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Post-Partum Mamas Thread

3K views 40 replies 11 participants last post by  typebug 
#1 ·
A place for post-partum mamas to share healing, baby updates and whatever else comes up.
 
#2 ·
How are you mamas?

My milk just came in this morning -- wowzers! I'd forgotten what this is like. The little guy just had his first full belly of milk.

Healing is going pretty well I think. I'm in bed for the week for sure but am able to walk and shower without help and I can carry the baby but if I do that while walking I feel like there's just too much pressure on the non-existant pelvic floor at this point. I have the co-sleeper on my husband's side of the bed so I can get in and out and he does the lifting and cooking and caring for our toddler and delivering these wonderful meals in bed, he's been a rock star. So glad we talked about all this and made a plan so good expectations were in place.

The little guy (who remains nameless) is a marathon sleeper right now but I know that's pretty typical of newborns at this stage. the 6 hour stretches will probably break into a couple of 3 hour ones soon but now that my milk is in that's preferable. Waking up engorged is not fun.
 
#3 ·
I was super engorged on my left yesterday and on my right a little less so today. So glad that both are settling down now, though. I'm now a 32G...finding nursing bras and tanks that are comfortable has been a trip.

Owen sleeps soooo well during the day. At night, not so much. I think we might be dealing with some gas issues. :\ I do have a visit from a IBCLC tomorrow and I'll be having her check out latching and other nursing skills to see if I need to change anything there to help him out more.

I feel amazing given the marathon that is birth tbh - just about a week postpartum and I'm up to running light errands, walked 0.4 miles while wearing Owen on our street, and my stitches seem to have healed mostly, still a bit tender/stiff, but it's not scary to poop anymore LOL. I just dropped down to regular absorbancy pads, too! :D
 
#4 ·
@stardogs yay! I'm looking forward to taking this guy out too.

I'm staying mostly on the bed or couch but happy to be healing pretty fast. The only bummer is I have multiple clogged ducts on both sides and am massively engorged and can't pump this extra milk out. It's driving me mental. I think it's the thickness of the milk as well as the fact that it came in really early since I really just weaned my toddler a mere months ago but the new baby isn't ready to consume this volume and likes to sleep in 6 hour shifts. I should have woken myself up to dream-feed this guy or pump the first night my milk came in but I slept through 6-7 hours and here we are... I just started new chinese herbs to help. Hot compresses and the usual stuff isn't budging this. It's pretty stubborn. I knew better... but the seep was so alluring.
 
#6 ·
Big brother is doing well. He is engaging with his little brother in a tender way, wants to help and wants to know where his brother is at all times. He also gets bored of naps and wants him to wake up. His own baby carrier arrived in the mail last night and he was genuinely excited about carrying his teddy bear around just like mommy. On the negative side he spent some energy over the first two days trying to get our attention in negative ways eg: throwing food, doing whatever he was asked not to do. My husband nearly lost his mind over it on day one and I caught his eye and said "we have to ignore this." And we did. I literally got up and walked away during an attention getting antic and no one said a word about flung food. We poured on the "great job" encouragement when he was helping with the baby and gave him lots of tasks (putting the diapers into the bin, fetching things we need etc). I made sure if he approached me for attention in a loving way I put baby down in the bassinet and gave him my full attention. Day 4 and now day 5 have been pretty smooth. Hubby takes him out for a long walk in the morning to tire him out and then we do our best to juggle them both in the afternoons.
 
#8 ·
Well Mamas, the week started strong for pp healing but took a dive near the end. I came down with the flu... nothing makes your bruised lady bits hurt more than flu aches on top of it all. I'm super dehydrated because my fevers have been up to 104 and my milk supply went down. Thank god I pumped when I was engorged and froze the milk. I would have been SOL last night when my little guy was hungry and I had no milk left.

I lost about 80% of my bladder control as the week progressed as well. Our first thought was a UTI which is very common in the first week but I tested negative for that so the next best diagnosis is that I bruised the sphincter muscle badly enough that I have temporary bladder control issues. I think things are improving now but it does take a month to heal apparently.

I still have a nipple with a really deep crack in it and am starting with nipple shields today. I had no idea how these worked, sounds genius. How did I not ever use these with my first? Live and learn.

Anyway... kinda crappy end to the week. Baby is doing amazing. He's gaining weight ever with the dip in my supply and sleeps in long stretches are night so we have some respite at night. My toddler on the other hand has gone feral. Seriously. Too much stimulation with all the family from out of town arriving and disruptions to to normal days. He's bonkers. Happy but bonkers.
 
#9 ·
We're struggling with what I'm hoping is just growth spurt related fussiness currently. Had two days of fussiness and cluster feeding, thought we were through it for a day, and now are on day two of another round of the same thing. :\ Really frustrating.

I'm feeling good other than some hemorrhoids that made their presence known on day 5 (I think I just couldn't distinguish their presence from other soreness before then). They aren't too awful, just annoying at this point. Owen and I are still taking daily walks and had our first hike (0.8 miles lol) at a local state park on Saturday.
 
#11 ·
Stardogs, I was having hemmorhoids in pregnancy and didn't want to treat with a medicine. I read to try diaper cream, and sure enough that worked! Shrunk up in a day and haven't had it since! I used burts bees, I'm willing to bet you have some lying around :)
 
#12 ·
I do have some various diaper cream available, though thankfully Owen hasn't needed it to date!

I've been using the EMAB Bottom Spray recently (forgot I had it lol) and that is def helping reduce them. Before that, I was just using the Tucks pads.
 
#13 ·
Diaper cream! Genius. I just discovered I have one and better get on this.

My cracked nipple FINALLY healed. The nipple shields (worn during nursing) were crap. I did better with pumping exclusively on that side to rest it. I switched to an off the shelf 1% Hydrocortizone cream on the crack area and did the Lansinoh lanolin instead of the Earth Mama Angel Baby nipple cream (which soaks in fast but doesn't help much). I like the Lansinoh gel pads too.
 
#14 · (Edited)
How is everyone doing? How are those babies? Anyone out and about with them yet?

Two weeks post partum yesterday. I'm finally out of bed. The antibiotics for the bladder infection kicked in, fever dropped and I'm feeling much better. Still sore around all the pelvic bones, tailbone and areas with stitches. Sitting in chairs is not great but getting better. I took the baby out for a few errands and to dinner with the family. He's just the easiest little guy. Sleeps in the car, snoozes through meals especially if it's nice and noisy. Nights have been good too. He's down for about 5-6 hours at a time most nights. Never cries. He just snarfs around for a boob and goes back to sleep.
 
#15 ·
5 days PP over here, day 4 at home. Babe had a weigh in at the Dr this morning and I needed more pads so we ran to the store after. Big mistake. Saturday before Christmas + newborn+ new (again) tired mama = totally overwhelming 15 minutes. I haven't left the couch since we got home from the hospital and I was glad to return to it after our excursion.

Baby Emelia is wonderful. She's gaining weight, nursing well, and sleeping ok. She sleeps best next to mama, and while I hadn't intended to cosleep, I'm not opposed to it either. Big brothers are rather indifferent. They are happy to see her when they wake up and get home from school, but otherwise kind of seem to forget she's here. I'm sure that all will change as she becomes more interactive. Perhaps my favorite is watching her daddy love her so much. He goes back to work Monday and I'm just so emotional about it (and maybe everything ;)). I'm going to miss him, and this time has just been so, so special that I'm sad it's over.

Feeling some guilt about my lack of Christmas spirit. The boys don't seem to mind, but I'm beating myself up about not doing more... Even though I know everything is fine, I usually make a fuss over holiday meals and cookie decorating and caroling and on and on.... "All is well and I'm doing the best I can" on repeat in my head :)

Haha so there's a novel. But really it felt good to get it out. How are the rest of our December mamas?
 
#16 ·
@MulberryMom Sounds like things are going really well. :)

I also feel like I'm dropping the ball on the festive front. DH seems to be doing more than usual so I don't think it'll be too bad... and then next year we can go all out again. Too bad your hubby's pat leave is ending! It's so great having dad home. Is he getting the week between xmas and new years off?
 
#17 ·
Hi postpartum mamas, I wanted to check in quickly. It's been difficult to get on the computer between my toddler's general neediness, nursing the baby, and family descending and also being needy. If you can believe it, my mom asked me if I was planning to make lunch for everyone (our family, my parents and my in laws) just after I stumbled out of bed in the late morning, having nursed my baby all night of course. Will be good to have some peace and quiet in a few days when they leave.

Otherwise all is pretty good, the baby is nursing great although she's picked up a cold and is having a little trouble nursing with a stuffy nose. I am feeling incredible, other than my pelvic floor feeling a little wonky from the breastfeeding hormones, which I'm sure will normalize over time - but I am trying not to overdo it with the walking and activity all the same.

Emotionally, I am feeling something quite unexpected. The healing I got from this birth is more than I ever anticipated or hoped for. It is like for the last few years, since my son's birth, I have been looking at the world through a cracked glass, and I became so accustomed to it that I stopped noticing the crack. And now the crack is gone and everything is so gloriously whole in a way that I had forgotten it could be. So we gave our girl the middle name Eva, which means "life-giver." First name Suzanne.

Hugs to all you postpartum mamas and to everyone still waiting.
 
#18 ·
If you can believe it, my mom asked me if I was planning to make lunch for everyone (our family, my parents and my in laws) just after I stumbled out of bed in the late morning, having nursed my baby all night of course.
This is exactly why I'm not looking forward to my mother arriving on the 2nd. When she came to visit when I was about 5 days pp with my daughter, she literally sat on the couch holding DD the entire time with never once thinking to ask if she could make/get us something to eat, or could use any help cleaning/run any errands. Just sat there like a lump. So I know she won't be coming to help with this one either. And she also made some very egregious lacks in judgment in raising me that would disqualify her from ever watching my DD. Not looking forward to her visit during such crucial healing/bonding/big family changes time, especially now that this baby is making it look like s/he is waiting until closer to that day to come out.
 
#19 ·
@Coriolus and @element2012 sorry you're having to cope with unhelpful mothers arriving. My MIL is like that and I somehow got DH to keep her from arriving here right after the birth. My own folks arrived 4 days pp but that came with its own set of problems. My mother seems to have had a major change in her short term memory just since she was here in October. We had to have a family meeting with my husband and my dad to decide how to delegate things to her because she was having the same conversations with us over and over again. She was great at plodding along doing laundry and helping me look after the baby but the second she tried to multi-task or cook anything alone in the kitchen or run an errand we had problems. We've managed to keep her from driving the car and someone goes with her when she runs an errand on foot. It's scary to see your parents age before their time. I'm hoping she will let my dad take her to a memory specialist as soon as they get home.

Caelen is three weeks old today! This week I was up and about every day and feel like the healing down below is going really well. I did some walks into town here with him in a structured carrier. I have found that I pull muscles and have pelvis issues when I carry him for longer walks. I do better when I start out with the carrier and then put him in the bassinet attachment for the stroller once he's asleep. I guess the months of partial bedrest probably took a toll on my core strength. I can't wait to get back into a work-out routine. I like having him in the carrier and want to do more hikes as soon as my body is strong enough.

Baby is doing really well for the most part. We seem to have some gas or a bit of reflux in the evenings for a few hours. He fusses and refuses to nurse and likes to be upright or in baby recovery position. The same thing happened with my first son in his third week and then it stopped again in the fourth week so I'm just going to wait and see what happens over the next few days before doing any dietary changes for me.

Hope everyone is getting some TLC from their families over the holidays! xo
 
#20 ·
I'm on my third day PP, 2nd full day at home... I came home on Christmas night, which was our Christmas Eve this year, and helped DH wrap presents! I swear I've never been as active so soon after giving birth with the other kids, but I'm feeling great. Well, minus the general soreness and stiffness, and the headache because of no caffeine. I gave myself a bit of caffeine and it subsided a bit. Of course, part of me worried a bit about blood clots. But I'm afraid I'm just being silly. I did have an enourmous clot come out yesterday, but my uterus had been much too large still in my opinion and is closer to normal now. My PP bleeding is pretty minimal...but after getting pitocin and Methergine for heavy bleeding, I don't know what is normal.
 
#21 ·
Anyone recovering From a c-section? I broke out in horrid hives about a week after delivery, tried hydrocortisone, steroid cream, Benadryl none were helping. DH researched and suggested ice packs and Grandpas Pine Tar Soap which luckily our co-op had in stock. One shower later and hives are much improved- yay! I smell like a campfire, but after that level of discomfort I couldn't care less.
 
#22 · (Edited)
@Hybrid Mama hope you are feeling better! Hives are so annoying to have. I wonder what caused that? I've had them from antibiotics before.

I'm on a road trip right now at 4 weeks post partum. We impulsively decided to go away for a week while my husband is still on his paternity leave (he took 6 weeks and goes back mid Jan). We split our 7 hour drive over two days and the kids slept both chunks of driving time so that was painless. We stopped and visited another family which went great. Then we stayed with old friends who threw a huge dinner party on New Years day. We had a CRAZY time with a totally buzzed up and wild 2.5 year old tearing around and our 4 week old Caelen who was having a fussy, gassy time and wouldn't latch to nurse. We ended up hiding in a bedroom with them both screaming. We missed all the food and ended the night with the two kids passed out from exhaustion on our bed with hubby and I having a good laugh together over a cognac. So that was an experience. We have a couple of days here to gather our wits and then we move on to Carmel to have some family time with just the four of us for the first time ever. I'm glad we're doing this trip but it's had its moments.
 
#23 ·
Is anyone else ravenously hungry? Perhaps it's because I'm paying less attention to my own appetite than when I was pregnant, but I'm so hungry these days. It's like I'm not eating as often as I should because by the time I realize that I'm hungry, I'm in a full blown hangry fit!

Do any of you mamas have good ideas for high quality, high(er) fat, snacks that are easily prepared and eaten with a baby in tow?
 
#24 ·
Same! I keep forgetting to eat and we're supposed to be getting 3000 calories a day to make milk so that's not good. Sandwiches are relatively easy to eat while juggling baby so when people offer to bring me food I ask for that with extra avocado on there. Last time I got into starting each day with a nut based smoothie. I should do that again.
 
#25 ·
I've got some check-in questions mamas! Hope you all had a good week snuggling those newborns.

How is your baby doing?

How is sleep going?

How is breastfeeding going?

How about the mama! Tell us how you are feeling and how your healing is going.

Any marvelous tidbits of wisdom you want to share? (Even if it's just that you have no idea a shower could feel so good).
 
#26 ·
I'm glad to check in!

Emelia Sofia is good. She'll be four weeks old on Monday. She's just the sweetest. Her little personality is starting to show. She's a fiery one, she knows what she wants and she lets us all know :)

Sleep is irregular. She's starting to have more awake periods during the day which is wonderful. I find that if we do a bath about 9, then swaddle, and nurse around 9:30, she'll usually sleep until 3ish. When I first lay her down, I put her in her bassinet next to our bed. After she wakes I bring her into bed and she nurses and we both go back to sleep for the night.

Breastfeeding is smooth and easy. She's got a bit of a lip tie, but it hasn't been an issue for us. She nurses often, especially in the evenings. She had her first bottle yesterday from DH. I pumped a week ago and needed to use the milk, and I needed an uninterrupted nap. He said she took the 2oz bottle like a champ. I then pumped 3oz when I woke up. I have another 7 weeks of maternity leave, and I'm not sure when I should start actively building a freezer supply of milk. Anyone have words of wisdom?

I'm tired! And hungry! Haha and a bit stir crazy. My boys are at school all day and hubby's at work, so it's just me and the babe all day at home. The weather is not favorable to take her out often so we're just hanging out at home. Anyone have thoughts about staying engaged? I'm healing well and feeling good physically.

My advice: get outside!! I've resumed my daily outdoor walks when DH gets home. I feel like a million bucks during and after. It might be freezing cold and snowing, but I'm bundling up and walking anyway.

I'm excited to hear how everyone else is doing!
 
#27 · (Edited)
How is your baby doing?
Good! We're working through the 6 week growth spurt right now, but it's not too bad, just a bit more grumpy and lots more nursing. O is 6 weeks tomorrow! o_O

How is sleep going?
We're still up every 2h almost on the dot throughout the night. I occasionally get a 3-4 hour stretch, but those are rare. Luckily he's our only and I don't schedule things until late morning, so we can go to bed at 11p and not get up until 9:30a, allowing for a good amount of sleep despite this.

How is breastfeeding going?
Good. The extra nursing for the spurt has left me a little sore, but he's gaining suuuuuuper well (2lbs in his first month, about a pound in the last 10 days!) so his lip and tongue ties seem to not be an issue. I started pumping a week ago to start a stash and we already have over 30oz in the freezer. :)

How about the mama! Tell us how you are feeling and how your healing is going.
My 6 week postpartum check is on Tuesday. I feel back to normal pretty much (O and I have walked/hiked 50 miles together so far!), though I do have some hemorrhoids that aren't painful but still present. My tears healed super fast and don't both me at all. :) I think I may also have some diastasis, so will be asked my midwives about that before I start yoga and other formal exercise. Mentally I'm feeling pretty good with occasional moments of overwhelm. Last week was DH's first full week back at work since O arrived and we had a few bumps in balancing his need for time to recharge and my need for some baby-free time. We've got a new plan for this week, though - fingers crossed!

Any marvelous tidbits of wisdom you want to share?
I'll second getting outside every day, even if it involves rain gear or a parka. Fresh air has done soooo much for me and O really settles during his walks in his carrier. <3

Another piece of advice: even if you don't *need* the help, try to find a LLL, BWing, or other mom network group - the 'adult time' is great for beating the 'stuck at home with a nonverbal creature' all day issues. :)
 
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#28 ·
It's only been 4 full days since giving birth but I thought I would be more recovered by now. I was shopping with DH yesterday and all I did was walk while holding baby and let DH do everything else and I still felt exhausted.
It still feels like someone used a baseball bat on me. It's frustrating to be sore for this long.
 
#32 ·
I'm impressed you were out at all 4 days pp. :) I also had a fast birth compared to my first and the bruising has been much more of an issue than anything else. It seemed to get worse and then plateau before it got better. I also had that feeling of pressure on my pelvic floor whenever I stood up the first week. It felt like my organs were going to drop out of me. Took two weeks to be able to go for a walk with the baby.
 
#29 · (Edited)
How is your baby doing?
She's incredible! Today, she is two weeks and two days. She's much more alert, is following both mine and my DH's face from side to side, and is very interested in anything with contrast. She loves to look at the ceiling fan and black and white frames on the wall. She is eating a lot more so we are probably working through a growth spurt. She already gained over a pound back from what she lost after birth!

How is sleep going?
Pretty well, I can't complain. She's been cluster feeding in the late afternoon/evening about every hour from around 6 to 10pm. We "go to bed" around 10-10:30pm and she's been sleeping one long stretch until about 2 or 3am. Then we are up about every 2 to 3 hours from then on, and throughout the day.

How is breastfeeding going?
Dare I say this? I hate breastfeeding. I would honestly rather give birth to her again than endure this pain. She had a lip and tongue tie that we got revised on day three. It barely helped her latch. My nipples are cracked everywhere and I dread feeding her again. She chomps down and pinches my nipples flat and they never get the chance to heal. I used a nipple shield for a few days and then went back to the breast and it was so hard for her to figure out how to re-latch that I don't want to go down that road again. The pain is so excruciating that I'm worried we may have thrush and will be asking my midwife about it at our appointment this afternoon. I know the pain will not last forever and I won't feel like this forever, so I press on and just nurse through it all. I know the benefits outweigh the discomfort in the long run but I secretly wish that someone would show up at my door with a bottle every time. Anyone have any advice or insight on when this might start getting better? We can't afford to hire an IBCLC and I'll be taking her to a LLL meeting on Wednesday morning. Hopefully they can help!

How about the mama! Tell us how you are feeling and how your healing is going.
With the exception of my nipples, I'm feeling pretty great. I have some bleeding sporadically still, but nothing crazy. No tearing, stitches or hemorrhoids. I had my placenta encapsulated and I'm taking two capsules, three times a day, and I think it really is helping me stay balanced. I also had a broth and tincture made to use going forward, once the capsules run out.

Any marvelous tidbits of wisdom you want to share?
I also love getting out with the babe. She loves our wrap carrier and immediately settles in on a walk outdoors. I love having her snuggled against me. It also feels good to get out and walk to a cafe or meet a friend! Staying inside and watching TV becomes isolating very quickly since I'm used to having a routine and always being on the go.
 
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