How bad is the recovery period after having a baby?

Question

I am due Nov. 27th and I heard some people are just fine...others can't even sit down. How was your after-birth experience?

Answer 1

Well, I don't have a personel experience but I worked at a group home with teen mothers. The ones that had vaginal births recovered just fine the were up and ready the next day. The ones that had c-sections varied, some had pain for a week, some recovered after 1-2 days.

Answer 2

I have had two children, and both experiences varied. Both were born vaginally, but my first daughter was much larger than the second. That alone made quite a difference in their births and my recovery. My first daughter was 8 lbs 13 oz- and it took over 3 hours of pushing time + she had to have the suction pump put on the crown of her head to help get her out. She had a big head, so that caused a lot of tearing of my vagina, and lots of stitches. My second was 6 lbs 15 oz- and she slid out in two pushes with only one small tear (because she had her little fist up by her neck). With my first, because of all the tearing, I had a very hard time sitting. Going to the bathroom was complete agony, because the urine made the tears/stitches sting horribly. It took a few weeks to be able to get back to sitting regularly (I highly recommend those "donuts", the kind for hemorroid patients). With the second, because of minimal tearing and only a few stitches, was much better in terms of recovery. Only about a week and I was back to normal. I also think that your emotional state has a lot to do with your recovery... with my first, I was in a bad relationship, with a partner who was not present (mentally) at the birth or after. I ended up leaving him when my daughter was 4 months old. With the second, I had re-married, to a wonderful man, who had taken my first daughter as his own and was completely supportive. He took time off from work the first two weeks of our second daughter's life and let me do the relaxing and recovering that I needed while he tended to the kids. I'll tell you, knowing that you and the children would be taken care of sure makes a difference in your birthing perspective! I felt that it was easier to make sure I got the rest and recovery time I needed, and just being in a more positive state of mind really helped the process go faster. Everyone's experiences will be different because every child is different... try not to be too scared. In the end, you will have a beautiful baby! Good luck and congrats!

Answer 3

i've had two. The 1st was the worst but, still the recovery was not a bad as the birth. I fekt fine after 2 weeks but bleed for 4 weeks. My 2ed afterpains were worse I could still walk and sit and use the bathroom on my own just sore after about 2 weks the soreness was gone.

Answer 4

It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be! I think it will depend on if you have a vaginal delivery or a c-section. I had a vaginal delivery and had a hard time pushing and my iv fluids weren't getting to me...the line was kinked! So my blood pressure dropped to nothing so I had 5 bags of fluid pushed quickly and I felt much better other than looking like a beached whale! I was up walking around later that night and the next day I was really sore but I went home and my husband really helped with the baby and I was able to relax and take it easy! It just depends on how your delivery goes....I wish you a painless & easy delivery!

Answer 5

I have 4 kids so I am sort of an expert, j/k . I really isn't too bad. I had the most trouble with my 2nd, she was the biggest, she was 10 lbs. I couldn't walk for a week. But, after you heal it is like it never happened. You forget about the pain, when you look down and see that beautiful baby that is all yours. It is worth a little pain.

Answer 6

I was sorest after my first, but that was the only time I had stitches. I found that sitting on my Boppy pillow helped my sore bottom. Also, buy big thick maxi pads or Poise pads and squirt witch hazel into them and freeze them. That will feel GREAT on your bottom and help you heal up. Other than a sore bottom, I was great.

With #2 and #3 I had waterbirths with no tearing. Recovery was pretty easy. The afterpains were pretty bad after my third, but they are supposed to get worse with each child. (The afterpains were worse than labor!) Those Thermacare menstrual patches are GREAT for afterpains.

Answer 7

really depends on the condition/health of your body, and the actual birth experience. The shorter time you spend in the delivery room doing the pushing, the faster you recover. All that labor takes a lot of energy out of you, your muscles are just not used to that kind of hard work for the 1st mommy. Good luck.

Answer 8

I've have three children, two born vaginally and one via csection. Vaginal birth is by far easier to recover from, or it was for me. Yes, there is soreness/tenderness, but lasts for about a week. Sitting on a Boppy pillow is a great relief, and so are sitz baths.

Congratulations by the way! You will do great!

Answer 9

My recovery was a breeze, it was the engorgement that killed me, when my breasts filled up w/ milk. They got as hard as rocks and swelled up to like D's when I'm usually a B. It also depends on if you got an episiotomy or not and how many stiches they gave you. I only had 2 stiches so I really didn't notice. Like I said the worst for me was the engorgement and the lack of sleep. So sleep now!!!! As much as possible, and when the baby comes definatly sleep when he/she sleeps.

Answer 10

It's not bad for a vaginal delivery. You will want to sit down very slow for the first couple days because you will be a little tender but thats really about it.