Your Food Journey vs. Your Baby’s
Postpartum is full of moments no one prepares us for — and not just sleepless nights or cluster feeding.
For many new parents, old wounds around food and body image resurface in ways they never expected. Suddenly, the patterns and thoughts you thought you’d left behind show up again… but this time, they’re tangled with your baby’s feeding journey.
As a therapist who specializes in eating disorders, perinatal mental health, and trauma, I see this overlap often. Here are four common themes that tend to come up:
Where Food + Body Struggles Collide with Baby Feeding
Weight Watching
Your journey: Feeling accomplished when the number on the scale goes down.
Baby’s journey: Feeling accomplished when the number on the scale or the ounces you pump go up.
Schedules Taking Over
Your journey: Structuring your day around diet and exercise.
Baby’s journey: Structuring your day around pumping and feeding schedules.
Measuring Everything
Your journey: Counting calories to know exactly what you’re getting.
Baby’s journey: Counting ounces or weighing before and after nursing to know exactly what baby’s getting.
Trusting the Body
Your journey: Difficulty trusting your body around food or weight changes.
Baby’s journey: Difficulty trusting your body to make enough milk — or trusting your baby to eat enough.
When so much feels out of our control as new parents, it’s natural to cling to the things we can measure or control — calories, ounces, pumping logs, baby’s weight.
But when these patterns start to feel overwhelming or exhausting, here are a few ways to cope and reconnect with your body and baby:
4 Ways to Find Peace in Postpartum Feeding + Body Image
Pause Before You Track
Ask yourself: “Will knowing this number help me feel calmer… or more anxious?” Sometimes, less data = less stress.
Shift the Focus to Connection
Instead of measuring every ounce or step, try tuning into cues — your hunger, your baby’s fullness signs, your body’s fatigue. Trust builds slowly, moment by moment.
Set Gentle Reminders
Write down affirmations like: “My worth isn’t measured in ounces or pounds.” Place them where you pump, prep bottles, or feed your baby.
Seek Support When Needed
You don’t have to untangle this alone. Whether it’s a trusted friend, lactation consultant, or therapist, having someone reflect your reality back to you can ease the weight you’re carrying.
Postpartum is a season of massive change — for your body, your baby, and your sense of control. If you’ve noticed old food and body struggles resurfacing, you’re not failing. You’re human. And there’s support out there for you.
🔵 Call or text @postpartumsupportinternational at 800-944-4773. You never need a diagnosis to ask for help.
🔵 Download the Connect by PSI App
🔵 Call or text the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline at 1-833-852-6262
🔵 Visit postpartum.net for additional programs and resources.
