Postpartum period – a time for getting to know your little one and also care for yourself.
You’ve just had a baby and while self-care might be the last thing on your mind, the postpartum period is in fact the time when self-care is of utmost important. There’s a lot going on during this time. Regardless of whether you had an easy or difficult birth or if you had a vaginal or c-section delivery, you’re bound to feel uncomfortable and sore. In effect, recovery at this time will be a tad haphazard as you’re sleep starved and just getting the hang of caring for your little bub. The best thing you can do is to stock up on products that can help ease your postpartum woes and make the transition into motherhood as seamless as possible. Not sure where to start? Here’s our go-to postpartum checklist of all the essential items as well as treatments available for your road to recovery.
Essential Items for Postpartum Bleeding
Regardless of whether you have a vaginal birth or a c-section, you will have some vaginal bleeding and discharge after birth known as lochia. This bleeding is how your body gets rid of the extra blood and tissue in your uterus. To promote your healing and prevent infections or other problems, make sure you change your maternity pads often. Here are the essentials you’ll should have on hand.
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Maternity pads
These are not your typical sanitary pads. They are large, thick, and made to handle the heavy flow of postpartum bleeding. Likely post-delivery, the hospital will provide you with some, but have a pack on standby in case.
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Chux pads
These protective waterproof under pads are especially useful to place on your bed or anywhere you want to sit or lie down to prevent accidents from postpartum bleeding.
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Large comfortable underwear
Whether you choose to use disposable or fabric underwear, ensure that you have a stockpile of them on hand. These underwear should be large enough to hold maternity pads as well as regular sanitary pads.
- Regular Pads
Overnight maxi pads are perfect for the first week or two. However, subsequently you can stock up on regular medium to light flow sanitary pads as discharge can last up to six weeks. Tampons are not recommended at this time to prevent any unnecessary infection. Speak to your doctor if and when you need clarification.
You may experience soreness especially post-surgery. Prepare a sitz bath and also ice pads to soothe the discomfort.
Essential Items To Soothe Postpartum Soreness
As your body heals, you’re bound to feel some discomfort. For example, you may come home with a bruised perineum, stitches from an episiotomy or tear, a c-section incision, or haemorrhoids to deal with. Here are some essentials to ease your discomfort at this time.
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Peri bottle
You can fill the this bottle with warm water and gently squeeze it to release a stream of water over your perineum as you’re trying to urinate and after each trip to the bathroom. The flow of warm water makes it more comfortable to pee, increases blood flow to aid in healing, and gently cleanses the area to prevent infection.
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Pain medication
Have some Panadol with you especially when you’re feeling slight soreness and have to tend to baby at the same time. However, if the pain is unbearable, speak to your doctor who can prescribe stronger oral painkillers.
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Sitz bath
Prepare a small tub of warm or cold water that sits over the toilet bowl. When you sit in a warm sitz bath for twenty minutes, it encourages circulation, reduce swelling, and promote healing.
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Ice pads
Not only can ice pads reduce swelling but also relieve the pain as it ‘numbs’ the area just for a bit. Just remember not to put ice directly on your skin.
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Witch hazel pads.
Witch hazel pads helps to relieve the burning and itching of both haemorrhoid pain and perineal pain.
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Feminine Wash
To soothe, cleanse and refresh your intimate areas, choose a feminine wash that is formulated with natural ingredients. One such wash is Aleva Naturals Foaming Fem Wash with certified vegan ingredients and is pH balanced to be mild and gentle on the most sensitive skin. Not only that, its blend of Organic Witch Hazel and Natural Tea Tree Oil helps to relieve itching, discomfort, and irritation.
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Donut cushion
A donut pillow can make it more comfortable to sit down by taking the pressure off of your swollen perineum or hemorrhoids.
Essential Items to Care for Your Caesarean Section Wound
Belly wraps are recommended after a major surgery like a c-section to support your belly, protect your incision and promote healing.
If you’ve planned for a c-section beforehand, it’s great to have a few of these additional items on hand to cope with your tummy would. Every person’s recovery is different, depending on medical and obstetrical circumstances. You must know that having a c-section is a major abdominal surgery and you need to take things slow, very slow.
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A stool softener
Little did you know that having a bowel movement after childbirth is not an easy task for some. A stool softener helps with constipation which might result because of anaesthesia after surgery.
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A belly pillow
You can hold a pillow against your abdomen as you’re holding your baby post-delivery to ease any discomfort especially when you cough, sneeze, or laugh.
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Soft, loose-fitting clothing
Over-sized clothing helps you protect your incision and prevents irritation as your wound heals.
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Belly wrap
Ensure your abdomen has enough support after your C-section by wearing an abdominal binder such as Belly Bandit’s Bamboo Wrap.
Postpartum Treatments and Care - How else can promote postpartum healing?
Postpartum treatment can take the form of massages and also those that help to get rid of your bulging belly and stretch marks.
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Pelvic floor exercises
Start Kegel exercises as this will improve blood flow to the area, improve pelvic floor tone as well as promote healing. You can also purchase LELO Beads that are useful to tone pelvic muscles so as to increase circulation to the pelvic region. Furthermore, they aid in strengthening neuromuscular control to avoid urinary Incontinence, aid in Prenatal preparation and postpartum recovery.
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Non-Invasive Treatments
Non-invasive postpartum treatments are readily available. These range from those that help to strengthen your pelvic floor, get rid of your bulging belly and also eliminate stretch marks. Some clinics/centres that provide such services include:
Credits: Ana Tablas, Freepik, Toa Heftiba
Relevant Reads: Postpartum Recovery Period - Tips and Tricks, Postpartum Workouts to Regain Strength and Fitness Levels
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