Updates from postpartum mamas?

[mags]

I thought I would start a thread for postpartum mamas to see how they are doing. I was just thinking yesterday while in the shower about how I am so caught up about HAVING this baby, I have kind of put off thinking that much about the postpartum period. So, I'm wondering how all the mamas who have had their July babies are doing right now.

[fawnanddoe]

I've been so busy that I don't have time to get on the computer! Elijah just nursed and is sleeping so I am getting a little break, until I am going to go back to sleep too.

I am in baby land for sure! Every day is getting a little easier for me. The first day was really hard. I was just so tired but I couldn't sleep because I couldn't stop watching or checking on Eli to make sure he was ok haha. I was so tired that first night that I was falling asleep while nursing and then getting really overwhelmed.
Now we're on day 6 and it's remarkably easier. I think I was overdoing it a little bit and I need to rest more because I started getting some dull pains in my stomach and bleeding a bit more, although not too much more. I am still really tired, but waking up during the night isn't so hard anymore, but I still can't always nap when baby naps.
I have a little bit of the baby blues. I've broke down and cried a few times when I felt really overwhelmed, but that will get easier with time. I am high risk for PPD, so I have actually started taking a low dose of something so I can combat it before it hits me, if it is going to hit me. That's the last thing that I need to deal with right now. I normally dislike medications, but I feel like this is a valid time and reason for me to take something for a little bit.

I still can't stop staring at Elijah. He is amazing and so perfect. I love watching the little faces he makes! It's going to be so much fun being his mom, I am really excited

[Ianthe]

i forgot how hard the first couple weeks are.. the being stuck on the couch healing and bfing. but oliver is such an easy going baby, i adore him!

i'm trying to get used to taking care of 2.. dh starts back to work on monday and i am terrified!

[femalephish]

Originally Posted by fawnanddoe

I've been so busy that I don't have time to get on the computer!

Ha! I'm on here all. the. time. because baby Jo is nursing at all hours! I can only sit up in bed for so long!


Things are going pretty good here. Breastfeeding is harder than I thought it would be, but my MW's have been great and I have a super supportive family. (My sister is currently breastfeeding her 10 month old and my mom bf'd all 6 of her kids) It feels like sometimes we are doing great, and other times it's just overwhelming.

I also find myself stairing at my babe all the time. I like to push my face close to her skin and smell her and kiss her, she is so perfect to me. The hardest thing is when she cries. I thought that I would know just what to do, but sometimes I go down the checklist (hungry, cold, wet...ect.) and nothing is wrong. She just needs to cry and all I can do is hold her. That's when I cry.


The best is DH. He is so great with her and has been SO helpful. I love him so much. The other best thing, that I wasn't expecting, is that she makes all of these crazy noises in her sleep and when she is awake. and makes all of these faces. It's so weird and wonderful and adorable. I love her so much.

[Ianthe]

Originally Posted by femalephish

Ha! I'm on here all. the. time. because baby Jo is nursing at all hours! I can only sit up in bed for so long!


Things are going pretty good here. Breastfeeding is harder than I thought it would be, but my MW's have been great and I have a super supportive family. (My sister is currently breastfeeding her 10 month old and my mom bf'd all 6 of her kids) It feels like sometimes we are doing great, and other times it's just overwhelming.

You'll get the hang of it.. with my first it took a full 6 weeks to be comfortable bfing, and i had a ton of problems- engorgment, plugged ducts, mastitis, bleeding nipples... but it was so worth it once we got the hang of it.

[LilMomma83]

13 days postpartum here, breastfeeding is so much easier this time around! DS2 latches really well and I'm in almost no pain at all, I am enjoying nursing him and I didn't get that feeling with DS1 until he was around 6-7mos. The only thing with BF is that DS2 has a very strong tongue thrust and doesn't start sucking right away, so he doesn't want to latch on at first, but, once he is there and starts sucking he is good. We saw the LC yesterday and he was drinking around 2.2oz, and weighed approximately his birth weight prior to feeding!

I feel really good, but, often tired--going to take a nap here as soon as I finish eating lunch, DS1 is *hopefully* falling asleep on my bed as I write this... My bleeding is like all over the place--sometimes I have none and sometimes it is a ton. So far my mood is ok, ups and downs, but, I feel pretty good most of the time, I am still on meds from PPD with DS1 so my CNM said I might have to increase (I decreased during pregnancy).

DS1 is doing ok, he wants lots of mommy time and asks to nurse almost constantly, but, is so sweet with his brother...bringing him toys and hugging him and kissing him etc. DS1 went on potty strike while I was in the hospital and for about 2 days afterwards, but, he hasn't had an accident in probably over a week now!

So DH is working, and it has been amusing me how it takes all morning just to prepare to go to the park for an hour, and then come home, eat lunch, nap, play/read books etc, eat dinner and go to bed! I'm getting to used to it already though...it is going to be so hard to go back to school, and I have a job interview next week also--but, if it pays well enough, and I get it, I will have WAY more time with my family which would be awesome.

[DahliaRW]

4 days pp here. Doing great! I had a super easy birth and no tearing, so I feel really good and have to be careful to not overdo it!

We had some breastfeeding issues, which I didn't anticipate since this is my third. She was tongue tied, and had it clipped yesterday which is REALLY helping.

My 2 boys are adjusting ok. My oldest LOVES his sister and is so super helpful. The younger is acting out at his brother for giving the baby so much attention! He's also just doing everything to get attention, but at nearly 2 I expected it.

Dh has 3 more weeks off (yay!), so lots of time with us. Our little girl already has him wrapped around her finger.

[Ianthe]

Wow lilmomma- a job interview already? I told my work I would need 3 months to come back! But, I am a BF peer counselor, so they understood. I would go back in a few weeks if I could bring Oliver with me.. they used to let PCs bring their babies, but not anymore.

I am still healing from my tear. I am really swollen I'm also going to attempt to go to a friend's blessingway tonight.. we'll see how well we do.

[bemommy]

9 days pp here. Things have gone really smoothly (so far). SO much so that I've overdone it a few times and regreted it. Like yesterday we went into Boston in the afternoon to see the tall ships. Even just walking leisurely for 1.5 hours had me beat.

Poppy is such a lovely easy baby. She sleeps most all of the time, waking 2-3 times in the night to nurse and slips right back to sleep. She is noisy though. . not crying but lots of grunts and growls. Both of her siblings love her dearly. My oldest is having a little difficulty adjusting to the new world order (but I expected that, she's a little high maintanence) DS acts like things have always been this way. There is the difficulty that I've found that there is no safe place to put her down for even a moment. Even in the playpen DS will grad the blanket that she is on and pull her to the side.

There is something magical about a newborn. I just want to sit and hold her all day.

[LindsC]

I am 2 weeks postpartum now. This has been a very easy recovery and I need to keep reminding myself to take it easy and not overdo things. We are all adjusting pretty well here. DS has had some issues with jealousy and acting out, but I was expecting that seeing as he just turned 2. He can be very sweet with her; it just has to be when he wants to though.

Breastfeeding is going so much better this time than it did with DS. She latched on easily from the very beginning and once we perfected her latch in the first couple of days, it has been pain free and smooth sailing. She still feeds every 2-3 hours around the clock and often cluster feeds. I think she is heading into a growth spurt though because she seems to want to be attached to me 24/7 since last night.

DH has been back at work full time now for a week. He had to work a couple of 5 hour shifts in the first week, but they were usually in the evenings. It did take me a couple of days by myself to figure out a system that works for both kiddos, but I think we have it figured out for now.

[Ianthe]

Originally Posted by LindsC

DH has been back at work full time now for a week. He had to work a couple of 5 hour shifts in the first week, but they were usually in the evenings. It did take me a couple of days by myself to figure out a system that works for both kiddos, but I think we have it figured out for now.

this gives me hope

[Chamomile Girl]

We're on day 11 now. For the most part things are going really well. Gwydion is a mellow baby for the most part, but he does have some gas issues (mostly at night...sigh). I am not getting enough sleep for sure. Everything that used to be simple to accomplish (like making lunch) is now a huge production, because I can't figure out what the heck to do with the baby while I am doing other things. I have a sling but its still a bit uncomfortable to wear because of the C-section incision. Plus he does not seem to like being confined in it...it makes him scream. Maybe I'm doing it wrong.

On the plus side most of my fluid puffiness is gone. I was looking like the stay-puffed marshmallow man there for awhile so this is good. I lost 30lbs in the week after delivery. I'll bet at least half of it was water weight.

[FiveLittleMonkeys]

Sam will be 6 weeks old on Monday....he is growing like a weed, and is nursing better. We still have some times that he doesn't want to open his mouth wide enough, but we're working!

I'm still tired and anemic from all the stuff that happened before he was born (HELLP and abruption) and am still trying to process it all. Other than that, we are thrilled that he is here and we are both safe and healthy. He is a pretty easy going, laid back baby.

[audmommy]

He has been out for 8 days. He is latching on great and eating like a champ. For a while he had his days and nights flipped and was doing a ton of cluster nursing during the night time. But it looks like he has changed this to a morning or mid afternoon thing.. amazing how babies do stuff like this on thier own. We did have some issues with gastrointestinal reflex - meaning whenever his belly filled his bowel would empty. I was worried because he had lost a few ounces and with his bowel emptying every time he ate I was concerned abut him getting dehydrated. We made a quick trip to the pediatrician and it seems as all is good.

I seem to be doing alright with the postpartum bleeding. I am sure I am a little over cautious about it (mostly because we had issues with my uterus after delivery not contracting back up), and I am anemic.

But the baby is doing great. Having a second seems in some ways more laid back than the first and in other ways more stressful.. did I remember this right? what did I do with my dd then? Over all though it is going great, he is such a good nurser and sleeper. Next week dh goes back to work.. I think I will be alright

[poiyt]

18 days here - and things are great! The transition to 2 (dd#1 is 22months) has been really easy! Dh has been back to work for a week and a half, and though I miss having him around it is nice to get back into my own schedule during the day.

Sorel has a bit of a tongue tie - so nursing is more challenging this time around, but Im not stressed about it - I know she is getting enough, it just takes us a little bit longer.

I encapsulated my placenta, and I can honestly feel it working - I dont know if its psychosamatic, but - I feel more balanced and calm when I remember to take them! Now if only my cat would stop trying to eat them!

So Life is good, life is easy - and Im already ready for another one...lmao.

[tracymom1]

Originally Posted by poiyt

18 days here - and things are great! The transition to 2 (dd#1 is 22months) has been really easy! Dh has been back to work for a week and a half, and though I miss having him around it is nice to get back into my own schedule during the day.

I am so happy to hear the transition is going well! DS will also be 22 months when this LO arrives (unless I'm 3 weeks overdue which, please G-d, won't happen!!) and the one thing I worry about is going from one to two. DS seems so little - I mean, he is still a baby, too!! I worry about how he and I will adjust - both separately and together. It's nice to hear someone say something positive about the transition!

[poiyt]

I think 22 months is young enough that she doesnt really get that she *can* be jealous - so instead its just a baby, and its her baby. She doesnt realize that its taking attention away. Though I do still make sure that we do something together and that I remember to cuddle/kiss/hug/sing to her.

[ATruck]

45 days postpartum here. So I guess we are pretty used to it around here. She will be 7 weeks old on Friday. I think she is turning out to be one of those babies who doesn't really like to be put down. She also wants to suck a LOT- I am starting to see what pacifiers are for. Still not sure whether or not to introduce one- I am trying to keep an open mind.

I am still sleeping with her in one room, and DH and DD1 are in another. I would really like for us to all be together, but can't imagine how it will work. We have a king and a twin, so space should not be an issue, but.....

Challenges so far have been -- getting my DD1 to leave the park or similar-- how to physically manage 2, being on time anywhere, keeping DD2 out of the horrific sun and heat (a cool day this summer is anything below 100) while still getting DD1 outside....

[LilMomma83]

Originally Posted by ATruck

Challenges so far have been -- getting my DD1 to leave the park or similar-- how to physically manage 2, being on time anywhere, keeping DD2 out of the horrific sun and heat (a cool day this summer is anything below 100) while still getting DD1 outside....

Me too!!!

[poiyt]

The heat is getting me too...Im trying to make things fun for dd#1..but sometimes I feel like she is missing out on so much fun! This is the first summer she'd actually be able to do things, and we are stuck inside...