Ladies, ladies, ladies! I’m pretty sure that most of us spend the majority of our pregnancy worried and preparing for our labor and delivery of baby, one of the most anticipated days of our lives. Sis, let me tell you, PLEASE think about and prepare for your postpartum recovery!
On social media, I see some women in full faces of makeup, dressed up, and OUTSIIIIIDE, within a week after giving birth. I’m not knocking those women at all, but honey, that was just not my experience!
The first six weeks I was in pain, I was hormonal, I was weak. The last thing on my mind was getting out of the house, it was even difficult throwing on clothes for baby girl’s doctor visits.
Thankfully, I did some preparing for my postpartum recovery to ensure I had everything (well, everything I THOUGHT) I needed to make my recovery a little more manageable. Some things I didn’t know I needed until after delivery.
There were some things that I bought that I didn’t end up using, but I wanted to share the postpartum essentials that I actually did use and now swear by! I have recommended the products below to friends and family and will absolutely make sure I have them on hand for my future pregnancies.
Let’s jump into to this, mama!
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I can receive a commission if you purchase through my link, of course, at no extra cost to you. You can read full disclosure here.
Peri bottle
I purchased this exact peri bottle from Amazon and I literally used it until a little after my 6-week postpartum appointment. The angled nozzle makes this much easier to use than the one they give you in the hospital, which points straight up. I filled this with warm water and used this to cleanse and for relief after every trip to the bathroom. Essential!
Disposable Underwear
These disposal underwear were way comfier than what the hospital provided me with. I used these for about the first week or two because my bleeding was really heavy. After the second week, my bleeding lightened up a bit, but was still on the heavy side, so I moved on to the pads linked below.
Heavy Flow Sanitary Pads
After no longer needing the disposable underwear, I moved on to the comfiest pads I could find! These pads didn’t irritate my vaginal area and the coverage was so amazing that I slept comfortably at night without bleeding through.
Perineal Cold Pack
These provided SO much relief to my perineal area after birth. I had a 2nd degree tear, so I was extremely sore down there! These ice packs were thinner than the hospital’s and much more comfortable to wear throughout the day. Other cold packs I tried melted after just a few minutes, but these lasted for a couple of hours. As an alternative, you can use the maxi-pads I linked above and make homemade padsicles by adding witch hazel and aloe vera to the pads and sticking them in the freezer. I took the lazy route and ordered these.
Tuck’s Witch Hazel Cooling Pads
I’m not lying, these witch hazel pads were so essential in my recovery and are something you definitely want to have on hand. I’m unsure if everyone gets hemorrhoids after giving birth, but unfortunately, I had a huge, painful hemorrhoid! These pads were SO freaking soothing and the cooling sensation provided so much comfort to not only my hemorrhoid, but my perineal area. Just simply line them along your maxi-pad and feel the immediate relief.
Earth Mama Perineal Balm
OMG! This balm here?! *chef’s kiss*. I honestly think this greatly contributed to my postpartum recovery! I applied this balm with a cotton ball to my perineal area about two or three times a day, and babyyy, instant relief! I ended up going through two cans of this balm and I absolutely swear by it. I don’t know how long it would’ve taken my tear to heal without using this, but I feel as though this sped up the process. It provides a cooling sensation when applied and the feeling actually lasts for a while. I even used this on my hemorrhoid, and with the addition of the witch hazel pads, my hemorrhoid was healed in a couple of weeks!
Dermoplast
The hospital provided me with a can that I ended up forgetting to pack to bring home with me. I immediately ordered another can because I loved the numbing relief that it provided for me! I would use this when I’m really in pain down there and it worked really quickly to subside the pain for a while. I would mostly spray it directly on my sanitary pad, but there were times where I just sprayed it directly to the perineal area.
Belly Band
Initially, I bought this belly band only to help me ‘snap back’ quickly after my pregnancy. But, honestly, this belly band has been essential from day 1 postpartum. I’m unsure if all women experience this, but my stomach felt really loose for the first couple of weeks postpartum (I guess this is due to everything being all stretched out and your uterus needing time to contract). This band provided so much relief and helped my stomach to feel tight and secure. I literally wore this all day and only took it off for bedtime.
Comfortable Underwear
Now ladies, I love my Victoria’s Secret panties, but ya’ll, I kept it so simple during my postpartum recovery. I bought a 10-pack of black Hanes panties and they definitely came through for me! They weren’t tight on me and left me with a little room down there, they were super comfortable! I wasn’t worried about being cute! Ha! Also, since I bought them in the color black, I didn’t have to worry about seeing any stained underwear.
Yoga Pants
For the first couple of weeks, I didn’t feel comfortable in anything other than these high-waisted yoga pants after giving birth. I didn’t want to wear shorts, dresses, or nightgowns with all that was going on down there. They came in a pack of 5 and were so easy and comfy to throw on and made everything feel so secure from the waist down.
Step Stool
Okay, so everyone may not need this, but I’m including it because my husband had to go buy one as soon as we got home from the hospital! This was something that I never even thought of until the time came that I needed it. My pelvic and vaginal area were both extremely sore and painful and our bed is really high off the ground; I literally could not get on the bed without a step stool! It was also helpful in reaching other high places around the house, because it was even painful tippy toeing to reach things!
As I mentioned earlier, I swear by all of these products and don’t know how my recovery would have been without each one of these items. But, moms, I will say, the most important thing you need during recovery is something that money can’t buy: PATIENCE! You have to be patient with yourself and understand that your body just did something so incredible and you just gave birth to the biggest blessing on earth! Be easy on yourself and your body, mama, you’ve got this! Wishing you a healthy, peaceful, and beautiful labor, delivery, and recovery!