A lot of women who have just given birth have no idea what changes their body is going to experience or what symptoms they’ll encounter during the postpartum period.
The post-partum period is defined as the 6 weeks healing process after the delivery of a baby. During this phase, your body is recovering and getting used to not being pregnant again.
Many women do not really know the recovery symptoms that they’ll experience during that time and how to pass this stage, especially since there are other factors to be considered, like breastfeeding. Here are 6 things to expect during your postpartum period.
What Happens With The Menstrual Cycle?
One of the questions that most women don’t know the answer to, is when their period is going to be back after a child’s birth?
In most cases, it takes from 6 to 8 weeks after delivery to get your period back. But that varies from one case to another depending mainly on whether you’re breastfeeding or not.
Postpartum Symptoms
The few days right after giving birth are going to be the hardest. Heavy bleeding is expected due to the shrinking of the uterus, and this might continue for days depending on the type of delivery that took place.
Tiredness and soreness may last for up to 6 weeks before returning back to your normal self again.
Breastfeeding Usually Affects Your Period
For the majority of women who are breastfeeding, their period is delayed for a couple of months or stops entirely during exclusive breastfeeding.
The menstrual cycle is usually affected by the production of the hormone prolactin, which is responsible for producing breast milk.
At this time, the ovulation process stops, as a result of the suppression of reproductive hormones.
Emotional Changes
Many emotional changes such as postpartum depression can be experienced. Symptoms may vary from the time they start and throughout the experience.
Some symptoms develop right after pregnancy and continue till after delivery. Postpartum depression can be intense; for many women, the ability to handle daily tasks and take care of the newly born is enormously affected.
The First Period
Most women generally experience heaviness in their first period after pregnancy due to a thickening in the uterus lining.
In many cases, this heaviness decreases after a while and the menstrual cycle continues at its normal pace once again.
Women experiencing endometriosis before their pregnancy are likely to have lighter periods after delivery.
How To React To Severe Postpartum Symptoms
Not all symptoms are considered normal. There are severe symptoms that require contacting your gynecologist immediately.
If you experience severe pain while bleeding, soaking, fever, large blood clots, trouble breathing, painful urinating, or severe headaches, you must seek the help of your doctor.
Usually, these symptoms indicate that an infection might have developed during postpartum.
What to expect during the postpartum period varies from one woman to another.
Physical and psychological symptoms may develop, which is normal in many cases, but if anything extraordinarily unusual is experienced you must consult your gynecologist immediately. In some rare cases, women can develop severe symptoms that can lead to several complications.
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