How Much to take it easy post birth - NO steps?

[MegBoz]

My MW (HB MW) says she doesn't even want me walking a flight of stairs - even once in a day - for the first week post birth.

With my DS, I honestly didn't know any better & thought that as long as I felt OK AND my bleeding didn't increase, I could "listen to my body" and do as I pleased. I was going on half-mile & more walks at FOUR DAYS PP - yup, 4 days. I felt great, but I now consider myself LUCKY I didn't have pelvic-organ prolapse issues! I know better now and I will take it easy regardless of how good I feel.
 

But to not even go down the stairs ONCE all day long for a full week seems a bit excessive. Besides, that means I won't get to see my Grandmom :( (she can't come up the steps.) I'd also rather not feel "stuck" in the upstairs & would like to eat some meals at the dining room table, & spend time with DH & DS (family room is much more equipped for the toddler than my bedroom!)

Thoughts?

I asked her if my DH could carry me & she said, "Sure." LOL - he is plenty strong enough, so there's an option. ;)

[allisonrose]

Hm. I'm going to sub to this thread because I'm curious about replies.

With my first, I wasn't told anything about restricted activity so I did the listen to my body thing. I wasn't going on walks at 4 days PP but I did climb the stairs a few times a day. I did try to minimize my trips up and down by having diapers and wipes on both floors.

[tireesix]

I don't understand that. My toilet and bedroom are upstairs so I had to go up and down stairs after babe was born, especially with 2 other kids as well.

As far as I am concerned, yeah, take it easy but its not like you have had your back operated on or something. Do what feels comfortable for you!

[littlecityfarmer]

I "take it easy after the birth"-type recommendations, but unless you have a terribly traumatic experience (and I certainly hope you don't!!), I think you can safely listen to your body and plan activity accordingly. Is there some reason that you're especially concerned about pelvic organ prolapse?

I certainly wouldn't recommend resuming a heavy weight-lifting program immediately after birth, but I've always been told "don't lift anything heavier than the baby". Going up and down stairs should be fine, if you feel up to it!

[Chavelamomela]

You have to follow some common sense here.

When I had ds1, I lived in a 2nd story walk-up.  We had 1 flight into the building, and 1 flight inside the house to get to our apt.

I had a PPH, and the mw advised that I be mostly "house-rest" and not go out.  But she was fine with going in and out once a day (DH appreciated that I could take the dog out once a day!).

With ds2, I didn't have a pph, so it was much better.  Nonetheless, I took it easy, tried not to overdo it.

You can probably do a bit more as each day goes, but try not to do too much overall.  I think your MW wants to stress the importance of taking it easy and arranging friends & family to help so you don't wind up doing more than you should.

[leigh2006]

I'm also curious about this.  My midwife told me the same thing after my last birth.  I had some tearing, perhaps that makes a difference?  I felt so isolated staying upstairs while everyone else was downstairs.  Eating in your room loses any appeal on day two.  With another homebirth coming up in April, I'd like to know if there are "modified" take it easy plans and what they might look like.

[MegBoz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by littlecityfarmer 

Is there some reason that you're especially concerned about pelvic organ prolapse?

Oh, no, actually. But I do remember reading a post once here on MDC of someone who said she was young, healthy, and had a great healthy birth but experienced POP due to being overactive post-partum. I realize it's a risk and I realize it's better to stay off your feet for a little while. So I now consider myself LUCKY that I had an OK recovery despite being very, very active at, actually THREE DAYS PP now that I think about it!

Yes, I would think tearing would make a difference as well, but my MW was specifically referring to all those internal organs getting back into position.

I'm sure I too would feel isolated being upstairs. Sure, friends & family would come up to visit, but DH would still have to cook the meals downstairs, so there would be a degree of isolation. &, as I wrote, then I couldn't see my Grandmom. I wonder if crawling up the stairs on hands & knees would make it a less risky action?

Yeah, I agree, use common sense - and my common sense is telling me that if I FEEL OK, walking up those steps just ONE TIME in a day will be fine.

[MyFullHouse]

I've never heard that advice before, and I'm pregnant with my 5th!

When #1 was born, I had a 2nd floor apartment.

When #2 was born, I had a 3rd floor apartment.

When #4 was born, my bedroom/bath was (and still is) on the second floor.

Had I followed such a strict "rule", I wouldn't have been able to go home for a week after some of my births, lol.

Sure, it's a good idea to limit stair climbing, but there is a middle ground!

[Climbergirl]

I was told that I could go up and down the stairs no more than 2 times a day for 1-2 weeks.  And I will have to watch things and make sure I am not pushing things (more bleeding, etc).  I plan on getting up, grabbing a shower and heading downstairs to the main level and then staying there until I have to go back upstairs.  I think it will be ok.

[taramoon13]

Originally Posted by tireesix 

I don't understand that. My toilet and bedroom are upstairs so I had to go up and down stairs after babe was born, especially with 2 other kids as well.

As far as I am concerned, yeah, take it easy but its not like you have had your back operated on or something. Do what feels comfortable for you!

our house is the same way, so it would be next to impossible to avoid stairs completely. i was never told this and i agree with pp's in that you should go on how you feel. maybe trying to avoid excessive stair use is a good idea, but i can't see how a couple times a day taking it slow would be bad as long as it feels to you.

[Banana731]

I didn't go downstairs for about the first week with after dd2. It was nice, everyone came to me! We ate meals in my bed together, we all hung out in my room and watched movies on my laptop. It was like my room became the "living room." When I finally had to get downstairs (boredom, etc.) I only went down and came up once for the next week or so. I will probably do the same this time around. If I really felt like I would be happier downstairs early on, I would bring my mattress down there and camp out there for the first week (provided I had access to a shower or bath.) To be fair, I am lucky enough to have a lot of help pp, which makes all this easier for me!

[Marissamom]

I'm planning on giving myself a week to just stay upstairs (we have bedrooms and bathroom upstairs), but it's because with DD I pushed myself too hard because I felt like I should be able to do more than I was, and I regret it because it took longer than it should have for me to recover. if I feel good enough I may venture downstairs before that. (that reminds me, I need to see if my sister will let me borrow her mini-fridge) 

[Marissamom]

adding to my post, I only have a bathroom upstairs, so it wouldn't be possible to go downstairs in the morning and stay there until night. if it would be I would probably do that starting a few days pp

[earth-mama]

Our house is tri-level with 2 half flights of stairs--one that goes down stairs and one that goes up.  We have 2 bathrooms one upstairs and one downstairs.  My midwife recommended that I limit the amount of times I go up and down the stairs, but as the living room/kitchen are on the main floor I mostly hung out there and only went upstairs to use the bathroom.

[~Demeter~]

Actually it's pretty rough on your perineum and pelvic organs postbirth to go up and down stairs. This time around I stayed downstairs (only have a bathroom down here... bed is upstairs) and slept on my pull out couch for the first week. I did allow myself to go up the stairs once a day (this was after 3-4 days postpartum, no stairs the first few days) because as much as my husband is truly awesome he is terrible at finding the things I wanted/needed. So once a day I would go up, get my clothes for the day and baby stuff I needed... at 7 days postpartum I was sleeping in my bed again, but I still wasn't up and down the stairs as much as I normally would. I had a very bad tear from a vacuum extraction.... I also have some pelvic organ prolapse issues from previous births. I think if it's going to happen to you, it will... there's a lot more involved than just being active postpartum. So... all of that to say I would definitely take it easy with stairs the first week or so, listen to your body for sure but I also think your mw is being a tad overcautious as well.

[mckittre]

Wow.  That does seem a bit crazy.  I guess I follow the "listen to your body" idea for most things, and certainly did after my first birth.  Went on a 15-20 min walk at 1 day after birth, a 3 mile road walk at 5 days, and a steep 3/4 mile uphill hike in the snow at 6 days.  Everything was fine, and I plan on listening to my body again.  I don't have any stairs though.

[cileag]

My midwife gave me the same recommendations and while initially I thought they sounded too restrictive, looking back I'm glad I was cautious.  I think it helped with several things:

1. Maximized rest---so much easier to take catnaps when I was already in bed.

2. Kept visits short--people are way less likely to hang out in the bedroom.

3.  A babymoon.  It really gave me a deliberate time to get to know my babe and reflect on the birth.  Obviously, I realize this can be done on a couch, a walk, but for me I think it was better that I was a little secluded.

[MegBoz]

Originally Posted by cileag 

My midwife gave me the same recommendations and while initially I thought they sounded too restrictive, looking back I'm glad I was cautious.  I think it helped with several things:

1. Maximized rest---so much easier to take catnaps when I was already in bed.

2. Kept visits short--people are way less likely to hang out in the bedroom.

3.  A babymoon.  It really gave me a deliberate time to get to know my babe and reflect on the birth.  Obviously, I realize this can be done on a couch, a walk, but for me I think it was better that I was a little secluded.

Yeah, my MW said, "You're going to have a baby moon."

Well, I feel as though I DID have a babymoon with my DS, even though I was super active. I took him on those walks through the neighborhood with the dogs. I took him to the grocery store at about 10 days PP. I think including him in such relatively peaceful, relaxing activities IS part of a nice babymoon!

& I didn't mind lengthier visits. Since he was born in July, we spent time outside with visitors. One of my favorite memories is when one of my girlfriends came over & she, DH & I played games on the deck all afternoon & paused to eat some of the great food she brought. We took turns holding DS the entire time (with, of course, him coming over to me for frequent nursing sessions.) It was so joyful, peaceful & pleasant. :) I think that was 9 days PP.

Your post really elucidated something for me... for YOU, the recommendations had a positive outcome - the MWs recommendations contributed to a positive babymoon experience. Whereas, for me, if I feel as good PP as I did with my DS, I think the restrictions (aka "recommendations") would bother me. "Restricted" is exactly the way I would feel - as if I'd had a jail sentence! I'd feel deprived & isolated. I really felt sad thinking this recommendation meant I couldn't see my Grandmom!! & I would think that in turn would make me feel irritated & frustrated. This, to me, doesn't sound like a positive, joyful, celebratory babymoon experience - it sounds like a recipe for contributing to post partum depression!

So bearing in mind the potential negative emotional impact of such restrictions, I think I am going to continue with my plans: be less active overall & especially for the first week PP than I was with DS, regardless of how fabulous I feel, but use my common sense & come downstairs if I want. Fortunately we have a powder room on the first floor, so I can easily go up & down the stairs only once in a day.

I also think crawling up the stairs could make a big difference in making the trip up less strenuous on my body. I would also not be upright in that case.

[leigh2006]

Originally Posted by Climbergirl 

I was told that I could go up and down the stairs no more than 2 times a day for 1-2 weeks.  And I will have to watch things and make sure I am not pushing things (more bleeding, etc).  I plan on getting up, grabbing a shower and heading downstairs to the main level and then staying there until I have to go back upstairs.  I think it will be ok.

This seems like such a reasonable plan to me!  Barring any complications, I will probably stick to a similar plan after my next birth.

Originally Posted by MegBoz 

Your post really elucidated something for me... for YOU, the recommendations had a positive outcome - the MWs recommendations contributed to a positive babymoon experience. Whereas, for me, if I feel as good PP as I did with my DS, I think the restrictions (aka "recommendations") would bother me. "Restricted" is exactly the way I would feel - as if I'd had a jail sentence! I'd feel deprived & isolated. I really felt sad thinking this recommendation meant I couldn't see my Grandmom!! & I would think that in turn would make me feel irritated & frustrated. This, to me, doesn't sound like a positive, joyful, celebratory babymoon experience - it sounds like a recipe for contributing to post partum depression!

I think the restricted feeling is exactly it.  I enjoyed resting in my room with the baby, but there was always that nagging thought in the back of my head that I was confined.  The napping, however, was priceless--something that didn't happen much after I came out of "confinement."
 

[A_Random_Phrase]

Edited by A_Random_Phrase - 12/7/10 at 3:47pm