Thursday, April 9, 2009

Recovery is a Bitch

I wish there was a nicer way to say this but there isn't. Recovery is a bitch. After I had my baby I wondered why no one told me and then I realized some of my friends had tried. They told me it was terrible and I remember thinking it can't be that bad. Plus when you are 8 months pregnant all you can think about is having your baby out of your body safe and sound so you are pretty much willing to endure anything to get to that point. Here are a few tips to make the recovery process a little easier.

  • Buy a donut/hemroid pillow. You can not imagine how uncomfortable it will be to sit

  • If you leave the house for any reason without your baby those first few weeks you should probably print up little cards to hand to people you may run in to that say "I just gave birth and have therefore donated what feels like half my brain and most of my blood to the good cause of bringing a precious little being in to this world so please be patient with me."

  • Have someone you know and love promise (before delivery) to bake your favorite treat after the baby arrives. Then ask them to repeat the favor about 25 more times.

  • Your stomach will look scary. My advise is don't look at it. Now I totally understand the whole Elizabethan Collar. It was invented by a woman who just gave birth and didn't want to look at her stomach. If you can find one I would suggest buying it. Also avoid full length mirrors. If you know you will encounter them often invest in one of those t-shirts with the perfect bikini body painted on it. It will go well with the collar.
The good news is your new baby will take up most of your time and occupy almost all of your thoughts so you won't have too much time to reflect on how hard recovery is until you are through the worst of it.

3 comments:

jj said...

this might be t.m.i. but i wish i would have know the sheer pain i would be in from peeing alone.

Anonymous said...

I think part of the recovery also includes fear. Now that your baby is our of you, a whole new set of fears come with him/her. Is he/she breathing? why is he/she jumping so much? too little poop, too much poop? why this? why that?
Part of the recovery is getting to know this whole new person, likes and dislikes, and that takes TIME!!! and a whole lot of PATIENCE, if your baby cries is not your fault!! he/She is learning how to communicate.
No, you don't sleep when the baby sleeps - that's an urban myth -
You want to be superwoman - like those fairytale mothers who birth while plowing and come home to take care of the whole family and cows - yeah right! ask for help, it is OK, and people around you feel useful.
and of the pain that it comes when your uterus shrinks!!!!! very painful!!!

juliana

christalee said...

As long as we are being honest about the horrors of recovery, we should probably point out that even though the stomach looks disturbing, the exit hole is much, much scarier. I made the mistake of using a mirror the day after birth to look at the tear. BAD IDEA!!!! Just don't look, kay. Ice it. Spray that numbing stuff they give you. Sit on your little pillow. Just do not look! At least for the first week. Granted, my baby came out upside down, so perhaps the trauma was worse than normal. I'll let you know when #2 comes out. ;)