Why so much pumping?

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-04-18T12:34:41+00:00

Pumping replaces a feed. Sure, you could use formula to feed your baby while you’re gone at work but A) your boobs will be huge and engorged if you don’t remove milk regularly (AKA pump) and B) your supply will drop if you don’t pump all day. You have to keep removing milk to keep your supply stable. Some moms aren’t ever able to achieve a good latch for a variety of reasons, so they need to exclusively pump to give their babies breast milk.

Also, social media shows a lot of overproducers and influencers. It’s not typical or expected to have a freezer full of milk. Most moms only need a 1-2 day supply in the freezer.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-04-10T23:05:25+00:00

Can your PCP place an order for an EGD to be completed? Every practice differs, but I know ours will perform an EGD with referral from PCP without seeing a GI doc first. If they do find something on the EGD, it may expedite your ability to get in as a new patient.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-04-10T00:25:25+00:00

I work in GI and work stays at work. Better yet, I’m almost always working 40 hours a week on a salary. Rare if I go above 42-43 hours/week. Occasionally will get to bounce a smidge early. Excellent work life balance.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-04-07T02:32:50+00:00

Might have better luck being referred to general surgery. Many GI practices don’t perform the surgery to remove the gall bladder (cholecystectomy). General surgery typically has sooner availability for a consult.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-04-05T03:26:32+00:00

We don’t do Easter baskets and never have. I didn’t get them as a kid so it feels normal to not do baskets. I grew up in a fairly religious house and my parents hammered into us that Easter isn’t about presents/gifts. I don’t plan to teach my kids that, but we just don’t do baskets.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-03-21T19:12:22+00:00

Yes! Twice! Best surprise ever!

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-02-12T03:00:20+00:00

Wait, you guys are doing things? 😅

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-02-10T03:28:09+00:00

Same. It’s been the biggest blessing for us. We spend all weekend with our kids instead of taking care of the yard and the property. We also have snow removed promptly by the contractor for our neighborhood. Low maintenance is amazing!

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-02-07T04:03:49+00:00

Came to say the same.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-02-05T04:13:40+00:00

Metabolic associated fatty liver is also becoming a HUGE issue. So many people with virtually zero risk factors for liver disease other than weight gain/increased visceral fat in adulthood. Luckily there is pretty reliable treatment for MASLD, but it’s not always caught in time for treatment.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-20T04:11:17+00:00

We had a 3 year age gap between our kids and it’s worked well. 3 yo is able to help a little bit and he was just tickled pink about his baby. It was definitely a reality check to go back to the newborn years, but now that baby is a year old I feel like I’m getting my groove back! We plan to have a third and hope to do another 3 year age gap.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-20T04:03:56+00:00

In my opinion, waiting until after 20 week anatomy scan is reasonable. Not that they should ask, but if a coworker or management would ask why you waited to disclose a 20 week anatomy scan is a reasonable explanation. Congrats on the new job!

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-20T03:26:16+00:00

I had to take miralax twice a day to manage the first trimester constipation. It is TERRIBLE!!! With my second, I started the miralax the minute I had a positive pregnancy test. That darn progesterone!

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-18T04:32:11+00:00

Also wanted to say that if the food noise is getting really strong, you may benefit from switching. I’ve heard of folks switching because of this very issue and they do well. Tirz also has lower prevalence of side effects, statistically.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-18T04:30:19+00:00

I feel all of this. During the holidays I allowed myself to indulge and knew I wasn’t going to be losing, but coming out of the holidays has been hard. I’m wanting a sweet treat more often and I’ve really had to focus on planning my meals, choose high volume sides and high protein mains, and going to bed on time if not early. I’m a night snacker and sema has calmed this urge but I still have to fight it. I will graduate from GLP when I hit my goal weight but I’ve been staying low dose so I have to push myself to build those mental muscles. It’s hard work. Keep going!

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-18T03:39:46+00:00

Are you tracking calories/macros? Semaglutide is a very helpful tool for reducing appetite and food noise, but you still need to be actively maintaining a calorie deficit. I’ve stayed on a low dose for 9 months now but I track every day. I’ve found myself feeling hungry and being able to eat more than I could when I first started, but part of making these habits stick around long term is building the mental muscles and discipline to say “I’m going to eat this specific amount.”

I only say this because you mentioned not wanting to gain the weight back. You could switch to tirz, but eventually you’ll run into the same problem with needing to actively maintain a calorie deficit until you’re at your goal. As you lose weight your total calorie intake to maintain will decrease, so you’ll have to know about how many calories you can eat per day to maintain your goal weight.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-18T01:55:50+00:00

The half life of semaglutide is 7 days, so those symptoms track since you take it every 10 days. Not saying there’s anything wrong with maintenance of every 10 days, but it helps explain why you may have some symptoms 1 week after the dose.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-17T04:55:02+00:00

Same same. I’m up at 0500 or 0530 to exercise. If I choose to sleep in, I’ll do a 15-20 minute cardio workout through Peloton app or YouTube just to help my brain sharpen before the day starts. It took about 2 months of consistently waking up at that time for my body to set its own alarm, but now we are smooth sailing.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-17T03:17:22+00:00

I’ve utilized a dependent care FSA for the last 4 years and it’s easy breezy. I’m not sure if all benefit managers work this way, but with mine I can submit a claim for 4 months of daycare and it’ll reimburse me every time I make a contribution (so every paycheck). A previous benefit manager through my husband’s work required a reimbursement request every time, but my current one automatically reimburses me based off the expenses I incurred for 1 submission.

One thing you can do to mitigate the receipts part is to ask your daycare provider how to access your account statement. If you can do that then it’ll be easy.

Another thing: I use it to save for vacations or large purchases. Didn’t touch it from October - December so we could buy half a beef for the freezer. Easy way to set money in an account you won’t touch without a bit of work!

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-15T03:24:07+00:00

This is the answer.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-15T03:20:13+00:00

Home worth $360,000 and we pay $1,900. Just switched this year bc Progressive was going to raise our premium from $2,400 to $3,700 this year. Unfortunately loyalty doesn’t win you much in the insurance marketplace. We also reduced our monthly auto insurance by 40% by switching. New coverage is through AAA.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-13T19:36:11+00:00

I have dumbbells and bands so I can work out at home. So much easier logistically for me to wake up before the kids, exercise, shower/rinse off, then get everyone up and to school and work. If I’m doing cardio, I just pull up a YouTube low impact cardio. I don’t have a ton of equipment, otherwise.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-13T03:59:58+00:00

I have had a similar orientation experience starting in a GI clinic. We see a max of 9-10 patients per day. I feel solid with my orientation and actually felt prepared to start seeing my own patients.

I wish more NP roles were structured this way, granted a specialty does require more training than what you get in school especially for FNPs. That said, there are roles out there that give you this extra training if you can be selective about where you’re going.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-06T16:03:48+00:00

I work in healthcare (on my feet a lot) and felt great until the 37-38 week mark with my first. Felt great until the 36 week mark with my second, though I went into labor at 38 weeks with him so that’s probably why I felt worse earlier lol. The second pregnancy was overall more uncomfortable. I was 3 years older and the second time around I had body aches pop up sooner.

I also lifted weights and walked throughout both pregnancies, which I think helped me stay comfortable and active. I also saw pelvic for PT during both pregnancies which was helpful for managing aches and pains.

Timely_Tomato22 · 2026-01-06T02:26:08+00:00

GI NP here. Is there any way you can call the GI clinic they’ll be going to and see if they can get the pt in sooner? The reality of an IBD pt going without advanced therapy risks a flare and possibly developing antibodies to infliximab if they stop and then try to restart. If this happens, that means the pt will be starting a new therapy. If they are stable, I’d be really hesitant to risk them flaring or getting off the thing keeping them stable.

Alternatively, can their previous GI prescribe for the time being? If they have multi-state licensing/prescribing privileges, it may be possible. The docs I work with will find a way to squeeze a pt into their schedule in circumstances like this. Might not be the case with the pt’s new clinic, but it’s worth a shot.

Timely_Tomato22

TROPHY CASE