Experts state that the pain of vaginal birth is equivalent to fracturing 20 bones at once. Equally, some pretty intense pain is inevitable after major abdominal surgery like a c-section. When you consider these facts together, it’s a wonder that women undergo this process at all. We do, of course, often more than once, because when push comes to shove, having a newborn baby is more than worthwhile.
That said, the physical impact of birth, paired with the sudden responsibility of a brand new life, can be difficult, leading many women to neglect their after-birth health. Unfortunately, while you may be able to get away with simple bed rest after a straightforward vaginal birth, aftercare in light of everything from tears to blood loss and, of course, cesarean section, is crucial to your recovery. Instead of letting that slip, it’s therefore always worth considering the following essential ways to continue prioritizing your care, even as you look after a tiny baby.
# 1 – Let your partner manage appointments
While you likely have a photographic memory when it comes to every last checkup for your child, it’s easy to forget about things like stitch checks, medication refreshers, and everything else that you need. Unfortunately, missing even one appointment can leave you without crucial postpartum medications, as well as significantly increasing your risks of infection. That’s why the first and perhaps best thing you can do for your care is to let your partner take care of appointments. That way, without you even needing to think about it, they’ll be able to perfect your schedule, let you know what’s happening, and always make sure that you don’t risk skipping that all-important appointment time.
# 2 – Perfect your prescriptions
As mentioned, appointments themselves are crucial for ensuring that you have enough of things like iron pills, anti-inflammatory drugs, and even just your antenatal vitamins, but that’s still no good if you’re constantly forgetting to take them. As such, you also need a reliable way to remind yourself to take these pills at the same time each day. Again, your partner could do this, but even once they’re back to work, a prescription management app like DayaMed could take this pressure off your shoulders. That way, you won’t once need to think about your tablets, but you’ll still be able to keep on top of what you need to take, when, and why.
# 3 – Rest, rest, rest
Once you’ve got the above priorities in order, remember, too, that giving yourself a break is crucial after giving birth. By sleeping when your baby does, and, during c-section recovery especially, limiting physical movement, you should be able to spend plenty of quality time with your baby while also giving your body the best possible chance to come back raring fit and ready to go.
Overlooking your care is understandable and even natural after giving birth, but you owe it to yourself and your new baby to get on top of this at last with these tips to hand.