it says to only use it 3-4 times/day. I definitely used it much more often....sprayed it on the new pad and also directly where it hurt! (I mean, follow recommendations and everything, but also take care of your postpartum needs!)
-Waxing/shaving.. did you ladies keep up during pregnancy? If not, did you shave before going in? PP how long did you wait before waxing/shaving again?
I kept up with shaving my legs (it was easier to do in the bath than shower once I got huge though), but I didn't get get a bikini wax the entire time I was pregnant (or, even since then, haha). I did shave to keep things neat until I couldn't contort myself to find it beneath my belly, but I had DH help me do it before my EDD (TERRIFYING!). I have no recollection as to when I started caring what that area looked like again PP, but I'm sure it was at least about a month.
-I've read about women freezing pads with witch hazel? Did you do this? Speaking of pads, how bad is the lochia? What kind of pads worked best for you?
I looooved the frozen witch hazel/aloe vera pads. I didn't make any ahead of time, but I asked my mom to make some for me before I went home from the hospital, and she left like 20 of them in my freezer. I will definitely be making myself a ton of these again this time. Lochia wasn't bad for me at all. I think within 4 days it was like a pretty light period, and it definitely stopped completely within a week. I never had any of those horrifyingly-huge clots that I read were possible too. I just used some extra large/long maxi pads, I don't remember which brands. This time I might get a few adult diapers just so I'm not stressed about bleeding onto my sheets at night for the first few days.
-Hemorrhoids. When did you get them? Do they go away? Relief?
Fucking hemorrhoids. I didn't get them my whole pregnancy until the very last week, and then I got one and I was terrified that pushing a baby out near there was going to make it so much worse. HA. I didn't even remember which one was the original intruder after delivery, I had a ton of them and they felt enormous and horrible. I used lots and lots of Tucks pads and eventually hemorrhoid ointment and they slowly but steadily went away and never came back (knocks on wood). While it seemed like a huge pain in the ass (pun intended) before labor/delivery, afterwards it hardly registered on my annoyance-meter. I think most women do get them, but it isn't the end of the world and as long as you do all the things to try to treat them, they likely won't stick around for too long.
Engaged 12/2013 Married 5/2015 BFP 11/27/2015 - EDD 8/4/2016 Baby Boy born 8/13/2016 ~ 8lbs 7oz BFP 1/6/2018 - EDD 9/19/2018
Haha I remember my L&D nurse who was all of maybe 23 years old exclaiming “and you didn’t even get any hemorrhoids!” in amazement after she had me all cleaned up and in my wheelchair ready to go to the postpartum unit. This after I proudly told her I painted my toenails myself at 41 weeks pregnant in anticipation of my induction as she slid on my hospital socks. I guess hemorrhoids are more common than not. Also I don’t recommend painting your own toenails at 41 weeks.
I posted about “padsicles” before and I do recommend them. I recommend getting the big fat pads and soaking with a good amount of witch hazel and then covering with a thin layer of aloe gel. I slid them into gallon ziplock bags and froze flat in my freezer. Some people add lavender oil but I honestly think all that does is make them smell nice.
I think I bled for about 2 weeks. The first days in the hospital looked like someone was murdered in my bathroom. In fact, the hospital socks mentioned above were changed because I bled all over my first pair. After that, it was like a heavy period for the rest of the week and then slowed to a light period/old blood thereafter. I eventually graduated from thick granny pads to the thin Always kind around one week PP. I recommend having a variety of pads and panty liners at your disposal.
-Waxing/shaving.. did you ladies keep up during pregnancy? If not, did you shave before going in? PP how long did you wait before waxing/shaving again? Psssshhh Ain't nobody got time for that! I think I did shave my legs for the first time in many weeks when I got close to my due date. I looked into getting a Brazilian but everything I read was that it is way more painful when you're pregnant and not to do it unless you've been getting waxed regularly for a while. Beyond that it became impossible to do any sort of maintenance down there months before so I just embraced the au naturale thing. Your bits are not going to be attractive during delivery no matter what hairstyle you're sporting so I wouldn't worry about it.
-I've read about women freezing pads with witch hazel? Did you do this? Speaking of pads, how bad is the lochia? What kind of pads worked best for you?
I made some padsicles but only used a couple. I preferred to just use the tucks pads and some dermaplast. *Make sure you get the right color, the wrong one stings like a bitch! Someone mentioned above whether it's blue or red you want, I can't remember. I was sent home with like 60 gi-freaking-normous diaper pads from the hospital but after a week I tried just the overnight always infinity pads and was way more comfortable. Lochia is gross. It's not just like a period, not just blood. TMI after the first a days mine was mostly a yellowish-clear color tinged with pink. And it has a unique odor. Some women's has a very strong odor. I felt like I smelled bad but DH assured me I was the only one who could smell anything.
-Hemorrhoids. When did you get them? Do they go away? Relief? Many people get them during pregnancy from constipation and at the end you're more prone to them because there's just a lot of pressure. I didn't get them until delivery. But I remember taking my shower after delivery and feeling it and thinking oh my god!! It was like my asshole had bloomed. Haha sorry for the candor but that was the thought that came to my mind. But the dermaplast and tucks work just as well for those as for your vagina so I don't remember really noticing them much. They go away.
I just found this note I wrote at 15 weeks PP aaaand thought I'd share:
On the topic of waxing: I’ve waxed regularly for years (all the hair/ Brazilian). I will continue. But, so far, it does hurt more since getting pregnant. I’ve spaced out my waxing much more than pre-pregnancy. The thing I like most about waxing is that your hair comes back much softer and with less of it. So, even if you go 6-8 weeks between waxes and get hairy again, it’s lighter and softer, therefore, in my opinion, less obnoxious. I have very coarse hair (on my head too) so when I say less obnoxious, I really mean that!
I'm a bit late to the game, but I'll add my 2 cents!
PP sex for us was great! I actually found that I was much easier to please after having DD1, which was an unexpected bonus!
I switched to an electric razor for my bits after DD2 was born because I was completely stupid and tried some bikini Nair and game myself a terrible chemical burn at 36 weeks pregnant (it was seriously the worst pain of my life and that includes my 2 drug free births!!). I was nice and sugared prior to delivery with DD1 and I liked that it was very easy to keep clean after, I did it more for that than anything. This time I'll just use my eclectic razor and do my best to tidy up.
I liked the ice packs in the hospital, but after I've gone home I've switched to using Earth Mama Angel Baby Mama Bottom Balm (I think it has a new name now) and that stuff is straight sent from angels!! It's amazing! I very clearly remember the first time I used it and I walked out of the bathroom (I did tear with both girls) and told my husband: "I feel like my vagina just went to the spa!" It's legit amazing!
Butt nutts are the freaking pitts!! I didn't get one with my first, but I got them during my pregnancy with my second and it just continued to be a pain. I think I have them throughout my colon and I definitely notice that if my diet isn't clean, they are more flared up. My bowel habits haven't been the same since my second pregnancy, which sounds pretty benign when typed, but it's actually a major bummer to deal with every day.
-Waxing/shaving.. did you ladies keep up during pregnancy? If not, did you shave before going in? PP how long did you wait before waxing/shaving again? -I've read about women freezing pads with witch hazel? Did you do this? Speaking of pads, how bad is the lochia? What kind of pads worked best for you? -Hemorrhoids. When did you get them? Do they go away? Relief?
Waxing/shaving - I shaved sometimes. Probably shaved before going into the hospital, at least in the 3-4 days prior. I can't remember in more detail about when I shaved PP or anything.
I didn't do any frozen pads or anything that required prep work. They gave me frozen diapers as ice packs in the hospital, I think. Those were nice.
My perception of lochia might be off, because my periods are excessively heavy, but it wasn't completely awful. From what I remember, I had a few heavy days, but then it tapered off. I think it lasted for quite a while (a few weeks? IDK) but at a low level for most of that. One of the annoying things, for me, is the tendency to leak when I'm sitting, probably because I get into weird positions or something, so I used plenty of overnight pads for better coverage even if I didn't need the extra absorbency. I ordered some giant pads online for the beginning stages, the extra heavy overnight (which I never see in stores). I know I didn't even use the full pack.
I think I might get some of those period underwear for an extra backup level; I was thinking about it anyways for heavy days before getting pregnant. They kind of weird me out but seem like they might be really helpful.
I didn't get hemorrhoids, so no advice, sorry. I've had minor ones maybe once or twice in my life? I kind of just try to be gentle with them and wait for them to leave. Lots of water and fiber, anything that might help keep you from straining is supposed to be helpful at least in terms of not making them worse.
2/13 Blighted ovum, D&C -- 6/13 MC -- 8/14 DD born -- 3/17 MC -- 9/18 DD2 born Expecting again -- EDD 7/27/20
I was due late January, so I completely stopped bothering with the shaving until right before my due date. And then I just did it by feel, so who knows how good of a job I did. I did get a small hemorrhoid, but I barely noticed it with everything else I was dealing with after giving birth. For me, the bleeding was pretty heavy for several weeks and I was definitely still in a pad at my 6 week pp check. I didn’t do the padscicles, just dermaplast and tucks
I tried to shave by feel toward the end but really just for my legs. I may have tried to tidy up my bikini line but didn't put much effort in because I knew it wasn't going to look pretty no matter what.
I had light to moderate bleeding for a couple weeks, but then it faded to like a light yellow discharge that hung around forever. I used overnight pads for a couple weeks and then switched to lighter pads and liners throughout the day. I found I got irritated easily by the Always brand pads and I used Kotex as much as possible. I did not do padsicles but the frozen pads they had in the hospital along with the dermoplast (BLUE can) was heaven. I also had done a diaper filled with cold water and tucks pads on it on occasion.
I did get hemorrhoids during birth and they stung like a bitch for a while. I remember being super careful about using hemorrhoid ointment because of my tears/episiotomy. Tucks pads are awesome. Lots of colace, fiber, and water help them to decrease in size. Unfortunately I dealt with them on and off through the whole first year PP. I'd make sure you have hemorrhoid ointment and tucks pads stocked up ahead of time, better to not have to use them than to make a last second run for it.
I had stick straight fine-wouldn’t-hold-a-curl hair until puberty when it started getting wavy then pretty curly. Like I loved hawaii because itnwas perfect for my hair, no effort needed, perfect curls.
...after dd was born, I shed a ton of hairc like was convinced there had to be a bald spot somewhere. AND I lost my curls, my hair has been a confused wavy mess that cannot make up its mind ever since she was born.
Surprise: DD has gorgeous curly hair. Didn’t see that coming, so now we say she stole my curls.
bfp#1-10/29/12,EDD: 7/3/13. nothing found @ 1st u/s, natural mc 12/10/12. "Bean"
bfp#2-5/10/13! EDD: 1/18/14. "Peanut" Arrived 1/13/14. Diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis
bfp#3- 9/26/14. EDD: 5/7/15. no heartbeat found @ 1st u/s, natural mc 10/23/14. "Little Bug"
I'm also one that had a bad reaction to Always pads. Kotex was more comfortable as far as I didn't react to them but I felt they were bulkier and didn't hold as much. So I'd do Kotex and home and save the Always for when I needed to leave the house.
AND I lost my curls, my hair has been a confused wavy mess that cannot make up its mind ever since she was born.
Surprise: DD has gorgeous curly hair. Didn’t see that coming, so now we say she stole my curls.
After DD my hair seems way more confused too! It always looks like crap now and has a mind of its own. DD has crazy curls now! It's just now getting long enough for pigtails which I'm really excited about!
@Redpuma119 I could always tell when I was wearing one, I would get extra red and sore personally. It seemed like it was caused by the top layer, but anywhere it touched I itched and it turned red.
@nlc8424 That doesn't sound fun. I keep thinking of all of these things I want to start buying and just feel more prepared.. but between me and baby, who knows what we will like, need, have issues with..
@Redpuma119 like an allergic reaction. Burning, itching not funness. I have a latex allergy and when I googled some latex allergy forums said that even though Always are listed as latex free, a lot of people still reacted to them. Those forums suggested Kotex as a brand that was truly latex free.
-Waxing/shaving.. did you ladies keep up during pregnancy? If not, did you shave before going in? PP how long did you wait before waxing/shaving again? -I've read about women freezing pads with witch hazel? Did you do this? Speaking of pads, how bad is the lochia? What kind of pads worked best for you? -Hemorrhoids. When did you get them? Do they go away? Relief?
- I hate the feeling of hair regrowth so I I kept up with shaving my entire pregnancy. PP I kept up the same routine but was a bit more careful until I felt like I was healed - TMI? but I let between my legs grow out a bit but kept up with the front.
- I did not freeze any pads, but for a couple/few weeks I did put Tucks pads on top of the pad in my underwear each time I went to the bathroom. I bled for 3 1/2 weeks then spotted for another week. I really liked the Always Infinity pads, but I definitely over-stocked my bathroom with the heavy ones. It was nice to have the overnights at the beginning because they were longer and for heavier days. I probably could have switched to regular by week 2 PP but I had so many heavy ones I kept using them longer. The Always Infinity are thinner (but still worked great) so I found them to be less uncomfortable.
- Thankfully did not have any.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________ MMC 8/5/15 at 8 weeks DS born 9/13/16 BFP 1/13/18 - EDD 9/20/18 - It's a boy!
@Redpuma119 like an allergic reaction. Burning, itching not funness. I have a latex allergy and when I googled some latex allergy forums said that even though Always are listed as latex free, a lot of people still reacted to them. Those forums suggested Kotex as a brand that was truly latex free.
That sounds horrible!!
_______________________________________________________________________________________________ MMC 8/5/15 at 8 weeks DS born 9/13/16 BFP 1/13/18 - EDD 9/20/18 - It's a boy!
I was at unlucky one that bled for like 9 weeks. First two days were murder scenes-so I dealt with the huge hospital pads, and then just heavy and icky gushes for another week. I did get more leaks than actually needing more absorbency-I don't normally year pads for a reason-something about the ways I sit causes side leakage. I was down to normal instead of super or overnight pads middle of week two, but then it just kept going-between blood, clots, and the yellow watery discharge. Ick. I switched to my normal cloth pads (yes, I know, a lot of people find them gross), about middle of week 2 when things slowed down-as any disposable ends up chafing my thighs after 3 days-not allergy-just poor fit like a cheap pair of thong flip flops-they scrape me up.
I got just one hemorrhoid during pregnancy, and it only bothered me a little-but I didn't do any pushing either.It went away pretty quick after-but not all the way away. If I had to explain, it deflated and left almost a skin tag? and even though I haven't been constipated at all, it came back at like 9 weeks. My biggest issue is feeling like a get all the way clean after a BM. Annoying, but not awful.
I actually shaved all the way through last time-every 7-10 days. I was also in Florida, so I shaved legs, bikini, etc. I went to more by touch than sight slowly, and obviously at the end it was all by touch. I shaved the day before birth, and by 10 days out shaved a bit again-I do it for me as I can't stand the feeling of hair in my underwear at any real length. I had a section, so other than bleeding had no concerns with shaving soon after. I had planned on a wax at 37 weeks, but baby didn't stay in that long.
_______________________________________________
Me: 33 DH: 32 Married 7/18/15 1st born at 35+4 on 6/6/16 Team green turned BLUE! 2nd born at 38+6 on 8/30/18 Team green turned PINK! Due with #3 on 6/6/20 Team Green
Oh! In regards to PP bleeding, make sure you don't sit too long. While still in the hospital I made the mistake of not getting up to pee for a long time (apparently it can be difficult to tell you need to pee at first) and when I did I gushed and leaked through everything. The nurse basically scolded me for not getting up frequently enough (granted that nurse was the only one I had that I didn't like). But It was much better if I tried to get up and go to the bathroom regularly so it didn't pool while sitting.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________ MMC 8/5/15 at 8 weeks DS born 9/13/16 BFP 1/13/18 - EDD 9/20/18 - It's a boy!
Waxing/shaving.. did you ladies keep up during pregnancy? If not, did you shave before going in? PP how long did you wait before waxing/shaving again? With DS, I kept up with shaving and shaved right before going to the hospital. I don’t remember when I started shaving PP because I had external stitches. With DD, I got a wax at 38 weeks. It was so much easier PP for clean up of blood and wiping. I’ll do that again this time.
-I've read about women freezing pads with witch hazel? Did you do this? Speaking of pads, how bad is the lochia? What kind of pads worked best for you? I didn’t do this. I only used the ice pack pads with DS at the hospital. Didn’t need them with DD. I don’t know what lochia is. I thought the thick pads worked best for me PP. I may try depends this time.
-Hemorrhoids. When did you get them? Do they go away? Relief? I didn’t get any with either of my previous pregnancies.
Oh, and the PP bleeding, I bled for ~4 weeks. I actually hated the frozen pads that I made. They just felt terrible after they thawed.
As for the actual bleeding, it was pretty much like a heavy period for me. The first few days, I had some leaking but then I got a self care routine down and it got easier from there.
@Redpuma119 like an allergic reaction. Burning, itching not funness. I have a latex allergy and when I googled some latex allergy forums said that even though Always are listed as latex free, a lot of people still reacted to them. Those forums suggested Kotex as a brand that was truly latex free.
That sounds horrible!!
Oh, it was. Took me a while to figure out why my crotch was on fire. I ended up just sitting bare butt on a pile of old towels for a few days so my poor hoo-ha could air out and heal. My poor hubby ended up mopping blood off the floor a number of times when I stood up too quick after nursing and gushed all over. It was a glamorous time in my life.
Good to know about Kotex v. Always. I usually use Always (but avoid pads as much as possible, switching to a menstrual cup was one of the best decisions I've made) but they are irritating. They itch like crazy. I'll have to pick up some Kotex and see if they're better.
I'm considering making some cloth pads for the non-heavy flow. I've made them before for donations and they aren't hard to make. I just won't tell MH about them, I know he'll be grossed out lol.
2/13 Blighted ovum, D&C -- 6/13 MC -- 8/14 DD born -- 3/17 MC -- 9/18 DD2 born Expecting again -- EDD 7/27/20
One thing I've only seen 1 or 2 other people mention in this post is the night sweating and the shakes PP. I was not prepared for that! I would go to bed shaking like a leaf and feeling like I was freezing cold and then wake up in the night literally drenched and dripping in sweat, it was bad! I had to change my pjs in the middle of the night, i was that soaked. I beleive it is cause by the hormon levels changing but it was crazy! All the other stuff i felt prepared for by hearing others but this caught me by suprise.
Hey all I'm resurrecting this thread because I have a question thanks to the oh so real Chrissy Teigen. For any TTM+ who delivered vaginally, how was tearing the second+ time? Chrissy commented saying PP life is better when you don't rip to your butthole, any truth to this? I'm really hopeful this is true because PP recovery was rough last time with multiple tears and an episiotomy.
@nlc8424 thank you for resurrecting this. As a FTM I don’t have insight on tearing, but I’m interested to see answers. I need to go back through and read about a few things. I wanted to start getting pp supplies for me ready- pick up a few things here and there.
Hey all I'm resurrecting this thread because I have a question thanks to the oh so real Chrissy Teigen. For any TTM+ who delivered vaginally, how was tearing the second+ time? Chrissy commented saying PP life is better when you don't rip to your butthole, any truth to this? I'm really hopeful this is true because PP recovery was rough last time with multiple tears and an episiotomy.
STM so nothing to compare to, but I had some mostly minor tearing with DS and other than feeling the stitches pull a bit getting up out of one specific chair a few days after getting home from the hospital my recovery was not that bad.
So even without comparison I'd say she's being truthful (in a general sense since every delivery and recovery will be different). No tearing will generally be easier to recover from than some tearing. And some tearing will generally be easier to recover from than lots of tearing and an episiotomy.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________ MMC 8/5/15 at 8 weeks DS born 9/13/16 BFP 1/13/18 - EDD 9/20/18 - It's a boy!
Thanks @DanyTargaryen. I'm mostly curious for those who had tearing/episiotomy the first time whether or not it was as bad the second time. I've heard rumors that the second time isn't as bad tearing-wise, but I'd love to hear some first hand experience about this. I mean ultimately whatever happens down there is going to hurt and I probably can't do much about it haha, but I'd love to hold onto some hope that this baby won't tear me up quite so bad!
@nlc8424 I’m also curious. I had an episiotomy and a lot of tearing last time. I hadn’t heard it was less the second time around, but fingers crossed! I’m also trying to avoid the epidural so I can move around and this one will hopefully be able to come out on his own instead of with a suction which should help.
Random comment, but I'm fairly certain my OB did the "husband stitch" after my episiotomy and I'm almost hoping there's some tearing this time to open that ish back up. I was tight to begin with and this has nearly made sex painful for a full year except one particular position.
@Redpuma119 so my H never read anything ahead of time, but he knew there was a reason why we were stocking up on pads, hemorrhoid cream, and comfy pants. Lucie's List has kind of a quick and dirty version of what to expect post partum that is light heartedly written that you could have him read. It's not geared toward men/dads, but gives him a realistic picture of what happens after birth and what will be going on with your body for the first little while.
Re: PP Preparedness
it says to only use it 3-4 times/day. I definitely used it much more often....sprayed it on the new pad and also directly where it hurt! (I mean, follow recommendations and everything, but also take care of your postpartum needs!)
I kept up with shaving my legs (it was easier to do in the bath than shower once I got huge though), but I didn't get get a bikini wax the entire time I was pregnant (or, even since then, haha). I did shave to keep things neat until I couldn't contort myself to find it beneath my belly, but I had DH help me do it before my EDD (TERRIFYING!). I have no recollection as to when I started caring what that area looked like again PP, but I'm sure it was at least about a month.
-I've read about women freezing pads with witch hazel? Did you do this? Speaking of pads, how bad is the lochia? What kind of pads worked best for you?
I looooved the frozen witch hazel/aloe vera pads. I didn't make any ahead of time, but I asked my mom to make some for me before I went home from the hospital, and she left like 20 of them in my freezer. I will definitely be making myself a ton of these again this time. Lochia wasn't bad for me at all. I think within 4 days it was like a pretty light period, and it definitely stopped completely within a week. I never had any of those horrifyingly-huge clots that I read were possible too. I just used some extra large/long maxi pads, I don't remember which brands. This time I might get a few adult diapers just so I'm not stressed about bleeding onto my sheets at night for the first few days.
-Hemorrhoids. When did you get them? Do they go away? Relief?
Fucking hemorrhoids. I didn't get them my whole pregnancy until the very last week, and then I got one and I was terrified that pushing a baby out near there was going to make it so much worse. HA. I didn't even remember which one was the original intruder after delivery, I had a ton of them and they felt enormous and horrible. I used lots and lots of Tucks pads and eventually hemorrhoid ointment and they slowly but steadily went away and never came back (knocks on wood). While it seemed like a huge pain in the ass (pun intended) before labor/delivery, afterwards it hardly registered on my annoyance-meter. I think most women do get them, but it isn't the end of the world and as long as you do all the things to try to treat them, they likely won't stick around for too long.
Married 5/2015
BFP 11/27/2015 - EDD 8/4/2016
BFP 1/6/2018 - EDD 9/19/2018
I posted about “padsicles” before and I do recommend them. I recommend getting the big fat pads and soaking with a good amount of witch hazel and then covering with a thin layer of aloe gel. I slid them into gallon ziplock bags and froze flat in my freezer. Some people add lavender oil but I honestly think all that does is make them smell nice.
I think I bled for about 2 weeks. The first days in the hospital looked like someone was murdered in my bathroom. In fact, the hospital socks mentioned above were changed because I bled all over my first pair. After that, it was like a heavy period for the rest of the week and then slowed to a light period/old blood thereafter. I eventually graduated from thick granny pads to the thin Always kind around one week PP. I recommend having a variety of pads and panty liners at your disposal.
Psssshhh Ain't nobody got time for that! I think I did shave my legs for the first time in many weeks when I got close to my due date. I looked into getting a Brazilian but everything I read was that it is way more painful when you're pregnant and not to do it unless you've been getting waxed regularly for a while. Beyond that it became impossible to do any sort of maintenance down there months before so I just embraced the au naturale thing. Your bits are not going to be attractive during delivery no matter what hairstyle you're sporting so I wouldn't worry about it.
-I've read about women freezing pads with witch hazel? Did you do this? Speaking of pads, how bad is the lochia? What kind of pads worked best for you?
I made some padsicles but only used a couple. I preferred to just use the tucks pads and some dermaplast. *Make sure you get the right color, the wrong one stings like a bitch! Someone mentioned above whether it's blue or red you want, I can't remember. I was sent home with like 60 gi-freaking-normous diaper pads from the hospital but after a week I tried just the overnight always infinity pads and was way more comfortable.
Lochia is gross. It's not just like a period, not just blood. TMI after the first a days mine was mostly a yellowish-clear color tinged with pink. And it has a unique odor. Some women's has a very strong odor. I felt like I smelled bad but DH assured me I was the only one who could smell anything.
-Hemorrhoids. When did you get them? Do they go away? Relief?
Many people get them during pregnancy from constipation and at the end you're more prone to them because there's just a lot of pressure. I didn't get them until delivery. But I remember taking my shower after delivery and feeling it and thinking oh my god!! It was like my asshole had bloomed. Haha sorry for the candor but that was the thought that came to my mind. But the dermaplast and tucks work just as well for those as for your vagina so I don't remember really noticing them much. They go away.
I just found this note I wrote at 15 weeks PP aaaand thought I'd share:
PP sex for us was great! I actually found that I was much easier to please after having DD1, which was an unexpected bonus!
I switched to an electric razor for my bits after DD2 was born because I was completely stupid and tried some bikini Nair and game myself a terrible chemical burn at 36 weeks pregnant (it was seriously the worst pain of my life and that includes my 2 drug free births!!). I was nice and sugared prior to delivery with DD1 and I liked that it was very easy to keep clean after, I did it more for that than anything. This time I'll just use my eclectic razor and do my best to tidy up.
I liked the ice packs in the hospital, but after I've gone home I've switched to using Earth Mama Angel Baby Mama Bottom Balm (I think it has a new name now) and that stuff is straight sent from angels!! It's amazing! I very clearly remember the first time I used it and I walked out of the bathroom (I did tear with both girls) and told my husband: "I feel like my vagina just went to the spa!" It's legit amazing!
Butt nutts are the freaking pitts!! I didn't get one with my first, but I got them during my pregnancy with my second and it just continued to be a pain. I think I have them throughout my colon and I definitely notice that if my diet isn't clean, they are more flared up. My bowel habits haven't been the same since my second pregnancy, which sounds pretty benign when typed, but it's actually a major bummer to deal with every day.
I didn't do any frozen pads or anything that required prep work. They gave me frozen diapers as ice packs in the hospital, I think. Those were nice.
My perception of lochia might be off, because my periods are excessively heavy, but it wasn't completely awful. From what I remember, I had a few heavy days, but then it tapered off. I think it lasted for quite a while (a few weeks? IDK) but at a low level for most of that. One of the annoying things, for me, is the tendency to leak when I'm sitting, probably because I get into weird positions or something, so I used plenty of overnight pads for better coverage even if I didn't need the extra absorbency. I ordered some giant pads online for the beginning stages, the extra heavy overnight (which I never see in stores). I know I didn't even use the full pack.
I think I might get some of those period underwear for an extra backup level; I was thinking about it anyways for heavy days before getting pregnant. They kind of weird me out but seem like they might be really helpful.
I didn't get hemorrhoids, so no advice, sorry. I've had minor ones maybe once or twice in my life? I kind of just try to be gentle with them and wait for them to leave. Lots of water and fiber, anything that might help keep you from straining is supposed to be helpful at least in terms of not making them worse.
Expecting again -- EDD 7/27/20
I did get a small hemorrhoid, but I barely noticed it with everything else I was dealing with after giving birth.
For me, the bleeding was pretty heavy for several weeks and I was definitely still in a pad at my 6 week pp check.
I didn’t do the padscicles, just dermaplast and tucks
I had light to moderate bleeding for a couple weeks, but then it faded to like a light yellow discharge that hung around forever. I used overnight pads for a couple weeks and then switched to lighter pads and liners throughout the day. I found I got irritated easily by the Always brand pads and I used Kotex as much as possible. I did not do padsicles but the frozen pads they had in the hospital along with the dermoplast (BLUE can) was heaven. I also had done a diaper filled with cold water and tucks pads on it on occasion.
I did get hemorrhoids during birth and they stung like a bitch for a while. I remember being super careful about using hemorrhoid ointment because of my tears/episiotomy. Tucks pads are awesome. Lots of colace, fiber, and water help them to decrease in size. Unfortunately I dealt with them on and off through the whole first year PP. I'd make sure you have hemorrhoid ointment and tucks pads stocked up ahead of time, better to not have to use them than to make a last second run for it.
I had stick straight fine-wouldn’t-hold-a-curl hair until puberty when it started getting wavy then pretty curly. Like I loved hawaii because itnwas perfect for my hair, no effort needed, perfect curls.
...after dd was born, I shed a ton of hairc like was convinced there had to be a bald spot somewhere. AND I lost my curls, my hair has been a confused wavy mess that cannot make up its mind ever since she was born.
Surprise: DD has gorgeous curly hair. Didn’t see that coming, so now we say she stole my curls.
bfp#1-10/29/12,EDD: 7/3/13. nothing found @ 1st u/s, natural mc 12/10/12. "Bean"
bfp#2-5/10/13! EDD: 1/18/14. "Peanut" Arrived 1/13/14. Diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis
bfp#3- 9/26/14. EDD: 5/7/15. no heartbeat found @ 1st u/s, natural mc 10/23/14. "Little Bug"
**Psalm 139:16**
- I did not freeze any pads, but for a couple/few weeks I did put Tucks pads on top of the pad in my underwear each time I went to the bathroom. I bled for 3 1/2 weeks then spotted for another week. I really liked the Always Infinity pads, but I definitely over-stocked my bathroom with the heavy ones. It was nice to have the overnights at the beginning because they were longer and for heavier days. I probably could have switched to regular by week 2 PP but I had so many heavy ones I kept using them longer. The Always Infinity are thinner (but still worked great) so I found them to be less uncomfortable.
- Thankfully did not have any.
MMC 8/5/15 at 8 weeks
DS born 9/13/16
BFP 1/13/18 - EDD 9/20/18 - It's a boy!
MMC 8/5/15 at 8 weeks
DS born 9/13/16
BFP 1/13/18 - EDD 9/20/18 - It's a boy!
MMC 8/5/15 at 8 weeks
DS born 9/13/16
BFP 1/13/18 - EDD 9/20/18 - It's a boy!
I got just one hemorrhoid during pregnancy, and it only bothered me a little-but I didn't do any pushing either.It went away pretty quick after-but not all the way away. If I had to explain, it deflated and left almost a skin tag? and even though I haven't been constipated at all, it came back at like 9 weeks. My biggest issue is feeling like a get all the way clean after a BM. Annoying, but not awful.
I actually shaved all the way through last time-every 7-10 days. I was also in Florida, so I shaved legs, bikini, etc. I went to more by touch than sight slowly, and obviously at the end it was all by touch. I shaved the day before birth, and by 10 days out shaved a bit again-I do it for me as I can't stand the feeling of hair in my underwear at any real length. I had a section, so other than bleeding had no concerns with shaving soon after. I had planned on a wax at 37 weeks, but baby didn't stay in that long.
DH: 32
Married 7/18/15
1st born at 35+4 on 6/6/16
Team green turned BLUE!
2nd born at 38+6 on 8/30/18
Team green turned PINK!
Due with #3 on 6/6/20 Team Green
MMC 8/5/15 at 8 weeks
DS born 9/13/16
BFP 1/13/18 - EDD 9/20/18 - It's a boy!
Waxing/shaving.. did you ladies keep up during pregnancy? If not, did you shave before going in? PP how long did you wait before waxing/shaving again?
With DS, I kept up with shaving and shaved right before going to the hospital. I don’t remember when I started shaving PP because I had external stitches. With DD, I got a wax at 38 weeks. It was so much easier PP for clean up of blood and wiping. I’ll do that again this time.
-I've read about women freezing pads with witch hazel? Did you do this? Speaking of pads, how bad is the lochia? What kind of pads worked best for you?
I didn’t do this. I only used the ice pack pads with DS at the hospital. Didn’t need them with DD. I don’t know what lochia is. I thought the thick pads worked best for me PP. I may try depends this time.
-Hemorrhoids. When did you get them? Do they go away? Relief?
I didn’t get any with either of my previous pregnancies.
As for the actual bleeding, it was pretty much like a heavy period for me. The first few days, I had some leaking but then I got a self care routine down and it got easier from there.
I'm considering making some cloth pads for the non-heavy flow. I've made them before for donations and they aren't hard to make. I just won't tell MH about them, I know he'll be grossed out lol.
Expecting again -- EDD 7/27/20
So even without comparison I'd say she's being truthful (in a general sense since every delivery and recovery will be different). No tearing will generally be easier to recover from than some tearing. And some tearing will generally be easier to recover from than lots of tearing and an episiotomy.
MMC 8/5/15 at 8 weeks
DS born 9/13/16
BFP 1/13/18 - EDD 9/20/18 - It's a boy!
Just keep clicking the next topic to get more info!
This website is a great resource for all kinds of things! Her newsletter was also very helpful for me