Ever since I got pregnant with my second child, I’ve done a poor job of remembering to hydrate. Even as I type this, the back of my throat feels a bit dry! What is it about parenting young children that just sucks up all my concentration until I don’t even remember to drink water?
It’s super important to stay hydrated while nursing, most particularly while tandem nursing as I’m doing right now. When I stand up with a headache, I remember I haven’t had water in hours and of course I feel lousy.
I’ve tried a few strategies. I bought myself a nice, big water bottle (it holds 1,000 mL!) and I try to keep it close by me at all times…but my older kids love to drink from it and so it’s usually empty when I grab for it during a nursing session.
I try to always drink a glass of water each time I walk into the kitchen, but usually my toddler has filled my water glass with raisins or hard-boiled egg yolks.
Sometimes, I turn on an hourly chime on my phone, which tells me to stop what I’m doing and go get a drink.
When I’m working, I have no trouble drinking countless glasses of water. It’s only while I’m home with my boys that I get so wrapped up in parenting that I forget even this most simple element of self-care.
Have you found a way to stay hydrated while nursing? I’d love to hear your suggestions!
[…] I’m supposed to focus on healthy fats and protein while I’m in this life phase. Heck, I can’t even remember to drink water most of the time. How am I supposed to focus on eating well to calm the savage nursing hunger beast […]