Everyone prepares you for labour, the stories, the options, the techniques and preparing for it mentally and physically, however no-one prepares you for the first few days after the birth of your child.
I had my 6 week checkup this week with my obstetrician and he told me the first 6 weeks are the worst part, which I couldn't agree with more! He also said that no-one prepares you or tells you what to expect after the birth, but everyone talks about the labour. He was right when he said that if the midwives and obstetricians did start discussing what happens after labour with you while you were pregnant you wouldn't take is seriously. I certainly had tunnel vision and was concentrating on pre-birth information!
Breastfeeding was something I knew about generally, but I certainly didn't read about it or ask any questions prior to giving birth. I quickly found out that it was one of the most important parts after giving birth and it is certainly a challenge! Our bodies don't always naturally gel together, baby doesn't always latch properly and sometimes the milk doesn't arrive when you think it should. I didn't know anything about what I was supposed to be doing which made it a very steep learning curve in the first few days and weeks.
In the hours after giving birth I had midwives checking in on me almost every 2 hours, make sure I fed the baby, check my vitals, check baby's vitals, check my stitches, do I need pain killers, how was my swelling, have I gone to the bathroom...it was non-stop. You can expect midwives to be visiting you to help you breastfeed just hours after birth, collecting the collagen from your breasts to feed your baby. Wow was this a process! I had so many midwives assisting me just to be able to get that out because baby wasn't latching properly. It was exhausting, I was tired and frustrated, but it had to be done. Collagen is one of the best things for your baby!
Another thing I didn't expect was to feed my baby every 3 hours and if you aren't awake, you will have a midwife wake you for feeding! All through the night and day you will be up every 2 hours, feed the baby, pump your breasts to encourage your milk supply and repeat. Remember to set alarms for every 3 hours so you remember!
Not only is there learning to breastfeed, there are so many things to remember in your own recovery. I had a vaginal birth which required forceps so I had stitches. This meant that I had midwives coming to check on me every few hours to see if the swelling was going down - another interruption! You have to make sure that you go to the bathroom every 3 hours and stay hydrated. You won't have the same sensitivity in your bladder as usual, so you won't know that your bladder if full, meaning if you don't go to the bathroom every 3 hours on purpose, your bladder will automatically empty - if you get what I mean! What an experience.
So far we have, feeding every 3-4 hours, going to the bathroom every 3 hours and check-ins on recovery every few hours. That is a lot to remember! Not to mention the exercises you are also meant to fit into your busy schedule to help your pelvic floor. The physio will tell you how important it is to ensure that you do the exercises to strengthen your pelvic floor - after all, there was a lot going on inside you that is no longer there and everything, such as your uterus and bladder need to move back into pre-pregnancy position.
Basically, while you don't need to know the specifics because every recovery is different depending on your birth experience, you do need to prepare yourself for some things to expect. I had no idea of everything that would be required during recovery, nor how I would operate on little to no sleep. I guess you should also know that everyone struggles afterwards. Breastfeeding does not necessarily come naturally - hence why there are so many lactation consultants to help! Everything will get easier, just have to make sure that you concentrate on your recovery as much as baby's growth.
Go to our Facebook group to ask other mothers any specific questions about their experience or have a look at our birth stories on the blog!
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