Postpartum necessities « Back to Group Discussions

[withlittlelungs]

I wanted to know what everyone's idea of necessary postpartum supplies are. 
I basically just used the stuff from the hospital last time, but I know that home birth mamas tend to have other go-to items. 
 

The peri bottle was the best thing ever. And I also got some spray which really helped my stitches after my tear, but I can't remember what it was. 

Feel free to share your favorite items so I can compile my list :)

[writermama12]

I didn't expect to need this with my second child but I desperately needed cooling gel pads and Lanolin for my nipples. I mean, my nipples were cracked, bleeding and scabbing over which made it incredibly painful to nurse eleven times a day. Several days PP, once I was with it enough to advocate for myself to my family, I requested some refridgerated gel pads and they worked like magic in one day. I will have them in advance this time, even though I am still nursing my DS2. Those little mouths learning latches can do a number on swollen nipples.

[cocoanib]

I had a homebirth and the things I used most were:

peri bottle

sitz bath and tea for sitz bath

frozen pads with the tea on them...they were heaven

a good nipple cream

lot's of easy snacks for my nursing station. ex, trail mix, dried fruit, berries

lot's of long, thick postpartum pads

placenta smoothies and capsules

This time around, I've got some depends on hand. My midwife left me with one to wear immediately after birth and I think I would like to wear them for a couple days this time.

I would also like to have an herbal bath with the baby after birth, so I have plenty of herbs on hand for that.

[writermama12]

Oh, and really thick menstral pads and a cheap plastic mattress pad (like you'd put in a crib) to catch leaking blood. I am a bleeder after birth and have some moderate to heavy bleeding for four days PP, so I keep a new pack of overnight pads and my cloth ones in the house before birth.

[maydaymom10]

Originally Posted by withlittlelungs 

And I also got some spray which really helped my stitches after my tear, but I can't remember what it was. 

Feel free to share your favorite items so I can compile my list :)

The spray is called "dermaplast". I just learned about it last week and a pissed that my midwives didn't suggest it after my tear with DS. It would've been nice! I've got mine ready to go :)

I've also got a peri bottle and will make some of those frozen pads - I use aloe, witch hazel & lavender on mine. I'll also probably get some depends because they were really useful last time around. I know there is more, but I haven't started that list yet. I also need to get on my homebirth supplies!

[spughy]

Witch hazel  - so many uses

big honking pads (some frozen with witch hazel soaked in, as previously noted)

peri bottle

lotsa food

beer

cable tv

breast pump

those little flexible pill cups for cup-feeding (hopefully not necessary, but they make good bath/sink toys later on if they're not needed)

fenugreek capsules & blessed thistle tincture

extra mesh panties

[Bena]

Magazines! It was the only thing that kept me in bed long enougj to heal!!!

[cabbitdancer]

How do you apply the frozen pads? Put them on over the pad you're using to catch blood?

[firespiritmelody]

Originally Posted by cabbitdancer 

How do you apply the frozen pads? Put them on over the pad you're using to catch blood?

I like to wear a depends for the first couple of days so I'll just lay the "frozen" pad on top.

[cabbitdancer]

Iiiinteresting. I shall have to look into this frozen pads idea. :D

[scarletsmiles]

what's a peri bottle?

[spughy]

Originally Posted by scarletsmiles 

what's a peri bottle?

A squishy squirt-bottle you can aim at your nether-regions so you can rinse after using the toilet rather than doing a lot of wiping.  MUCH more comfortable.  Of course, if this were a civilized continent that had more bidets, we wouldn't need peri bottles.

(Edit: although, you can put a bit of witch hazel in the peri bottle which makes it even nicer.  Can't do that with a bidet.)

[cocoanib]

Originally Posted by scarletsmiles 

what's a peri bottle?

Originally Posted by spughy 

A squishy squirt-bottle you can aim at your nether-regions so you can rinse after using the toilet rather than doing a lot of wiping.  MUCH more comfortable.  Of course, if this were a civilized continent that had more bidets, we wouldn't need peri bottles.

(Edit: although, you can put a bit of witch hazel in the peri bottle which makes it even nicer.  Can't do that with a bidet.)

We're also installing a diaper sprayer this go around, so I figure that will be nice on my nethers as well. That will be in the downstairs bathroom, so I will continue to keep the peri upstairs.

[chocolatechip]

Oh this is great, I am starting to compile a list! Two questions.

1) Can someone explain more about this frozen pads thing? How to do it? How much witch hazel or whatever to put on them?

2) writermama is the only one so far who mentioned cloth pads. Anyone else? Writermama, it sounds like you use a combination - is there a reason? I usually use cloth menstrual pads, and just got some postpartum pads (which are huge ), and was wondering if a few postpartum size alternated with some other thick ones would be enough, or if I should make sure I have some disposables around too... I know there can be a lot of bleeding at first, but I still don't know how to think of "a lot."

[Bena]

The bleeding varies for everyone, of course, but I really only needed those huge pads for a week, at the most (and maybe even less). Aftet that it was more like a heavy period. As long as I didn't do too much, by 3-ish weeks it was a low flow period.

[Chapsie]

Originally Posted by cocoanib 

We're also installing a diaper sprayer this go around, so I figure that will be nice on my nethers as well. That will be in the downstairs bathroom, so I will continue to keep the peri upstairs.

We have a diaper sprayer (from bum genius) and to be honest, I wouldn't ever use it on my postpartum bottom!  It's hard to control the flow and it is VERY cold water.  Just an FYI... Peri bottle is way easier.  If you are having a homebirth, you can just buy an empty ketchup bottle from the dollar store-- it does the same thing.

[Chapsie]

Originally Posted by chocolatechip 

2) writermama is the only one so far who mentioned cloth pads. Anyone else? Writermama, it sounds like you use a combination - is there a reason? I usually use cloth menstrual pads, and just got some postpartum pads (which are huge ), and was wondering if a few postpartum size alternated with some other thick ones would be enough, or if I should make sure I have some disposables around too... I know there can be a lot of bleeding at first, but I still don't know how to think of "a lot."

As long as you change your pads frequently, you should be ok.  I'm planning on making myself some mama cloth before baby comes.  

I'll probably use regular disposable pads the first day (bleeding can be clotty at first and sometimes its just easier to ditch the pads.)  I remember by day 2-3, bleeding slowed way down unless I was doing too much activity. 

[maydaymom10]

PPD Frozen Pad video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yt2LWwEOApk

This is basically how I made mine, but I used just plain witch hazel instead of the rose water one and I used a natural aloe vera gel.

[spughy]

I can't use aloe gel on my nether bits because for some reason it gives me yeast infections.  But I just put a good glop of witch hazel (a couple tbsp? I can't remember, this was 7 years ago!!!) on the pads and stuck them in the freezer.

As far as bleeding goes, that varies hugely between women.  I had huge clots for the first few days, followed by what was essentially a VERY heavy period for at least a week.  Then light red bleeding for another two weeks, followed by intermittent bleeding and spotting for 8 weeks after THAT.  (Yeah, if I knew now what I knew then, I would have been all "THERE IS SOME PLACENTA LEFT IN THERE FOLKS WTF DID YOU NOT GIVE ME A D&C WHEN I ASKED FOR ONE 2 HOURS AFTER BIRTH" but, well, hindsight is 20/20 and I wasn't in the best cognitive shape of my life and I hadn't really paid attention to the "how long you're supposed to bleed post-partum" bits of our birthing class and frankly I had other things to worry about than what was going on down there.

I am a fan of cloth pads and I use them normally, but from my postpartum experiences I would NOT use cloth for lochia.  Just me.  The difference between them and what I would use ordinarily (I normally have quite light periods) is so great that they would be essentially a one-time-use things and unless I made them myself from scrap fabric that was otherwise going in the trash (and I don't have anything suitable at the moment), I couldn't justify the purchase.

[Melany]

We had a diaper sprayer for diapers, too. The water was under a lot of pressure and FRIGID and pretty sure I'd never want to spray that on me. :) I'd have to be careful not to get the diaper residue all over the bathroom.