14 Must-Haves For the Postpartum Period

Sep 25

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The period right after giving birth is such a sweet, vulnerable and difficult time. While you do get to snuggle your new baby, you are also dealing with a whole lot. From crazy hormones to learning how to take care of this new little life to also caring for yourself, it can be a lot to handle.

That's why I'm sharing my must-haves that helped me after both of my births. My first birth was a C-Section, and my second was a VBAC, so I share a little more specifics for each of those in my post 6 Healing Tips for Postpartum C-Section Vs VBAC.

In this blog post, I’ll be sharing the general things I would not go without again if I were to have another baby.

• The 5-5-5 method for healing during postpartum

• The different areas that need to heal

• Specific Ways to Encourage Healing

• Why it matters how you heal

• The difference I saw between my first and second postpartum periods

If only I had known before I had my first baby what I would need to feel functional and not just stuck in survival mode. That's why I want to share the knowledge I've gained to possibly help any future mama's out there to thrive during postpartum!

The 5-5-5 method for healing during postpartum

In case you have not heard of the 5-5-5 method, it is super helpful to know about when going through the postpartum period. Basically, what it stands for is 5 days in bed, 5 days on the bed, and 5 days around the bed. Your body has just gone through a major experience and needs time to heal.

I like this method because it helps give you a goal for slowly getting back into regular life. There may be times you start feeling guilty or that you just need to get back into cleaning and exercising etc. Following this will help you take it a little more slowly to allow the healing that is necessary. On the other end, it will encourage you to get out of bed at the appropriate time so you're not taking too long to get up and do things.

The different areas that need to heal

You would think that actual physical birth is where the physical pain ends, but that is not the case. Your whole body feels like you just had the hardest workout of your life, your uterus starts shrinking and therefore majorly cramping, your breasts are tender, and either your lady bits are stretched or torn, or you have a gnarly scar from a major surgery. This is all true no matter what kind of birth you have and whether or not you are breastfeeding.

For the uterine cramps, I recommend using After Ease and a Marjoram Oil Roll-On right away and for several days after until you're not hurting from the cramps anymore. I drank After Ease in some juice before breastfeeding because breastfeeding triggers the hormones that cause your uterus to shrink. A heating pad and motrin can also help with easing the pain. Also, Miralax was a lifesaver after my second birth. I only used it the first week or so afterwards because you don't want to use it for a long time, but it helped so much to have easy poops after a second degree tear! I used something else with my first C-Section baby and ended up struggling with hemorrhoids for MONTHS after. Basically, there is a LOT going on with your body, so taking the time to rest in order to heal is essential, and using other healing aids can be super beneficial!

Not only are you healing physically, but mentally and emotionally as well. Your hormones will be all over the place. With my second birth, I started taking Progessence Plus as soon as I got home from the hospital, which was 2 days after giving birth. It basically just helps to balance your hormones. I noticed a significant difference in my emotional health from the first birth where I did not have any hormonal help.

Specific Ways to Encourage Healing

These are some things that truly helped me heal in all facets during postpartum that I wish I knew sooner! For one, you want to eat food that is WARM and drink plenty of fluids. Having prepped freezer meals is a great way to do this and have nutritional food! It's such a game changer to have warm, comforting, homemade food when you don't feel quite yourself. Also, warm foods have been proven to aid in healing.

Other nutritional supplements I recommend are Fortune Delight and Shakeology. Fortune Delight will aid in providing natural energy with no crash while also helping eliminate toxins. Shakeology is full of superfood nutrition to support you and your baby if you're breastfeeding.

Speaking of breastfeeding, I have another post where I go into some tips that helped establish breastfeeding much better than my first go around. You can find those tips in my post Breastfeeding Tips for Success. If you're interested in breastfeeding, definitely go read those tips!

Why it matters how you heal

You will heal no matter what, but if you are prepared ahead of time and allow yourself to heal you will be better prepared for focusing on your new role as Mama!

Also, something that you cannot buy that can be life-changing during postpartum is help. My husband was the greatest help I could have ever asked for, waiting on me hand and foot. Yes, sometimes I felt guilty because he was doing so much to take care of me and I didn't do anything to take care of him, but it was the most helpful thing in the world.

If you don't have a spouse able to care for you like I did, I highly recommend getting some help lined up prior to giving birth. Whether it's your mom, sister, or friend, have someone in your corner who can help you walk to the bathroom, get things for you when your busy feeding your baby, and gives you space to rest.

If you do all of this, you will feel better in no time and more capable of picking up normal daily activities.

The difference I saw between my first and second postpartum periods

Following my first birth, I felt helpless, stressed, incredibly sleep-deprived, and was down emotionally for a while. The emotions were just baby blues, but I started thinking I might have Postpartum Depression because of how long I felt that way. Eventually, I told my husband I was having a hard time and it helped to overcome it.

All of this to say, the things I did following my second birth created an incredibly different postpartum period compared to my first. I felt confident in focusing solely on this new life in making sure he is growing enough and bonding with him. I knew what my body needed to heal, so it wasn't something I was struggling with.

Also, we fully accepted co-sleeping this time around without feeling like we're doing something wrong, and turns out you get more sleep that way!

I hope there is something you find in this post to help you in postpartum. I'm praying for you and your little one to have a wonderful, joy-filled postpartum! Feel free to reach out to let me know if any of this helped you or if you have any questions. You can contact me here.

6 Healing Tips for Postpartum C-Section Vs VBAC Breastfeeding Tips for Success

Randi Salang