How do I put this delicately? I don’t like postpartum “body pics.” I’m talking about “before and after” and even those “real” this-is-how-it-is kind of images.
My reason is probably not what you think.
Read MoreI looked at my vagina for the first time since giving birth the week before my 6-week postpartum checkup.
I'm so glad I did.
I won’t lie, this scared me a little. I had a third degree tear and many stitches along my perineum. They eventually dissolved but turned into bumpy granulation tissue. When I touched my perineum during showers, it felt swollen, tight, and irritated.
Read More“Scar tissue needs to be rehabbed too,” says Lauren Collins a pelvic physical therapist at Body Connect Health and Wellness.
Honestly, what a concept!
Read MoreI had my son about three and a half years ago and I STILL have linger issues from that perinatal time in my life. The seven hours of pushing, vacuum assisted delivery, and third degree tearing no doubt have a lot to do with where I am now. As you might imagine, I had persistent vaginal pain, for months. The intensity of it lessened over time, but I was never really comfortable until I sought professional help.
Read MoreYou’ve heard of writing a birth plan, but have you thought about your preferences after delivery?
I know. I know. You’re sick of planning and writing things down in anticipation of something, for which no amount of preparation will fully prepare you.
Here’s the thing. A lot happens in the first 24-72 hours of giving birth, and while you think the hard part is done, it’s just the beginning.
Read MoreIt took me seven months after giving birth to get myself to see a pelvic physical therapist (PT). But I should have gone much sooner. Perhaps around the six-week postpartum mark.
Instead I suffered more than half a year with a wobbly back, unstable-feeling hips, back and shoulder pain, vaginal heaviness, and incontinence (urinary, gas, and ocassionally fecal). I hoped it would all go away on its own since, well you know, childbirth is natural.
Read MoreWhen women have pain for so long, society has said, that’s an expectation for women, and so many women feel guilty about it and don’t want to talk to their providers. Or when they do come into for their 6-week postpartum, or a couple months after, and things still don’t feel good, they can be “poo-pooed” on. The issue is not really addressed to their satisfaction and that can be discouraging.
Read MoreAs with so many women who experience PPD, Jess’s story is complicated. She didn’t have it with her first child, Sarah, and the signs and symptoms with her second child, Joseph, didn’t appear until close to a year later. What’s more, the symptoms that typically describe PPD didn’t quite match what she was going through.
Read MoreWe were at the “Connect with Your Core” workshop for moms and pregnant women aimed to connect us with our core and feel stronger in our own skin. This workshop led by Frances Darnell of Dynamic Core offered a space for us to be with ourselves, our bodies, and a community of women. We engaged in honest conversations about prenatal and postpartum experiences led by local perinatal professionals.
Read MoreAs long as women are giving birth, the need to support postpartum moms remains. We’re far from ensuring that support, and in the past few years it seems as though access to comprehensive women’s health is increasingly threatened.
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