Cuprins
What you need to know about nappy suites
Bleeding from the first days
Acestea sunt les lochies, blood loss immediately following childbirth. At first they are red, sometimes with clots, then pink, and finally brown. Very abundant the first 72 hours, they dry up over time. They last at least ten days, or even two or three weeks after childbirth.
Pain for a few days
For the episiotomy, you will understand why the midwife advised you to provide a child’s buoy to stay seated! The sutures may tighten for the first few days. So slide the buoy under your buttocks before sitting down, we haven’t found anything better! The doctor will prescribe pain relievers to relieve you. In a few days, you will no longer be in pain, although the scar may remain tender for a few more weeks.
Your breasts may also be sore. Whether you choose to breastfeed or not, as soon as you give birth, you secrete prolactin (the hormone of lactation). To relieve them, run your breasts under hot water, massage them and ask the midwife for advice.
Another small inconvenience: contractions of your uterus which gradually returns to its normal size. Little painful in the first child, they become more sensitive in the next. We call them “Trenches”. Do not hesitate to take an analgesic (paracetamol).
A little bit of blues
Crying “for no reason”, irritability, a feeling of guilt… these moods mixed with sadness affect nearly two thirds of young mothers, generally within three or four days after birth. Don’t worry, this is completely normal, as long as it doesn’t last longer than a fortnight.
The little return of diapers
It occurs in some women a dozen days after childbirth. The bleeding starts again for about forty-eight hours. This is normal and is part of the healing process of the uterus.
The reappearance of the rules
It is very difficult to predict when the period will reappear. Basically, if you have chosen not to breastfeed and the doctor has prescribed tablets to stop the flow of milk, your return to diapers may occur. one month after childbirth. If you breastfeed, on the other hand, it will be later: after the end of breastfeeding or at least when you breastfeed your child less often.
Contraception: don’t delay
The objective sign that your cycles are back is your period. But be careful: when they occur, it means that you have been fertile again for about two weeks. So better to plan. Two to four weeks after giving birth, you have the choice between local contraceptives (condom, spermicide), a compatible micropill, or an implant. For the IUD (intrauterine device), you will have to wait six weeks after giving birth, eight if you have had a cesarean.
See our file: Contraception after childbirth
Consultație postnatală
Six to eight weeks after giving birth, see a gynecologist, midwife or your general practitioner for an update. He will make sure your body is recovering properly, prescribe postnatal rehabilitation sessions and answer all of your questions.
Rehabilitation sessions
Take advantage of postnatal rehabilitation sessions supported by Social Security to strengthen your perineum, then your abdominals, following the advice of the physiotherapist. You can also gradually resume a gentle physical activity such as water aerobics or simply walking.