If you’ve been stressing out about what you need for your baby’s new arrival, let this blog help ease some of that stress. I feel like a lot of new moms stress about what they need for baby and forget about what they need for themselves. So I’m going to go over a few items that helped me through the first few days of postpartum and they are still items I’m using right now. Giving birth is hard enough, the time after it shouldn’t be as hard.
Depends | Don’t knock the diapers until you try them! You’ll most likely be given mesh undies, small chux pads, and a maternity pad (a normal period pad) after labor. You may be surprised at how much you’ll be bleeding after labor. You have to remember that you just lost a fairly large organ and you have a wound inside that needs to heal. Changing your pad after you use the restroom can become very tedious when you have multiple items you’re trying to shimmy up your legs. Lining a Depends with your tucks pads is so much easier than trying to make sure your pad stays in place in your Asian pear undies.
Dermoplast and Tucks | Your punani is going to hurt, and so is your butthole. You just had a human and an organ pass through your punani, so don’t be surprised if it’s super sore for a few weeks. Plus all of that pressure from baby’s head on your rectum is going to give you some mean hemorrhoids. Dermoplast has benzocaine and menthol in it to help give a nice numbing feeling to the area. It’s a spray you can use 2-3 times a day. Tucks contains witch haizel which helps with the pain from swelling and the itchiness that comes with hemorrhoids. These two items will make using the restroom a lot less scary for the first time.
Disposable Ice Packs | Sit on these, sis. Ice packs will help reduce swelling which helps with pain. That gate control theory is real with these ice packs. So the idea is that your brain can only process one sensation at a time. The receptors that process temperature differ from the ones that process pain. So if you overwhelm these nerves with a cold or hot sensation, then it’ll reduce the way you process the pain. So sit on it sis.
Aloe Vera and Vitamin E lotion | You will be so itchy after you give birth. During my pregnancy, I was so adamant about putting on my almond oil, Vitamin E belly balm, and lotion on that I didn’t think it’d be as bad after birth. BUT I WAS WRONG. My stomach was (and still is) itchy AF. So I’ve been using both lotion and aloe vera on my tummy to help soothe the itchiness. Both are good for helping keep your stretch marks hydrated. A plus for the aloe vera is putting it on your perineal pads to help soothe that area too.
Peribottle | Touching your punani is going to be scary the first few times around. Wiping your butt is going to be scary the first few times around. But I can’t stress enough how important it is to keep your area clean after delivery, especially if you were the unlucky few to get stitches during delivery. The last thing you want after delivery is an infection. So using a peribottle with warm water and some soap will save you the hassle of constantly wiping to keep yourself clean. Plus it makes peeing a whole lot easier when you spray at the same time. Your hospital should give you one to use, but if you want a better one, the one from Frida is a good purchase!
Motrin | The Army’s holy grail of pharmaceuticals; heals all ailments. LOL, just kidding. But after 9 months of not being able to take Motrin, it was the first drug I requested after delivery. You’d be amazed at how limber you are after delivery with all of the adrenaline rushing. Motrin helps with those afterbirth pains. Your uterus contracting back down, your perineum throbbing from having spit out a human and an organ, and the rest of your body aching from delivery and being so tense. This is one drug I would not pass up on.
Lanolin | I’ve been using lanolin for awhile now. I bought Lano’s Multipurpose balm and I use it for my lips and dry patches on my hands due to the constant handwashing. Lanolin is made from wool grease, or the oil from animals who have wool (sheeeeep, baa!) It’s widely used by breastfeeding mamas as nipple cream. If you and your little nugget are going to go on adventure together into the world of breastfeeding, then this is a must have. Cracked nipples are no joke. It increases the risk of infection for you, and can be really painful when baby is feeding. No one wants to be in that kind of pain. Trust me, it isn’t fun. The one I recommend for breastfeeding and pumping is Honest Company’s Nipple Balm!
Haakaa | This won’t let you down when it’s catchin’ your letdown (lol, bad mom jokes.) Honestly though, I’ve caught almost 2 ounces each time I stick this baby on to my other boob while Maverick feeds. It’s such a good way to build a small refrigerator stash. I don’t freeze it (… yet) because I only catch about 2 ounces. But it’s a nice lil snacky snack if baby is still hungry and you’re over breastfeeding for 40 minutes. Babies get heavy after awhile. This was a great gift from our sis Amanda. So if you know someone who is pregnant, get them a haakaa.
The great thing about most of these items is that you’ll receive them after delivery, so you won’t have to buy your first set, but it’s always good to buy a set for home. Or if you’re not wanting to buy a bunch of different products, you can grab the Frida Mom Postpartum Kit that includes disposable undies, cooling wipes, perineal foam, and ice packs. There’s a peribottle that is also available for a separate purchase! Regardless of how you decide to get your hands on these items, they’ll all be super helpful in helping you heal so you can take care of your little baby.
