Postpartum Care Thread

[missrachelk]

I remembered the things I really wanted to recommend:

1 - cottonelle wet wipes, your lady parts will thank you : )

2 - arnica gel - again, your lady parts will thank you. The arnica in particular really added a nice cooling effect and took away the sting that came for me as my stiches were healing. It's normal for you to feel somewhat better, then a bit worse and tender again as the stiches heal. Finally, eventually it will be better.

HTH!

 

[lulu66]

delivered vaginally 10 days ago w/a midline episiotomy cut & 3rd degree tearing beyond that; was stictched up for an hour w/o epidural (turned off during labor to help me push) and had a cath put in after delivery bc I could not drain my bladder. I'm still in the thick of recovery (sitz bath, water bottle, dermaplast, tucks pads, Vicodin (x2 daily)) but just wondering when I can start to feel real relief?? I can tell swelling has gone down but it still hurts down there a lot. the bums have not returned to normal. I've had 3 in 10 days. I'm lucky to have my mom here, so I'm able to take it easy (as much as possible with a newborn) but can't see the end in sight. it seems like I have a good day, followed y a worse day (pain-wise). any timeframe insights??

I'll be back to update w/any tips after I'm feeling better; right now I don't feel like I have any info that's very helpful.

 

[missrachelk]

Hey lulu - I think everyone heals differently but remember that 3rd degree is a significant injury on top of the tray a if delivery. I still had some pain at 3 weeks but was much better by that point. I didn't feel ready to use to to wipe and needed the peri bottle until 4-5 weeks. I took Advil like candy for the whole 4-5 weeks.

Good diet and rest will help with healing. Try not to sit for long periods of time. If you're bf try side lying nursing it doesn't put pressure on your lady parts like sitting does. Try arnica gel it helped me a lot.

 

[lulu66]

missrachel thanks for your insight. I do see improvement. I'm off the Vicodin & on ibuprofen + stool softener. still having pain but there is def improvement from, say, a week ago. I'm just so ready not to hurt, to be able to use the bathroom like a normal person, and feel like my vagina's not broken (bc that's how I feel now). I'm just over two weeks out; sounds like from your experience, I can expect a few more weeks of pain & uncomfortableness. it's just nice to know there is an end something to look forward to!

 

[missrachelk]

Just to be clear I'm now pain free but far from the way I was before baby in my lady areas. I'm also still dealing with lochia at 11 weeks ( the joy) the first time I tried a rampion the other day was very --- interesting! Things are just different.

 

[lulu66]

yea, I understand that I should prepare for it to be "different" but I am so ready for going to the bathroom to be less of a chore & to not constantly feel like I've been kicked in the crotch . I appreciate you sharing your experience missrachel!

 

[amc80]

to not constantly feel like I've been kicked in the crotch

I had this for a while. Definitely not fun.

 

[missrachelk]

jeez autocorrect kills me! I am typing one handed on an iphone while holding a baby but still!

 

[Haven]

This thread was so helpful for me, so I'm going to add a bit to give it a bump.

I had a C-section on 12/18, so here are my post-surgery reflections. I'll try not to repeat anything, sorry if I do.

- The advice to walk as soon as possible is so true. I felt so much better even sitting up for the first time. It hurt to sit up at first, and it was really difficult for me to not engage my ab muscles, but once I sat up (and later walked) I started to feel human again.

- I only took Motrin/Ibuprofen for pain in hospital and at home because I previously had a bad experience with Vicodin. I weaned myself off of the Ibuprofen completely two weeks pp. I'm not sure if this is early or late, but it didn't seem terrible to me. My advice for anyone would be to stay on top of your pain meds, but to only take what you need. For me at least, it's too easy to prolong my recovery when I take lots of pain meds because I will overdo it when I don't feel any pain.

- I had a terrible headache for several days after my C-section, they called it a spinal headache and told me to drink caffeine to make it better. That helped a bit, but it didn't go away completely until I got some SLEEP. So, if you find yourself with the worst headache you've ever felt, tell your visitors to get out so you can sleep. Seriously, that was all I really needed.

- Speaking of visitors, I WISH we would have set our own visiting hours for the hospital so we could have gotten some much-needed sleep. I wish we'd said people could visit between 10 AM and 1 PM or 5 PM to 8 PM, and that's it. We had so many people in and out that we really did not rest as much as we should have in the hospital, and I think we paid for it dearly our first week home. The rest alone will help you heal faster. I also wish we had said no visitors at home no matter what, but we caved and let people come over the first two weeks, and that was so hard.

- Have some very comfortable pants with very loose waistbands ready to wear at home. My incision was very tender so I lived in loose cotton pants and NOT my maternity pants my first weeks home. The elastic panels on the maternity pants made me uncomfortable when I sat down.

- Insist on showering every day. I know this has been said, but it's so important it's worth repeating.

- Mentally prepare yourself for the pain you will feel moving around for your first week or so. I had no idea how hard it was going to be to just get up or get down from and into a sitting or sleeping position. It was mentally taxing to feel stuck in a position when my baby was crying to be changed or hungry; I felt really desperate and terrible that he had to wait for me to move myself.

Gosh, I'm sure there's so much more but I can't think of it right now.

 

[monarch64]

Thank you, Haven, and everyone else, for participating (or reading) in this thread. I am still shocked at how little information is readily available out there regarding pp care. I actually just googled "why isn't postpartum care discussed" and didn't get many relevant hits. In fact, one of the top results that came up was from the Mayo Clinic and here is the link:

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/labor-and-delivery/MY00330

You'll find that it's nowhere near as extensive (it's only a few paragraphs long, 2 pages) as most common maladies. I find this pretty disturbing.

I'm not going all activist and getting up on a soapbox about the fact that pp care, imo, isn't spoken about enough, but I do want to thank the current PS administrators for providing a forum in which we can discuss this issue, and again, offer thanks to everyone else who has participated in this thread or even just read it. I think it's a very important issue for every new mother and also one that potentially ties into pp depression. (That is my armchair, non psych-degreed thought.)

 

[Puppmom]

Monarch, you are SO right. They don't even really focus on post-partum care in the hospital. They give some super duper pads, ice packs, and witch hazel then send you on your way. I had no idea what to expect. By the time you get to your 6 week appointment, it's too late to ask questions (if you're lucky and aren't having issues then).

I had no idea about my absolute and complete loss of core strength. It was impossible to stand up from a sitting position without using my hands to hold onto something...not so simple when you're holding a newborn. I also bled for way longer than they said is average and had ZERO physical energy for a bit.

It's interesting because I had a D&C after a miscarriage and the discharge nurse gave me very specific instructions that I rest and DH do everything for a few days and prepared me for cramping, bleeding and other discomfort....none of that at post partum discharge. Very odd.

 

[Puppmom]

I'm 3 weeks postpartum so I figured I would share while I remember what it feels like. Right now, I feel great. Wish I could say I *looked* great but that's another story!

So here's what I experienced:

ZERO core strength at first. Like NONE. I had to use my arms to pull myself up for the first week.
Sitting in the hospital bed was a pain in the butt - literally. Get up and walk around. Or sit in the chair instead of the bed.
The sitz bath helps with gas and constipation. I discovered this by accident but I guess it's why babies poop in the tub!
Lochia - it's gross. Ugh! I still have red bleeding here and there. I go *padless* sometimes because the pads are irritating me.
I'm very dry *down there*.
Frequent urination did not end when the baby was born. It lasted for at least a week. I was also extremely thirsty (like waking up in the middle of the night for a drink thirsty).
Oh, and I'm still fat. That's no surprise though since I gained 45lbs.

 

[pavelover]

Hugs Puppmom! Don't know if you already tried any remedies but Vaseline will relieve that horrible dryness. It doesn't leave it too moist either if you know what I mean. Try a chic on your bed and go without undies if u can. Usually a little air will soothe the irritation. Thanks for the tips. I'm 34 weeks so getting ready....

 

[amc80]

Glad to see the new moms keeping this thread alive! I will update as well. I went for my first outdoor run yesterday. I had gone running on the treadmill and done the elliptical without incident. Well, apparently my bladder/pelvic floor isn't 100%. Next time I will definitely be wearing a pad. Oops.

 

[pavelover]

Hugs AMC...my dr wants me to have a csection (twins) but I'm still hoping for a vaginal delivery. Then I think about what my parts will be like after and I start to consider csection...

 

[amc80]

Hugs AMC...my dr wants me to have a csection (twins) but I'm still hoping for a vaginal delivery. Then I think about what my parts will be like after and I start to consider csection...

I'm the opposite. I pretty much refuse to have another vaginal delivery. The experience was a bit too traumatic on both my brain and my body.

 

[megumic]

Hugs AMC...my dr wants me to have a csection (twins) but I'm still hoping for a vaginal delivery. Then I think about what my parts will be like after and I start to consider csection...

I'm the opposite. I pretty much refuse to have another vaginal delivery. The experience was a bit too traumatic on both my brain and my body.

That's how I feel about my c/s. PTSD worthy. I think it is interesting how birth experiences, both positive and negative, shape us. I'm hoping for the former next time.

 

[Puppmom]

Meg and AMC, I'm so sorry that your birth experiences were traumatic. That's really awful! No more children for me so it's a non-issue but I've been pretty fortunate in that department. The pregnancy itself was a whole different story! I wouldn't classify it as traumatic but if my second pregnancy was anything like my third, I never would have had a third child.

Pave, that makes total sense because it does feel sort of *chapped* for lack of a better description. I'll give it a whirl. I'm hoping to be *active* again sometime soon so hopefully this goes away or we're going to need some assistance!

 

[chrono]

Although it has been many years for me, reading this thread brought back the memories all too sharply. One thing that helped a lot is sitting on the breastfeeding pillow. It works better than a regular pillow because the hole in the middle means there's nothing touching your lady parts.

 

[Puppmom]

Chrono, good idea! I also continued sleeping with my maternity pillow to reduce the pressure on my backside. I remember when I had DD almost 18 years ago, I was a senior in high school. I decided to wait until the LAST minute to do my final research paper and remember sitting at the computer on a blow up hemorrhoid pillow typing my paper. I wish nursing pillows were around then!

 

[momhappy]

My advice for postpartum care actually begins long before labor & delivery. I attribute my ease in bouncing back very quickly after two, vaginal deliveries to working out regularly before, during, and after pregnancy. I truly believe that the whole process was much easier on my body because I was physically fit.

 

[Puppmom]

5 weeks postpartum and a few updates. I'm STILL bleeding. It's spotting at this point but it's red. All of the internet sources say it should be long over. I called my doc and she says it's normal.

My doc originally told me my stitches would dissolve some time around week 3. Well, they've been falling out in the shower and when I wipe. Totally freaked me out but again, doc says this is normal.

I'm to the point of feeling good enough the exercise...finding the time might be difficult. I'm down 30lbs but have another 15 to lose to time to get crackin!

 

[amc80]

My advice for postpartum care actually begins long before labor & delivery. I attribute my ease in bouncing back very quickly after two, vaginal deliveries to working out regularly before, during, and after pregnancy. I truly believe that the whole process was much easier on my body because I was physically fit.

I believe that as well. I was working out up until 29 weeks when I had preterm contractions. But because my delivery was tough, I couldn't really work out until about 5 months pp. For me I'm not sure working out up to delivery would have helped, since my issues were more due to baby's size and position.

 

[monarch64]

My advice for postpartum care actually begins long before labor & delivery. I attribute my ease in bouncing back very quickly after two, vaginal deliveries to working out regularly before, during, and after pregnancy. I truly believe that the whole process was much easier on my body because I was physically fit.

Hmm. I agree that there is a lot of merit in your comment, because of the overall importance of physical fitness, but I must say here that every body is different. I was very fit before and throughout my entire pregnancy, I worked 8 hours a day on my feet up until the day before I delivered and worked out or exercised beyond that. My L & D went just fine, I delivered vaginally with minimal tearing, but I didn't quite know what to expect after the birth which is why I started this thread. When you say you bounced back "quickly," what exactly do you mean by quickly? I mean, I definitely hit a turning point in healing around week 3, by week 4 was interested in intimacy with my husband, and by week 6 we were able to DTD with no problems. I have never had issues with incontinence, feel like things are totally back to normal. The first 3 weeks pp, however, I was in so much pain and it was very unexpected because no one talked about what to expect beyond birth even when we took our childbirth classes.

 

[momhappy]

My advice for postpartum care actually begins long before labor & delivery. I attribute my ease in bouncing back very quickly after two, vaginal deliveries to working out regularly before, during, and after pregnancy. I truly believe that the whole process was much easier on my body because I was physically fit.

Hmm. I agree that there is a lot of merit in your comment, because of the overall importance of physical fitness, but I must say here that every body is different. I was very fit before and throughout my entire pregnancy, I worked 8 hours a day on my feet up until the day before I delivered and worked out or exercised beyond that. My L & D went just fine, I delivered vaginally with minimal tearing, but I didn't quite know what to expect after the birth which is why I started this thread. When you say you bounced back "quickly," what exactly do you mean by quickly? I mean, I definitely hit a turning point in healing around week 3, by week 4 was interested in intimacy with my husband, and by week 6 we were able to DTD with no problems. I have never had issues with incontinence, feel like things are totally back to normal. The first 3 weeks pp, however, I was in so much pain and it was very unexpected because no one talked about what to expect beyond birth even when we took our childbirth classes.

Of course, every body is different - every pregnancy is different, every L&D is different - that's why all of the comments/advice about postpartum care are very different. I completely agree that what works for one may not work for another and we all have/had different issues to deal with.
As far as my personal experience with bouncing back quickly, I meant just that. Even though my L&D was tough, I really felt fine afterwards (for the most part). My second child was born at about 1am and by 8 am that same morning, I was begging them to let me go home. I felt fine and really wanted to go home and take care of my other little one who I was missing at home (my mom was there taking care of her). I was never in any long-term vaginal "pain" although, like you, I waited about 6 weeks pp before having intercourse again. I guess for me it just seemed like once the babies were born, my biggest pp issue was bleeding and wearing those awful pads, which was just more of an inconvenience than anything else. Overall, my body felt fine. I realize that everyone's experience is different. One of my sister's had c-sections and was in horrible pain for weeks pp. It was hard for her to even function and care the kids

 

[momhappy]

5 weeks postpartum and a few updates. I'm STILL bleeding. It's spotting at this point but it's red. All of the internet sources say it should be long over. I called my doc and she says it's normal.

My doc originally told me my stitches would dissolve some time around week 3. Well, they've been falling out in the shower and when I wipe. Totally freaked me out but again, doc says this is normal.

I'm to the point of feeling good enough the exercise...finding the time might be difficult. I'm down 30lbs but have another 15 to lose to time to get crackin!

Oh gosh, I'm sorry to hear this. The bleeding was the worst part for me - it was like the period that just wouldn't end. I hope that you're feeling better soon and that things get back to normal for you

 

[monarch64]

My advice for postpartum care actually begins long before labor & delivery. I attribute my ease in bouncing back very quickly after two, vaginal deliveries to working out regularly before, during, and after pregnancy. I truly believe that the whole process was much easier on my body because I was physically fit.

Hmm. I agree that there is a lot of merit in your comment, because of the overall importance of physical fitness, but I must say here that every body is different. I was very fit before and throughout my entire pregnancy, I worked 8 hours a day on my feet up until the day before I delivered and worked out or exercised beyond that. My L & D went just fine, I delivered vaginally with minimal tearing, but I didn't quite know what to expect after the birth which is why I started this thread. When you say you bounced back "quickly," what exactly do you mean by quickly? I mean, I definitely hit a turning point in healing around week 3, by week 4 was interested in intimacy with my husband, and by week 6 we were able to DTD with no problems. I have never had issues with incontinence, feel like things are totally back to normal. The first 3 weeks pp, however, I was in so much pain and it was very unexpected because no one talked about what to expect beyond birth even when we took our childbirth classes.

Of course, every body is different - every pregnancy is different, every L&D is different - that's why all of the comments/advice about postpartum care are very different. I completely agree that what works for one may not work for another and we all have/had different issues to deal with.
As far as my personal experience with bouncing back quickly, I meant just that. Even though my L&D was tough, I really felt fine afterwards (for the most part). My second child was born at about 1am and by 8 am that same morning, I was begging them to let me go home. I felt fine and really wanted to go home and take care of my other little one who I was missing at home (my mom was there taking care of her). I was never in any long-term vaginal "pain" although, like you, I waited about 6 weeks pp before having intercourse again. I guess for me it just seemed like once the babies were born, my biggest pp issue was bleeding and wearing those awful pads, which was just more of an inconvenience than anything else. Overall, my body felt fine. I realize that everyone's experience is different. One of my sister's had c-sections and was in horrible pain for weeks pp. It was hard for her to even function and care the kids

When I'm talking about pain here, I'm not talking about how my body overall felt. Like you, I felt good enough to do all the things I needed to do to take care of a newborn, plus household chores, plus have visitors. I thought I had spelled it out in other posts in this thread, and that others had as well, but maybe I am being unclear. When I went to the bathroom the first couple weeks, it hurt. Like, it BURNED because my urine was coming into contact with the skin on my vagina and perineum which had a couple stitches. When I took showers, same issue. When I sat down or got up, I had to be careful, and it hurt. Apparently, I should've worked out more so that my vagina and perineum did not require stitches. I am being a bit sarcastic and snippy with you, but your "stay fit! you'll bounce right back!" posts rub me the wrong way. Much the same way, I imagine, some people felt over Tom Cruise telling Brooke Shields that her PPD could've been managed by vitamins.

You are absolutely entitled to post your experiences and opinions here on PS, anywhere and anytime. But coming into a 3 page thread about post-partum care of the female body in which many women have recounted their tales of the physical aftereffects of childbirth and saying "I never had a hard time after birth because I worked out" minimizes others' experiences and frankly, is just kind of offensive.

If your point in posting at all was to offer to women who haven't given birth yet the idea that postpartum care isn't necessarily all bad, and that not everyone's experience is the same, and that you are proof of that, then why not just say that?

 

[momhappy]

My advice for postpartum care actually begins long before labor & delivery. I attribute my ease in bouncing back very quickly after two, vaginal deliveries to working out regularly before, during, and after pregnancy. I truly believe that the whole process was much easier on my body because I was physically fit.

Hmm. I agree that there is a lot of merit in your comment, because of the overall importance of physical fitness, but I must say here that every body is different. I was very fit before and throughout my entire pregnancy, I worked 8 hours a day on my feet up until the day before I delivered and worked out or exercised beyond that. My L & D went just fine, I delivered vaginally with minimal tearing, but I didn't quite know what to expect after the birth which is why I started this thread. When you say you bounced back "quickly," what exactly do you mean by quickly? I mean, I definitely hit a turning point in healing around week 3, by week 4 was interested in intimacy with my husband, and by week 6 we were able to DTD with no problems. I have never had issues with incontinence, feel like things are totally back to normal. The first 3 weeks pp, however, I was in so much pain and it was very unexpected because no one talked about what to expect beyond birth even when we took our childbirth classes.

Of course, every body is different - every pregnancy is different, every L&D is different - that's why all of the comments/advice about postpartum care are very different. I completely agree that what works for one may not work for another and we all have/had different issues to deal with.
As far as my personal experience with bouncing back quickly, I meant just that. Even though my L&D was tough, I really felt fine afterwards (for the most part). My second child was born at about 1am and by 8 am that same morning, I was begging them to let me go home. I felt fine and really wanted to go home and take care of my other little one who I was missing at home (my mom was there taking care of her). I was never in any long-term vaginal "pain" although, like you, I waited about 6 weeks pp before having intercourse again. I guess for me it just seemed like once the babies were born, my biggest pp issue was bleeding and wearing those awful pads, which was just more of an inconvenience than anything else. Overall, my body felt fine. I realize that everyone's experience is different. One of my sister's had c-sections and was in horrible pain for weeks pp. It was hard for her to even function and care the kids

When I'm talking about pain here, I'm not talking about how my body overall felt. Like you, I felt good enough to do all the things I needed to do to take care of a newborn, plus household chores, plus have visitors. I thought I had spelled it out in other posts in this thread, and that others had as well, but maybe I am being unclear. When I went to the bathroom the first couple weeks, it hurt. Like, it BURNED because my urine was coming into contact with the skin on my vagina and perineum which had a couple stitches. When I took showers, same issue. When I sat down or got up, I had to be careful, and it hurt. Apparently, I should've worked out more so that my vagina and perineum did not require stitches. I am being a bit sarcastic and snippy with you, but your "stay fit! you'll bounce right back!" posts rub me the wrong way. Much the same way, I imagine, some people felt over Tom Cruise telling Brooke Shields that her PPD could've been managed by vitamins.

You are absolutely entitled to post your experiences and opinions here on PS, anywhere and anytime. But coming into a 3 page thread about post-partum care of the female body in which many women have recounted their tales of the physical aftereffects of childbirth and saying "I never had a hard time after birth because I worked out" minimizes others' experiences and frankly, is just kind of offensive.

If your point in posting at all was to offer to women who haven't given birth yet the idea that postpartum care isn't necessarily all bad, and that not everyone's experience is the same, and that you are proof of that, then why not just say that?

I've already explained myself about 3 times now. I thought that I was contributing by sharing my experience like everyone else, but I guess I was wrong. My personal experience was that I felt that regular exercise HELPED (not cured, fixed, etc.) my pp experience. I have said repeatedly that everyone's experience is different and that exercise alone is not going to save someone from a tear, an episiotomy, a complicated delivery, a large baby, etc. I never claimed to have any answers (still don't) and I would never presume that my experience is the ONLY experience. You quoted something that I never even said (the "I never had a hard time after birth because I worked out" quote). Gosh, I had no idea that I was that offensive when I shared my experience. If my experiences are not welcome here, then please dismiss them, accept my apologies, and move on.

 

[monarch64]

Momhappy, I apologize for misquoting you. I guess what truly irks me about your posts is that I get the sense from them that you did not take the time to read this thread at all and you're just tossing in your $.02 on what I feel is a very important issue. I also apologize if my post came off as an attack. I'm not the Pricescope Police but I was trying to help you understand why I took issue with your posts. We do not have an understanding, and that's fine. I will move on.

 

[tammy77]

I'm really thankful for this thread. I had my girls via scheduled c/s (breech, then forced to have my 2nd as cs by the hospital). I'd been waffling about trying for a VBAC because I had this fairytale expectation that a vaginal delivery = back to normal within a week vs. the 4-6wk recovery from the C/S.

It's just eye opening to read everyone's experiences and gives me a lot to consider re: whether to try for a VBAC or do a repeat c/s with this baby. So again, thank you all for sharing and for starting the thread to begin with!