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There are thousands of tips out there on how to survive childbirth, breathing techniques, medical intervention info, postpartum care advice… And I’ll be honest, I’m very type A so I read a bunch of them. I bought a few books, signed up for some email newsletters, read dozens of online articles and blogs, and perused social media to find anything that would help prepare me for this crazy scary experience. As a first-time mama, I didn’t know what to expect so I tried to expect everything! (one of my favorite tips that really panned out was to bring my own birthing gown! I definitely recommend it to everyone.)
That said, there did end up being a postpartum surprise or two in the immediate aftermath of giving birth that I was not expecting, and might have changed how I prepared.
The horror of the first pee.
I had a long birth process and was in the labor & delivery room for almost 2 days. I did end up getting an epidural after being there for about 15 hours, which comes with a… urine catheter! Yay. The absolute worst thing about that was not having it put in or it being there or it being taken out (all of which I was completely numb for). No, the worst part by far was peeing for the first time afterwards!! My nurse helped me hobble over to the bathroom on still partially numb legs, taking my first steps after the ordeal of birth, gave me some Dermoplast spray (amazing stuff) and a peri bottle and told me to prepare myself. Ouch!! It did get much better with each consecutive bathroom visit, however, so the burning discomfort did not last long.
Not getting to sleep that night, or any night thereafter.
This may have been obvious to some, but it caught me a little by surprise. Not that sleeping while 9 months pregnant had been all that easy either, but it wasn’t so bad. I had subconsciously thought that after I went through the most physically strenuous activity a person can go through, laboring for 31 hours straight, with all the physical and mental struggle that comes with that, that I would be able to sleep, right? HAHAHAHAHA no. It may be different at different hospitals or birthing centers or wherever you decide to give birth, but my hospital strongly encouraged rooming-in with your new baby (which I really wanted to do). And infants need to be fed every 2-3 hours (usually more often) right from the beginning! Motherhood starts immediately and you don’t get to take a nap first. Heads up on this postpartum surprise!
No more normal bras.
Another seemingly obvious one, but I didn’t really think it through until it was already happening. I walked into the hospital wearing my normal bra, and walked out in a nursing bra. My daughter is almost 14 months old now and I still have not returned to my normal bras (though I probably need a smaller cup size now). From the moment she arrived and onward, my boobs needed to be accessible at all times for breastfeeding, which meant no more normal bras! It’s a small, innocuous detail, but still one I wasn’t really prepared for. Also, after 14 months of breastfeeding and trying multiple styles/brands of nursing bras, this Momcozy bra is my absolute favorite. It works great for both direct breastfeeding and pumping.
Over preparing for postpartum.
I got the stuff. ALL the stuff! I made the padsicles, I bought the aloe vera, got the witch hazel, two kinds of peri bottles, the Frida Mom ice packs and the stool softeners… However, I am here to tell you that I was definitely over-prepared. Not to say that all that stuff doesn’t work- I’m sure it is wonderful and good for many postpartum mothers. But it’s not a one-size-fits-all care kit.
My recommendation would be to have a list of suggestions you can try, and have a few things on hand, but don’t worry too much about it. My go-to products after giving birth were Always overnight maxi pads, the Frida Mom peri bottle (though the hospital one they gave me also worked), and let me hype up once again the magic ingredient: Dermoplast spray. One can was all I needed. Another thing I liked using but was not necessary was my belly binder, which helped me feel more secure as my guts settled back into place.
Falling in love with my hospital water jug.
If you know, you know. Maybe it’s a trauma bond, since that water jug was by my side throughout the whole ordeal. There’s just something about that water jug that is just so perfect – great size, the handle, the bendy straw… the funniest thing is that it’s a shared experience and I realized that lots of people not only kept their hospital jug, but refilled it and used it as their main water source for months after birth. It really is awesome and a good postpartum surprise. This one looks pretty similar to mine.
Thanks for reading! Hopefully this will help prepare you if you’re expecting. Did any of these also surprise you after giving birth? Do you have a postpartum surprise of your own to add?
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2 responses to “What I Didn’t Expect After Giving Birth”
❤️love it
Yay, first comment! Thanks Kenz.