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Everyone tells you about how wonderful childbirth is, how fulfilled you will feel after being a mother and all that Jazz. Almost everyone seems to focus on the pretty side of motherhood, and even birthing classes pretend that there’s almost no ugly side to it. Which there is, to be honest. And I’m not going to lie to you, but being a mother is not all roses and butterflies; at least not for your body.
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A lot of things, normal daily experiences, will change for you after you give birth. And I am going to reveal all the gory details right here, so you know the things no one else is willing to tell you.
1. Peeing Will Be A Pain
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And not just peeing btw, pooping will be even a bigger pain! Basically, hitting the washroom to do your business is going to turn into minutes of agony from the moments of relief they used to be. Peeing will burn a lot, and pooping will almost feel like giving birth again! However, once you get the first time out of the way, it’ll get much better.
2. You’ll Still Look Pregnant
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If you thought you could magically lose pregnancy fat just after your baby is born, think again. You’ll continue looking as pregnant as you did pre-delivery, unless of course, you have awesome genes and commendable metabolism. But don’t panic at that. Losing your baby weight will take time and that’s only natural.
3. Your Stitches May Rip
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See now there’s sound reasoning behind your doctor stopping you from indulging in the rigors of daily life. I was stupid though and thought that how can a little bit of innocent mopping the house hurt? Wish I’d known better. My stitches came right off like the dust I got off from the ceiling.
4. You’ll Be All Hormonal
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It’s like having a one long PMSing party, only with pregnancy hormones as your guests of honor. During the initial days of motherhood, distinguishing laughing from crying would be next to impossible, and all I knew is that I had a tissue in my hand. However, postpartum depression is a real problem and you should seek medical intervention if it becomes worse for you.
5. You’ll Be Itchy And Scratchy
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At this stage, your vagina will be trying to heal itself from the great strain it has just been through. Part of your vagina’s ways of telling you “hey I am healing” would be terrible itches, burns and urges to scratch. You. Must. Stop. Yourself. From. Giving. In.
6. Your Boobs Will Grow
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While this will definitely look great in the mirror and under your clothes, it will hurt like hell. That way, pregnancy boobs are both a boon and a bane. The reason why your breasts swell (and pain) though is that they are constantly making milk. You should feed or use the pump to empty them out to prevent problems like mastitis.
7. Periods Will Be The Death Of You
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The first-period post pregnancy nearly killed me. I had no idea my cramps would get ten times worse than they used to be. The flow was way heavier too, so you should prepare yourself with menstruation Arsenal well in advance.
8. Leaking Breastmilk Will Be Ordinary
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Forget about not having large splotches of wetness on your clothes where your nipples used to be. Your breasts will be in overactive mode, producing so much milk that they’ll barely be able to contain it.
9. Sex Will No Longer Be The Same
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Either of the two things can happen to you — you’ll be excited to get back in the sack, or you would never feel like getting some action ever again. Whatever it is for you, make sure you wait till your body gives you the green signal.
If you’ve chosen to be a mother, then you’ll have to deal with its dark side too. And don’t worry, you’re not alone. We’ve all been there at some point in our lives.
