How did you feel postpartum?

First of all I would like to say Congratulations! Then i would like to tell you to take a deep breath and relax. While giving birth is painful, of course, when you see your baby for the first time you will forget all about it. There could be some discomfort and cramps for a couple of days afterwards. Breastfeeding, if thats what your planning, will actually help to keep you from cramping a whole lot, i won't say it stops it, but it does help. Breastfeeding causes your uterus to contract and shrink and can actually even help you to lose weight after having baby. There are other pluses to breastfeeding, but we will save that for another topic. I am quiet sure that if you are in alot of pain (doubtful) your Doctor will prescribe something for you for pain, even to take home with you. If you have c-section this is a definate. If you do decide to breastfeed, be very careful about what you take and make sure you talk with you childs pediatrician about anything you are taking. Other than that, when you first hold your baby and feed him/her you will not remember any pain you may have experienced! As far as bleeding, you may experience some heavy bleeding during the first 12 hours after delivery, this is normal and your nurses will watch you to make sure you are having a normal amount of bleeding. After that you will probably have about 2 to 6 weeks of "bleeding" it is usually not very heavy. If you breastfeed you may not experience any bleeding after about 1 week, i didn't. I also didn't have a period for a year! I'm not going to guarentee this to you but this was my experience and i know others have had the same. Then again everyone is different.

After birth things went okay. I had a c-section so it was a bit painful to get up and about. We didn't have any problems breastfeeding. My milk started to come in by the 3rd day and was fully in by the 5th. The worst thing is the first bowel movement. It did not take me more than 2-3 weeks to feel pretty much back to normal and the bleeding was not bad at all.

I was too emotional with my second child. Had a c-section, my milk took about a week and a half to come in. Not enough sleep, if I was home alone I would just cry unless I had some grown up company other than my two year old. With a c-section u pretty much can't do anything or drive anywhere, so being home for two straigh weeks made it worse for me. It took me about two weeks to bond with my child, my husband had to take care of her cause I was a wreck. I'm sorry, don't get scared, I feel fine now. As long as you can get some family help for the first 2 or 3 weeks you won't suffer postpartum or even think about it. Having some help around makes a difference....

I was a full month over due (yes, 44 weeks!) I felt so miserable the last couple of weeks, I thought it would take me forever to recover after the birth. Within 36 hours of delivering we were released from the hospital. The same day we were released, we went out shopping, and running errands. I still felt like I needed to rest periodically, but I felt great over all. I think it was such a relief to not be pregnant anymore. When my daughter was just 8 days old, we took a flight "home" so she could meet her extended family. I think breastfeeding will actually help you to recover much more quickly. It helps to tighten all of the muscles used during labor, getting you back into shape in no time.

The first few days after I delivered my son I was in a lot of pain, but that is to be expected. Bringing a child into the world is a lot of hard work! I also got a UTI from the urine catheter I had with my epidural. Though I was in pain, I felt total elation. I knew that there was nothing I would rather be doing than being a mom. For the first few days I didn't sleep but for minutes at a time, which I contribute to the adrenaline rush of giving birth. I was pretty emotional those first few days too. I just kept tearing up every time I thought of my new son or my husband. They were tears of joy, though, so it was well worth it.

Well allot of it will have to do with the type of delivery you have. I had to have c-section for all of mine. I was shaky and a bit nauseated for a few hours but thrilled to see my babies. The bleeding was moderate and I did not care for the bulky pads. My milk took about three days to come in but at first you will have a fluid called colostrum which is clear that will nourish the baby. It can take a bit of adjusting for the baby to nursing. A good lactation nurse will help. Your breasts may get sore so a good cream will help. It did take me about six weeks to really get back my full strength and as you will be adjusting to night time feedings and a recovering body you will feel better after a couple weeks but will need pretty much the full six to feel up to speed. Best advice I would suggest is to rely on your nurse, mine have all ways been great help! Good luck!!!

I felt like I was in a boxing ring :) I had to sit on a pillow for about two weeks afterwards. I was pretty sore down there since I had some tearing. I bled for about 3 weeks or so, but it was fairly light for the most part. My boobs hurt soooo much when my milk came in, but that only lasted for a day or so. I struggled with breastfeeding for the first while, but once you get the hang of it, it's not too bad. As far as the baby blues, I had them. It didn't take much for me to cry the first week at home :)

Good luck!

I had my daughter, and after delivery I felt perfect. I was up and in the shower. Had visitors and was awake and feeling better then before.. I had no drugs during the labor or delivery so I had no side effects or delays on walking or sitting up or anything.. It took me about 4 weeks to feel 100% myself again.. My bleeding lasted for about 8 weeks.. As for the breastfeeding noone tells you that it is going to be hard. I found that out myself.. Finally I just decided to pump.. I did so for the first 3 months.. Congratulations on your baby.. I hope you have a fast recovery....

I have had three vaginal deliveries and am 20 weeks pregnant with my 4th.

With all my previous pregnancies I felt GREAT after my baby was born! I was a little sore, bled for a really long time (more than 6 weeks each time) and my nipples were a little sore, but otherwise I was just fine and was outside working in my gardens and walking the dog within days of giving birth.

everyones experience and expectations are different, and each can be normal....your experience may be anything from great to miserable....I won't describe my experience as miserable, it was an awesome experience that resulted in holding this precious baby in my arms....But did I deal with some misery, yes.....I felt fat, but no longer pregnant. I was bleeding and wearing pads, yuck. My boobs hurt, leaked,had sore nipples and worried if I was doing it right, was she eating enough? My belly and bottom were sore. I was so tired, not use to getting 2-3 hours of sleep at a time.My house was a mess but people kept coming over. My hair was a mess, but people said how good I looked....But, was it a wonderfully natural normal postpartum period of adjustment, yes..did I do it again, yes....enjoy your baby.