Many people shy away from talking about postpartum care. It's not pretty and it can be an uncomfortable topic to discuss, but it is important to take care of your body after birth. Prior to leaving the hospital, the only thing my doctor told me was to call if I developed a fever or clotted the size of a golf ball, but didn't mention anything more. In this post today, I will share with you postpartum care, warning signs, and essential items to help make your postpartum recovery as comfortable as possible.
Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional; I am writing based on our personal experiences, research, and recommendations from our labor and delivery nurses and OGBYN.
Postpartum Care: Vaginal Delivery
After having a baby, your body will go through various changes. You will both experience emotional and physical changes that may be alarming.
Physical Changes:
Spotting or bleeding for approximately 6 weeks
Swelling in legs and feet
Constipation and hemorrhoids
Menstrual-like cramping
Pain and burning when urinating (if there was tearing during delivery)
Tender and uncomfortable, leaking breasts even if not breastfeeding
Chills or shakes
Emotional Changes:
Baby blues: feelings of sadness
Mood swings
If you have extreme sadness, and you are unable to care for yourself and your child or have harmful thoughts make sure to contact your doctor right away.
These are not all the changes you could experience after giving birth.
Make sure you reach out to your health care provider if you have any questions or concerns about any of the changes you are experiencing.
Warning Signs:
According to the CDC these are the "urgent maternal warning signs:"
Extreme sadness: unable to care for yourself and your child or have harmful thoughts make sure to contact your doctor right away.
Fever of 100.4 or higher
Dizziness or fainting
Vision changes
Headache that will not go away
Chest pain
Racing heart
Trouble breathing
Extreme swelling of hands and face
Severe nausea and vomiting
Excessive bleeding or vaginal discharge after pregnancy
Severe swelling, redness, or pain in leg or arm
Extreme fatigue
Severe belly pain
These are not all the symptoms you could experience after giving birth.
You should contact your doctor immediately if you experience any of these symptoms. Make sure to ask your doctor if you have a questions regarding your symptoms or care after a vaginal delivery.
To learn more about the maternal warning signs go to the CDC's article, "Urgent Maternal Warning Signs."
Essential Items:
Here are some items that I found especially helpful after a vaginal delivery and were recommended to me by my OBGYN and my labor and delivery nurses. If you have any other additional items, feel free to share them in the comments!
Tucks Medicated Cooling Pads
Helps relieve any symptoms caused by tearing and hemorrhoids.
Here is a link to them on Amazon, but you can get them from a variety of places such as Target, Walmart, the grocery store, etc.
Perineal Cold Packs
Helps relieve any symptoms caused by tearing and hemorrhoids. It also helps absorb any spotting or discharge after delivery.
Here is a link to them on Amazon. You can also find them (cheaper) at Walmart.
Dermoplast Pain, Burn & Itch Relief Spray
Helps relieve any symptoms caused by tearing and hemorrhoids. Makes it so you do not have to touch the tender area.
Here is a link to them on Amazon, but you can get them from a variety of places such as Target, Walmart, the grocery store, etc.
Peri Bottle
After delivery, you are not able to wipe like you normally would. You use warm water to spray on yourself.
They should provide you with one in the hospital, but if not here is a link to it on Amazon. You can get them from a variety of places such as Target, Walmart, the grocery store, etc.
Postpartum Disposable Underwear
There are many different brands you can choose from for postpartum disposable underwear. This comes in handy those first couple days after delivery when your bleeding is at its heaviest.
They may provide you with a few pairs at the hospital but it is always good to have extras for when you get home.
Here is a link at Amazon for the brand shown above. You can get these again in variety of different places.
Postpartum Care: C-Section Delivery
Most of the physical and emotional changes are similar for those who go through vaginal delivery, but there are some differences. These are additional changes that you may undergo when having a C-section:
Physical Changes:
Pain at incision site
Abdominal pain due to gas build up
Incision site may be raised and puffy at first
Emotional Changes:
Feelings of sadness and depression
PTSD from birth trauma
Mood swings
Feelings of self blame
Hard time sleeping
To learn more about the emotional changes after C-section check out "Mental Health After C-section - What to Look Out for and How to Get Help"
These are not all the changes you could experience after having a c-section.
Make sure you reach out to your health care provider if you have any questions or concerns about any of the changes you are experiencing.
Incision Care:
Change the dressing at least once a day and if it gets dirty or wet.
Keep wound clean by washing it with mild soap and water. Do not scrub it.
Do not take baths, use a hot tub or go swimming until your doctor tells you you can.
You can remove your dressing if your incision was closed with stitches, staples, or glue when taking showers.
Wear loose clothing, pants, and underwear.
Care may be different if Steri-Strips were used for your incision.
This is not all of the care you may need to do when recovering from an incision. Make sure to speak to your provider about additional or different care necessary for your own recovery.
To learn more about C-section postpartum care, check out "Going Home After a C-Section."
Warning Signs:
In addition to the warning signs listed above, here are some signs that are associated with C-Section delivery:
Burning or sudden severe pain in the abdomen
Leaking urine
Pain when urinating
Heavy vaginal bleeding
Discharge of pus or foul odor coming from wound
Shortness of breath
Swelling or pain in lower leg
You should contact your doctor immediately if you experience any of these symptoms. Make sure to ask your doctor if you have a questions regarding your symptoms or care after a C-section.
Essential Items:
Here are some items that were helpful after a C-section and were recommended by moms who underwent a C-section and through research. If you have any other additional items, feel free to share them in the comments!
High Waisted C-Section Underwear
High waisted underwear helps to avoid irritating the tender incision site.
Here is a link at Amazon for the brand shown above. You can get these again in variety of different places.
Advil or over the counter pain relievers
Over the counter pain medication may be necessary for any pain that is caused after the procedure. Make sure to talk to your provider if you need something stronger or what they would recommend for you.
You can find Advil and other over-the-counter medication at many different stores.
Boppy Pillow
Boppy pillows are great for breastfeeding moms and helps keep pressure or weight from being put on your abdomen and on incision site.
Here is a link at Amazon for the boppy shown above. You can get these again in variety of different places.
Heating Pad
Heating pads are great for relieving tenderness and pain from a C-section. They are also good for cramping that may come as a result of postpartum recovery.
Here is a link at Amazon for the heating pad shown above. You can get these again in variety of different places.
C-section Recovery Kit
This recovery kit provides many different useful items for C-sections. It includes the following items:
Peri Bottle
4 Disposable C-Section Postpartum Underwear
1 Postpartum Abdominal Support Binder
10 Skip The Shower Wipes
4 Silicone Scar Patches
Grip Socks
It is on the more expensive side, but this is a great kit. Here is the link for it on Amazon.
Conclusion
Postpartum care is extremely important, but is often overlooked because of the emphasis on baby care. Make sure to ask your labor and delivery nurses and OBGYN for what they recommend for your own personal after care. Take care of yourself! You can only give as much as you have.
References
Cara Terreri, L. (2018, December 19). Mental health after C-section - what to look out for and how to get help. Lamaze International. https://www.lamaze.org/Giving-Birth-with-Confidence/GBWC-Post/mental-health-after-c-section-what-to-look-out-for-and-how-to-get-help
Editor. (2022, June 17). Cesarean after care. American Pregnancy Association. https://americanpregnancy.org/healthy-pregnancy/labor-and-birth/cesarean-aftercare/
U.S. National Library of Medicine. (n.d.). Postpartum care. MedlinePlus. https://medlineplus.gov/postpartumcare.html
WhattoExpect. (2023, March 2). Best C-section recovery items. What to Expect. https://www.whattoexpect.com/baby-products/survival-kit-recovery-after-c-section-delivery/
16 must have C-section recovery kit items. Milk Drunk. (2023, January 12). https://milk-drunk.com/16-must-have-c-section-recovery-kit-items/
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