Anyone up yet after baby??

[mataji4]

So my little boy is almost 2 weeks old and I'm getting up a little more each day. I made breakfast for father's day with him in the moby this morning and he loved it- first time I tried it out. My tear is healed (I think...) and I am only using one pad per day, so I think I'm okay to start getting up more. But when can I go for a walk or out?? I want to visit my girlfriend and her new baby desperately, but I think I'm still a few days out. Definitely will be up more this morning as my dh has taken his fatherhood and gone fishing for a few hours so the kids are all mine!!

How are you all doing??

[wombatclay]

Once you feel up to it, go for it!

I have a 4th degree tear and we came home from the hospital a week ago today but I've already been for several walks in the neighborhood with Rowan in her moby (she needed a little sun for her jaundice)...two times to my dr/rowan's ped (3 blocks each way) and this morning to our local coffee shop (also 3 blocks each way). And during Rowan's naps I've been playing with my 2yo on our porch/yard (gentle sand box and water table playing that is!).

My obs feel that getting out in the sun and moving around...gentle walking, gentle belly dance inspired hip swaying, fresh air, social interaction, etc is important to physical healing after birth as well as an important part of preventing pp mood disorders and helping to bring about the positive emotional/mental balance a mama needs. You shouldn't over do it of course...just go at the speed and intensity that feels comfortable and leaves you relaxed instead of drained...but if you feel ready for an easy outing and some company, then you're ready!

[Jilian]

I went to the mall the other day to do some father's day shopping and that is the most walking I've done since the birth I'd say to go with your feelings, if you feel ready for a walk then go for it. If you're still tired then wait a bit longer.

Clay, I'm impressed that you're already going for long walks with a 4th degree tear! I'll never whine about my second degree tear again

[wombatclay]

Well, I'll admit I'm not walking "fast" and I'm pretty sure I'm lacking in a certain "graceful stride" as well!

But seriously, it hurts more to sit than it does to walk so even if I had a car available it's simply easier to walk for short outings. And my obs really do feel that you heal faster if you're up and about and the blood is flowing and the tissue stretching gently. It's all about being gentle and listening to your body though...so what feels good or doable is going to be different for everyone and happen at different times.

[PatchChild]

I started really getting out more around 1.5-2 weeks. Ok, I'm still slow as anything after my c-section, but it counts! I feel so much better after getting out for a while that I just have to keep doing it.

Basically, when it feels good, do it.

[jbobys]

i was at the pediatrician, or the store or somewhere with both 1 and 2 within the first day or 2. my mws tend to yell at me to get in bed and rest i just usually feel so great those first couple days that the baby is FINALLY out, that i want to run around the town!

everyone is diff, though, and ive never (knock wood) had a severe tear or anything. get up and do what you feel is right for you. by 2 weeks, though i think you really should be moving...helps physically and emotionally.

[WhiteWax]

ok, I might not really count on this conversation... I had no tearing at all this time....But here is what I have been up too the last 11 days since DD2's Birth We stopped out at my MIL's work the day we came out of the hospital(2 days) went out to breakfast (4 days... first publisc nursing! WOOHOO! lol) Went to Dr and to visit friends (7 days), went for a walk that night, walk the next morning (8 days) in the moby, LEFT (EEEEEEEP) NEW DD with DexP for two hours and went garage saling w/ friend (10 days) and did a belly dancing excercise tape that night. Went to ex Family BBQ and played horse shoes today (11 days).

It occured to me after the garage saling and belly dancing in one day that MAYBE I was doing a little too much and this MIGHT just catch up to me..... so I have GOT to go to bed now!!!!

[cjanelles]

Oh man...

I guess I'm one of the very lucky ones.

I was induced on June 1 and had an epidural, but I was pretty much up and moving around within 12 hours of delivery.

Baby was born on Friday, we were at the store on Tuesday (this was not planned, but I *had* to buy a nursing bra.

Since then, although I spent the first week pretty much glued to the chair due to round-the-clock breastfeeding, I've been pretty mobile. I was driving within the first week, took a bath, all the regular activity.

My bleeding has finally slowed down to almost none. I weigh 5 lbs less than I did before I got pregnant...which means I lost all of the 21 lbs I gained during the pregnancy, and then some. So, I'm back in my regular clothes, which is wonderful.

I have to say, I fully expected this post-partum recovery period to be the worst of all my kids...due to being induced and the epidural...But while the labor and delivery were the most difficult of all my experiences, the recovery has been, by far, the quickest and least painful.

I'm sorry to all you new moms who are still faced with the challenges of physical pain and discomfort as well as taking care of a new baby. Remember to take it easy and not over-do it just because you think you're feeling better.

[Keeping up]

We have been up to a fair bit so far ...

but I have memories of baby #1 - don't discount the first kid and any sort of tear (I had a 3rd degree). I couldn't walk upright for several weeks - the pain of that experience still haunts me.

The good news - all that damage with #1 makes #2 thru #4 a BREEEZE! I am now five days post partum and don't feel I was ever pregnant (other than the breast pain/issues). My husband went golfing yesterday and left the gang alone with me. I was a bit scared at first but we did just fine. We walked to the donut store (our tradition on the weekend to go buy donuts) as well as Starbucks (wanted to buy a new coffee machine for Father's Day) - both are really close. I took the double stroller loaded with the younger pair and the older pair walked. We even thought about going out for lunch but the restaurant of choice was closed on Sunday.

ALSO ... had my first 'she has four' comment - my crowd is young (and my oldest looks a lot younger so everyone asks if the the tall 3 yr old boy and the small 5 yr old are twins) - I am close on a spectacle even when I only had 3 kiddos! Four will trigger all kinds of comments. I had to laugh - it won't be the last time.

My older trio are at school today (aren't I lucky!) so I plan to do laundry, organize the playroom and go buy the Father's Day present that wasn't available at Starbucks. We even slept well last night (I know that will come to an end but I will love it while it is happening).

I would try and get out every day - even if it is just a 10 minute slow walk. I agree with a pp that feeling real makes you heal faster - just don't over do it. Think small steps. I also refuse not to have a shower each day -it would make me feel awful. I can't nurse in public yet (the grimace and groaning would be too much) but hopefully in another few days the right side will be good and another week for the left side.

[mataji4]

i am going to take a wee walk today with baby in the moby...just up and down the sidewalk should do the trick. and tomorrow i'm going to brave driving (he's so small to be going in a carseat!!) to my friends' house to see her newborn son as it's just a few blocks away.

my dh left me to go fishing yesterday, and we all did great until just before he got home when i had a little breakdown b/c my oldest was throwing rocks at his sister and i couldn't yell as i saw it out the window (i just can't yell yet- like my diaphram is too big to constrict itself for yelling!) and i was so sad that they were fighting, etc..."why can't we just all get along??!! boohoo..." but that showed me i still need lots of rest and emotional space.

i'm definitely not up for nursing in public- all the spitting up and milk leaking/ spraying and choking, etc, is just too much!

since i did my own care this pregnancy i didn't have anyone look at my tear (which i think was just a 1st degree but i'm not sure!) so i can only guess that it's okay because it doesn't hurt or burn, though it still feels a little sore when i sit on hard chairs. when i try and look with a mirror, it's like "what is it supposed to look like down there??!!" everything gets so rearranged when you have an 11 pound baby!!!

oh, and ann- i can't wait for the comments on having 4! i've always wanted a big family. my kids are so great! both of my best friends have 4 as well, and we always get the "are all of these your's??" questions when we go together anywhere. i feel like now i have a clan!

[wombatclay]

This may be TMI but...when my OB was doing the suturing she actually had DH take a couple of looks (he's in the bio-tech/bio-med field and has done a lot of animal surgery himself so he had sort of a "professional eye"). One reason was so he could see how it looked so he'd be able to tell if I was getting more swollen/inflamed/injured over time (I can ask him to take a look if something doesn't feel right) but she also wanted to ask him (very very delicately) if things were lined up right since he was/is very familiar with the "geography" so to speak.

Nothing icky (like that whole "honeymoon stitch" thing) but it made me laugh (which HURT) watching the two of them discuss suturing and muscle alignment.

[willoLevin]

My 2 cents.

I feel like, with my first, I was up and about a bit too quickly. Not necessarily for my physical recovery, but because I was very emotional/hormonal, and then I had my milk supply issues for which we never really discovered the cause.

So, this time, I have spent most of my time thus far in bed. I have made it okay for me to ask people to bring me food or take away laundry from the hallway or whatever. I simply decided ahead of time to create this healing time for myself. I'd say I've spent maybe 1-2 hours per day since I've been at home (2 days post-partum) sitting on my little loveseat in the nursery-turned-sitting-room upstairs, only about half an hour downstairs (trying to eat a meal at the table with the family), and the rest of my time in bed.

Today we went to our first pediatrician visit since we're very actively watching weight gain and bilirubin (due to DS#1's issues), and tomorrow we will go to a lactation consultation at the hospital ('cuz I liked the LC there), but, otherwise, we're still happily at home.

Of course, we're still less than five days post-partum. My goal is to be very, VERY peaceful and at home for the first week. After that, I will play it by ear. I do find that, while I feel quite perfectly physically well when I'm in bed or in my sitting room, I'm amazed by how tired/achey I feel when I've gone up and down the stairs and outside. I think that means, for now, that I'm doing about as much as I should be doing.

--willo

[Mere]

I'm just 3 days pp, but I'm feeling fine and able to get out and do things. That said, I'm trying really hard to restrain myself from doing much of anything except puttering around the house. I know that my body still has some healing to do even though I feel fine, so I'm trying to respect that! My goal is to lie low at least through Friday, and then maybe get up and do some minor outings. Luckily, friends and family are being really helpful about taking the kids out of the house and keeping them busy. Otherwise, resting would be next to impossible!

[herbmama3-7]

I didn't tear with this delivery, however I did have a very fast labor and delivery, 3 hours start to finish!! My midwife is very strict on resting, resting resting!! For the first few days she doesn't want me doing anything except nursing and resting, and getting up only to use the bathroom and shower. This isn't easy, but I am aware it helps with the healing process. I make it my own rule to not go out with baby for the first two weeks, I feel it is important to honor the precious laying in post partum period for me and for baby! We are 8 days pp and I am starting to get a little antsy, I look forward to getting out in public next week, for now I will just make little trips outside with ds, dh and dd. I am very protective of my babies and just can't stand the idea of strangers wanting to touch or ask details of her and me, I don't know why I just like my privacy after birth! Also I notice that I feel sore down there, like bruised if I am up and about too much, I hatet that feeling, plus it is possible to hemorage up to 30 days pp, so I am sorry if I sound a bit unconventional, but resting IMHO is VERY important!! The more you allow yourself to rest at first, the sooner you will gain the energy back to get up and go!

[willoLevin]

Originally Posted by herbmama3-7

...Also I notice that I feel sore down there, like bruised if I am up and about too much, I hatet that feeling, plus it is possible to hemorage up to 30 days pp, so I am sorry if I sound a bit unconventional, but resting IMHO is VERY important!! The more you allow yourself to rest at first, the sooner you will gain the energy back to get up and go!

I get that feeling, too. Was wondering today if that meant I'd "done something" else or more to injure the poor area again, but probably it is just a bit more swelling?

--willo

[mataji4]

well, bjorn had his first outing this morning...we drove four minutes to the farmer's market to buy cherries, asparagus, carrots, lettuce, fresh tortillas- yum! it was very mellow but funny to be around all those PEOPLE! then i stopped by my friend's house to meet her tiny baby on the way home. i went slow and bjorn did great! then we came home and have spent the last three hours in bed napping! i'm totally happy to rest. i probably won't go anywhere else this week...but i'm glad i didn't miss those cherries!