)

Maybe you should all count your blessings that you have this “problem”. I just weaned my 11 month old son who was nursing every 3 hours, and I was running 4-6 miles plus doing 30 minutes of weights every day not to mention cutting calories on top of that. I couldn’t lose a pound. It kills me when people complain about losing too much weight.

A good way to track your calories is to use myfitnesspal.com..

It’s totally free and they literally have just about every single food you could ever eat on there along with how much calories etc are in the foods.

All you have to do is sign-up then start entering your intake for breakfast, lunch,dinner and snacks!

Melissa,
I experienced crazy weight loss after ACE went into the hospital and then with all my breast and intestinal issues. I have and continued to eat a ton of fat and calories and just was and still are unable to gain weight. I eat 3 full meals a day along with snack in between meals. I tried eating carrot cake ever single night for 2 weeks straight and still no luck gaining weight. I know I eat at least 2,000 calories a dayI know part of it is good genetics and after lots of testing, part of it is stress. I am 5’7″ and weigh 107 lbs on a good day! My doctor has finally told me to stop stressing, that I am just a thin person. As long and I am eating healthy and taking care of myself then he is not concerned. He said my face looks nice and full and not gaunt so no need to worry. Just do your best to eat well and take care of yourself the best you can.

After my mom had my brother (her third baby) she started losing weight rapidly. Then she developed on again/off again digestive problems. It took 15 years for a doctor (her ob/gyn of all people) to diagnose her with Celiac’s disease. Her body had literly starved itself because she couldn’t digest glutton. If you notice any other issues I would bring it up with your doctor!

My daughter is 5 months old and a fabulous nurser. I lost weight super fast after her birth, which was great! I loved it! But I was also very concerned about losing my milk if I lost too much weight, so I kept eating more and more. Forget 2,000 calories; I eat closer to 4,000 calories daily to maintain my weight. And my kid hasn’t hit the six month surge. If your doctor doesn’t find anything wrong with you (and I hope she doesn’t), don’t think you are the only one who needs to eat an entire grocery store aisle every day. Just try to enjoy it while it lasts! That being said, I’m not trying to diminish your concerns, it’s great you’re being proactive and getting checked out, only trying to reassure you that if nothing is medically wrong, you aren’t alone.