weird things that happened to your body postpartum no one told you about

[magicteapot]

No one told me how painful breastfeeding can be, and just making milk and generally having bigger breasts hurt
How thirsty you get while BFing
And ouch stitches! Sooo horrible to pee but getting a bit better.
The amount you bleed after giving birth, nuts!

 

[Mummy Bean]

engorgement...i dont think i ever thought my boobs could hurt SO much...it actually felt like they were going to burst open.

The deflatedness...i obvio expected my stomach to go all floppy but my bum, thighs and legs have all gone floppy as well from all the water retention disapearing....it such an odd feeling.

 

[nicoleJOLIE]

horrible terrible hemmorhoids that would cause me to rather endure child birth again than deal with the recovery .

It still feels like i'm passing glass every time i have to poo At least they don't bleed as bad now though...

i know what you mean ... ive had to get 2 enemas this month from avoiding going to the washroom

 

[daisy777]

that my breasts would hurt so much that i'd wish i'd still be in labour!
that i'd be wetting myself for 3 months after... probably just me lol.
that my nipples would turn brown and stay brown..

 

[daisy777]

ohh and definatly the saggy body as someone has mentioned. for a few days after birth i looked like a baggy sack of potatoes, EVERYTHING was saggy lol gross x

 

[_jellybean_]

2 months later I look exactly the SAME as the day I had my son.

ETA: I mean, after I had him, not before

 

[Experiment13]

I knew most of it, except that even 9 + months after I will still have nerve damage in my feet and wrists from the baby weight. Ouch!

 

[katy1985]

The sweating!! 8 weeks pp and im still waking up in the middle of the night drenched in sweat!
And basically that id feel like id been run over, twice, by a tank!

 

[Maple Leaf]

I forgot how much bleeding you get when having a long feed. I know it's only the uterus contracting back but I can't remember it from 10 years ago.
I also second the feeling hit by a truck...I think the first few days you feel euphoric and then your whole body aches.....everywhere.

 

[Biddylee]

I think my pubic hair is falling out -just only in a patch in the middle...

Ah well -I'll add it to my list of ailments!

 

[mamaduke]

Things I wouldn't have expected...

* Tearing during delivery and then having an episiotomy after the birth
* Not being able to control my bowels properly (from constipation to incontinence - gah!)
* Being afraid to do bodily functions just because of the pain
* Seeing down there turn a solid black color (from the episiotomy and tear repairs)
* Seeing my boob spring a leak and shoot like a milk cannon when LO unlatched (this morning's fun discovery)
* My hairy pregnancy belly is no longer hairy! But my innie belly button looks like a replica of the Grand Canyon.

 

[Redclaire]

Ah ladies!!
why oh why could all this stuff not be included in every 'what to expect' book????
I've been thinking its just me and feeling very sorry for myself!! My sister had a c-section with her twins so didn't have any of the problems i've had!! plus who the hell do you ask about these things??? Talk about TMI!!

I had a long labour and a big baby, suction delivery with episiotomy. I hadn't any piles during preg but pushed a huge one out during delivery (nobody told me THAT could happen!!). I gave up BF on day 3 cos i couldn't sit or stand with the downbelows pain and had enough going on! Seán is now 4and a half weeks old and nether regions only comfortable now and even then wearing jeans gets sore after a bit!! Having a poo was agony for the first 2 weeks with stomach cramps and 'localised' stabbing pains!! Also pee time was interesting ..had to swat to fully empty my bladder, if i just sat i'd pee then stand up and whizz loads more!! I've had a look at my lady bits with a mirror and its very different, i can see waaayy in there!! and yes that explains the air noises!! I can see odd bulges that i never noticed before (tho i could never see so far in!!) so now i worry its a prolapse???
I haven't had sex yet...bit nervous , truth be told, and going for 6 week check monday week...will they do an internal??
Anyhoo thanks for this thread!! wish i had of read it before i had my wee fella, at least then each problem would have caused less panic and anxiety!!!

 

[larudy13]

had my 6 week on tuesday, and OUCH! the internal hurt, no one told me that after you give birth they stop using the plastic speculum and start using the huge metal one
nobody also told me that a MONTH after giving birth suddenly a hemorrhoid can appear I never had one in my life!
also noone told me that the PP bleeding can last longer than 6 weeks, I am still going!

 

[scaredmmy2b]

That my body would be totally different. That the first 6 weeks are so hard. That i would swell twice as big as when i was pregant.

 

[aley28]

Nobody told me about after pains. I mean, I'd heard of them, but thought you only got them while nursing. No... it turns out you can actually have constant small contractions for weeks after the birth! Who knew (Not me!)

Everybody told me that the SPD pain would disappear directly after birth. Nobody told me that that isn't true for everybody. Its gone now, but lingered for about a month. My baby is almost 5 months old and I still wake up, sit all the way up, turn myself, and lay back down at night in bed, because apparently I've forgotten that it doesn't hurt to just roll anymore...

Biggest one... nobody told me that breastfeeding can give you pregnancy symptoms. I've been convinced that I was pregnant again four or five times already and it always turns out to just be related to BFing.

 

[hubblybubbly]

No one mentioned...

1) the night sweats, drenched every night. Oh said he felt like he was in bed with a slippery dolphin...
2) that my bumhole would hurt more than my lady parts from the pushing...
3) that having a poo would feel like my vulva was going to explode...still not sure what that one was about!
4) to wee on the toilet "backwards" to help the graze pain
5) that boob engorgement is like having an elephant on your chest
6) that gallstones are really common after labour, and those "after pains" are not necessarily your womb contracting...
7) that hormonal crying/baby blues can last for weeks.

And yet, I would do it all again a million times for her.
Xx

 

[sandilion]

That i would have an outbreak all over my body with eczema. They are dry patches of skin all over my legs and belly... a small one broke out on my face today. Preying to GOD my face doesn't get covered... I am doing all i can and hope it passes before i look like a monster

Also that every time i sneeze i would wet myself

 

[naitken]

Engorgement.. and that it's normal and doesn't always lead to Mastitis (which I was terrified of)

That breastfeeding is HARD!! My LO wouldn't latch and we were struggling to express and feed. It ended up being too much and we are now FF...

Prolapse issues (even minor) happen frequently and are NORMAL. I freaked out!!

 

[rocknrolla]

That it would be soooo difficult to stand up straight again, feeling like i would be forever stooped over and my hips/pelvic floor would be shot for a good few days.

Mostly that it's normal to have the most excruciating coccyx pain ever, and that it would hurt more than my stitches/ lady bits. Its agony to sit down and if i finally find a comfy spot, stay in it too long and BAM my tailbone is breaking out my ass.....

 

[jillypoop]

The uncontrollable farting! For about a week after birth not only was I in agony from the stitches, I was constantly farting! OH thought it was hilarious that I'd randomly waddle out of a shop red-faced though!
No-one told me how soft and weird my boobs would go. I breastfed for the first 3 weeks and once my milk had gone my boobs were all saggy and soft I miss my tiny firm boobs!!
x