Guess what…this is the post you may be uncomfortable reading if you’re a first time Mom, and I *promise* you, it will also be the post you are SO glad you read to prepare…so let’s get to it!
When I had our first child, our daughter, in 2006, NOBODY said ANYTHING to me about post-partum. There was no talk of tearing or hemorrhoids and oh, by the way, you’ll also bleed for the next 6 weeks. SURPRISE! Not joking, by the way! At that time I was under the care of OBGYN’s and none of those things were ever mentioned the entire nine months and for some reason none of the women in my life thought I should know about it (or assumed I already knew). Well guess what; I knew NONE of it and it was ALLLLL a shock, and I wasn’t prepared for post-partum care one bit; my hope is for this to help you prepare!!
Wanna know the first time I heard about tearing; when my daughter was headed down the birth canal and the doctor said “If I make a tiny cut it will give her more room” Um, did he just say cut? I was obviously uneducated at the time and didn’t even know I could opt to tear naturally (which a lot of text suggests heals faster than an episiotomy) But I digress…so was I naïve yes; but I felt educated on SO many other things pregnancy and birth related, how could I miss post-partum and all that THAT entailed.
So here is the short of it: If you labor, push, and you birth a baby vaginally (or even if you labored and pushed and ended up with a C-section) chances are you are going to be sore in the nether regions, and sore is an understatement, cause let’s face it, you just BIRTHED a baby! All those delicate areas and all that very thin skin is going to need to be tended to.
During my first birth, I was in a hospital, and one of the great things about that was I had ice packs/compresses at my disposal like tequila in Mexico! And those, in conjunction with these SUPER granny-panty mesh things, they give you in lieu of real underwear; will truly make your lady parts sing HALLELUJA! Ice compresses felt so wonderful and really helped with the discomfort/pain that came with birthing a baby, and I could put a new, ice-cold one in as often as I wanted. BUT…they didn’t send me home with any and I didn’t have the wherewithal to ask for them. They DID tell me to take my daughter’s diapers (disposables) and soak them in water and put them in the freezer and to use them as my compress at home; and you know what; they too were amazing. Once you got over the crunchy aspect (frozen plastic) the disposable diaper brought to your undies, it was cool comfort LOL!
It was when I was home 24 hours after birth, when I read I should be using a “sitz bath”; never heard of it! Once I finally looked it up to fully understand it (a shallow basin that you add herbs/salts to in order to soak your sore areas), I called EVERY pharmacy in a 30 minute radius including several home-health type stores and NO ONE had a sitz bath; figures! And by the time I ordered one it would be too late, or at least later than I wanted/needed it. So I ended up drawing a bath of about 4 inches of water and poured in sea salt like I would a bath oil and let it dissolve in the running hot water. THAT, that bath hurt settling into. I knew it would help heal and sooth and draw the inflammation out, but lowering myself into that warm, salty water put visions in my head of a cartoon character being lowered into a vat of boiling tar! I did that about 2-3 times a day; why you ask, because it REALLY was helping and once my body got over the initial shock of being lowered ever-so gently into the water, it actually was comforting.
What I did in between the 10 minute soaks in the tub was use the handy little “peri bottle” (hand-held plastic squirt bottle) I took from the hospital (hee hee…well, it was in my room and I’m sure I overpaid for it, so in my bag home with me it went!) I would fill the peri bottle with as warm/hot water as I could stand and would “wash” my sensitive areas every time I went to the bathroom or was changing a pad (again…because you will bleed for 3-6 weeks (duration will vary) after birth; you’re welcome in case you weren’t aware)
So I used frozen diapers all day as needed, shallow soaks in the tub with sea salt 2-3 times a day and the beloved peri bottle for all the times in between! So NOW, I can give you a much more educated approach to preparing for your post-partum period:
PREPARE, prepare, PREPARE! If you have taken the time to prepare for your baby’s arrival, it is not equally important, but MUCH MORE important that you prepare to take care of yourself! Because if Mom isn’t taken care of and healing, she won’t be able to take care of baby…remember put your oxygen mask on first, then your child’s…same philosophy!
Before you deliver (WEEKS before you deliver) I suggest you stock up on the following:
1) A good (organic if possible) herbal sitz bath. There are a lot of great ones on the market and it will all come down to your preference. Earth Mama Angel Baby
2) The plastic wonder bottle, aka, the peri bottle
3) I don’t recommend the frozen baby diaper compress that I used the first time around; LOL! It worked in a pinch, but there are much better options! Even if you dedicate some cloths (anything that will be absorbent) to the cause, that will be sufficient! I found these reusable col
4) And this is an option for those who may not want to soak in a shallow bath but still want/need the benefits from that soak. Instead of submerging in a tub, there is an actual basin (sitz bath)
~~~~~>>We often get overlooked once we have ‘delivered’ (quite literally) our precious babies, and the attention focuses to the baby; when we as Mothers are still in much need of nurturing and healing during the post-partum phase. This is just one tiny-tiny step we can prepare for to nurture and care for ourselves when we get home!
Added 3/15/12: Based on SOOO many comments on Facebook, Twitter, via Pins and also emails I’ve received; here are some reoccuring items that other Mamas say are not life-savers, but ladypart-savers 
So add these to your post-partum tool-kit as well!
- Dermoplast
- Tucks Medicated Witch Hazel Pads
I had no clue about any of this stuff. Thank you so much for this information. I feel better about going into my postpartum now.
When my daughter had her children the hospital gave her a sitz bath
I am that friend that tells ALL my friends about this stuff so they are prepared haha.
I have heard soaking sanitary pads in water and some witch hazel and freezing those works great and they fit nicely (you can make a bunch before hand and keep them in a ziplock bag in the freezer).
I preferred the real tub to the sitz basin (I found it uncomfortable to sit on).
I stole 2 peri bottles from the hospital so I could keep one in the diaper bag because it sucked getting caught out somewhere without and realizing you would have to wipe a bit down there.
Great info, every mom to be should know this stuff.
OMG Keepin it REAL!!!!! So true
Great post. Thankfully, I had a wonderful friend who filled me in (and then some) about almost everything. We had the same doctor, and she, too, was great. It made everything about labor and delivery + postpartum that much easier (and dare I say, enjoyable?).
DON’T FORGET DERMOPLAST!! It is a numbing foam that you apply on your nether regions and is AMAZING. Never feel bad or awkward to ask for this stuff from the nurses and ask for some to take home. Once you are discharged you have to pay for that stuff! For those who DO tear (which let me tell you, you WANT to tear, not get an episiotomy.) Think of it in terms like this. When you cut a piece of fabric, you can tear it much more easily than if you had never cut it at all. Apply this to your skin. When you tear naturally, you tend to have less of a tear than if you had received an episiotomy. So far my tears have been relatively minor. And I don’t want you to be scared! I didn’t feel either of them happen (and yes, I have had completely drug free labor). So good luck all! And to me too as I do this a third time
Here is what I did- ask for 2 peri-bottles (for both bathrooms). Use warm water to rinse your tender areas instead of wiping- also spray on while urinating- wont burn as much
(had a perfect spray for washing baby too) Don’t forget to get stool softeners- not sure if it really worked physically, but was great for mental.
Forgot … Get a few mesh undies to go- you won’t wreck yours with blood and they rinse out well and hang to dry in bathroom. Dry time is quick so you’re never without. Sexy- not so much, super comfy- YES!
I only knew some of the things and was shocked by the others. I pushed for 2 hours before the c-section. When they told me they were going to give me an ice pack I was confused until I felt why. I will definitely pass this info along to any first time mother!
I don’t know why no one told me about the bleeding and clotting!!! Holy cow…it is unreal!
I have done the frozen witch hazel pad thing with all 3 of mine (and plan to with the #4 who will join us in October) and recommend it to all. How I’ve done it/was taught: Buy the biggest “old-fashioned” style maxipads you can find (you know, the ones from the 1970′s) and pour straight witch hazel over them until pretty well-soaked (not dripping, but not still dry anywhere). Line up in single layer on cookie sheet and freeze. Put into gallon-size ziplocks and keep in the freezer. They are heaven. And, remember to sit directly ON THEM…do NOT use a donut pillow, as those will only increase blood pooling and swelling. The combo of cold, direct pressure, and properties of witch hazel will feel good and speed recovery time. (The initial sitting directly on may hurt initially, but very briefly…in the long-run, it really, REALLY helps!)
I will say I’m not a fan of dermaplast (something in there that causes me a burning sensation so if you have sensitive skin be careful)… Definitely like Tucks and when you go to register for the hospital (if that’s your plan) ask if they have/use sitz bathes there… even though a hospital birth was not my plan I did get a free sitz to take home with and was very glad I had it. Thanks for a great article.
Something that I always tell my mommy friends to do is to buy Depends. They are so much more comfortable and less bulky than the mesh underwear/pad combo and no worries about leaking. Plus you can throw the whole thing away instead of keeping the undies which stretch out and sag with the weight of the ice pack. I know it sounds weird, but you will be so glad you tucked them in your bag.
All things I wish I had known with our first … Also that you have to pay attention to down there in more ways than one … Some way some how I ended up too dry (I don’t know how, I was still bleeding!), and my girly bits fused together in a spot, leaving me with a labial adhesion that I had to have corrected, the correction didn’t heal properly, and I ended up having a scalpel taken to down there 6 weeks post-partum and ended up with 2 new stitches – Yikes!!
Also, our 2nd was breech and we ended up (despite all of our desperate efforts to get her to turn) with a c-sect, and something I did not know and was deeply surprised by was that you bleed 4 – 6 weeks post-partum with c-sects too!!! I mean for real?? Not only am I in immense pain because my guts were sitting OUTSIDE of my body in order to remove the little human inside, but now I’m gonna bleed like a stuck pig on TOP of dealing with a surgical site?? Really??
Much with the not fun.
I recommend soaking maxipads in witch hazel and putting them in the freezer.
My hospital cut a small opening in the top back of a pampers newborn diaper and filled with crushed ice. As the ice melted it gelled in the diaper. This made the perfect ice pack to help soothe my 3rd degree tear.
I found myself giggling while reading this. Fortunately my facility gives sitz baths, dermoplast, witch hazel pads, lots of HUGE maxi pads, peri bottles, and several pairs of our special “Victoria’s secret panties” (as I lovingly refer to them). I always smile at the first time moms who ask me the most basic question “how long am I going to bleed?” I think back to how naive I was with my first and I strive to educate all my mommies as much as possible. I’m really glad you posted this as this is a topic that so many women don’t think about while preparing for their little miracle!
I didn’t use anything in my “sitz” bath. Just warm water in the tub, as hot as I could stand, was soothing to me.
I do wish I’d known about the frozen packs at home, though, that would have been AWESOME.
None of my friends mentioned any of the bleeding, but I will tell you my favorite, most FRANK book about pregnancy was Vicki Iovine’s “Girlfriend’s Guide to Pregnancy.” She tells it like it is!