Changes to your body after birth
Feeling tired
What will I notice?
You may feel very tired after giving birth. This is not surprising. Giving birth is hard work. Your baby will also wake you every 1 to 3 hours to feed during the night.
What can I do?
Rest as much as you can. Sleep when your baby sleeps. Ask for help with housework and care of other children.
Your breasts fill with milk
What will I notice?
Your breasts will fill with milk between days 2 and 4 after birth.
Your breasts may get swollen, sore, and hard.
What can I do?
Breastfeed your baby often. Cold packs and Tylenol® can help women who do not breastfeed.
Your uterus gets smaller
What will I notice?
Your uterus contracts or tightens to get smaller. You may feel cramps like when you get your period. You may feel more cramps when you breastfeed.
What can I do?
Empty your bladder often. A full bladder may cause more cramps. Your provider can prescribe Tylenol or Motrin® to help with cramps.
Sweating
What will I notice?
Sweating is your body’s way of getting rid of extra fluid. You may notice sweating more at night.
What can I do?
Change your clothes or take a shower for comfort. Sweating goes away after a few days.
Hemorrhoids
What will I notice?
Many women get hemorrhoids during pregnancy. They feel sore and may bleed when you pass stool.
They may itch as they heal.
What can I do?
Use witch hazel pads (Tucks®) or hemorrhoid cream prescribed by your provider.
Bleeding (lochia)
What will I notice?
Bleeding from your vagina starts as a heavy red flow like your period. You may have a few small clots of blood. Bleeding gets lighter in color and lessens over a week. Expect bleeding to last from 2 to 8 weeks.
What can I do?
Wear thick sanitary pads. Avoid putting anything in your vagina until the bleeding stops (about 6 weeks). Call your provider if you soak more than 2 pads in an hour.
Weight loss
What will I notice?
You may feel like you still look pregnant after you have your baby. For most women, it takes 6 months to a year to lose all of the pregnancy weight.
What can I do?
Exercise for 30 minutes most days of the week. Eat healthy foods.
Constipation
What will I notice?
You may not pass stool for several days after giving birth. This is normal. You may also feel nervous about passing stool with stitches or a sore perineum (place between the opening of your vagina and your anus).
What can I do?
Drink lots of water and eat vegetables, fruit, and whole grains to make soft stool. Support your perineum with a clean pad or folded toilet paper while you pass stool.
Urinating
What will I notice?
For a day or so after giving birth, you may not feel the need to pass urine even when your bladder is full. Urinating may burn your perineum while it is healing.
What can I do?
Make sure to pass urine every 2 hours. Drink 8 to 10 glasses of water a day. Spray your perineum with water in a spray bottle while you are urinating.
Sore perineum
What will I notice?
Your perineum (place between the opening of your vagina and your anus) may be swollen and sore. You may have stitches from a tear or an episiotomy.
What can I do?
Use a cold pack on your perineum on the first day. Take warm baths or sitz baths (a small tub of warm water) on the other days. Warm water helps to clean and heal the area. Ask your nurse for help with a sitz bath. Use a spray bottle to clean yourself after urinating or passing stool. Wash your perineum gently when you shower. Do not wash inside of your vagina. Use a mild soap like Dove®. Pat the area dry. Wear cotton underwear. Change your sanitary pad often. Your stitches will dissolve in 1 to 2 weeks.
Sore muscles
What will I notice?
You may have sore muscles in your legs and back from giving birth. You may also feel a little achy all over.
What can I do?
This is normal. Heat or massage on the sore area can help. Avoid lifting anything heavier than your baby for 2 weeks. Talk to your provider about problems with walking or pain that does not go away after a few days.