The "F" Word

My girlfriend and I were comparing our childbirth and post partum journeys.  I asked her if I could share her journey since I only experienced a cesarean.  I thought this would be good insight for ladies that will be having a vaginal delivery in the future.  No one talks about this stuff. We tend to keep all the embarrassing moments to ourselves when we should be talking about them with our girlfriends!  I mean that's what girlfriends are for, right?! Sharing our experiences will improve our knowledge for our future. Knowledge is power ladies...remember that! So start sharing!
Here's her story:

"Farting in front of my husband is just something I never did. Not because I wasn’t comfortable, I guess I just didn’t think it was “lady like.” Well that all went down the drain after delivering a baby. 

No one ever talks about what happens to a mother after a vaginal delivery. At least I did not know what to expect. I knew my vagina would never be the same, but I wasn’t prepared for all the other side effects.

Let’s go back to the “f” word. Yes, farting. I had no idea not being able to control wind would be a problem after birth! I’ve heard of urinary incontinence, but anal incontinence? Does that even exist? The first time it happened, my husband looked at me in shock because this was the first time he has ever heard my toot! We both started laughing and I explained I couldn’t control it! And to be honest, I wasn’t even expecting it! It just came out! Oops.

Since we are on the topic of butts, hemorrhoids were another result from all that pushing. My rectum was swollen from the pressure and it was downright painful! I couldn’t even bare the thought of having a bowel movement. It was recommended to me to start doing Kegel exercises soon after delivery. This “squeeze and lift” feeling was not only agonizing to my rectum, but also to my perineum. Luckily, witch hazel pads, ice packs, and Dermoplast pain relieving spray helped the healing process.  

I had an assisted delivery with the use of forceps. My baby’s heart rate was dropping and they needed to get her out fast. With the assisted delivery came an episiotomy. One thing I wasn’t expecting. I had been doing perineal massages before delivery to try to avoid getting cut. After being released from the hospital, I was so sore I could barely sit down! I had to use a doughnut shaped inner tube to sit on the couch because the cushions weren’t soft enough. I made the mistake of “peaking” at my stitches to see how I was healing. BIG mistake. I was so hormonal that I just started crying. I was stitched, stretched, bruised, and swollen. The only thing that helped was warm baths. It took awhile for my perineum to completely heal. Even at 9 weeks postpartum, the incision site was still tender. But now if I take a peak down below, it looks relatively normal!

When I was pregnant, I started noticing a pain in my upper abdominal muscles. It almost felt like an internal bruise. What I didn’t realize was that my abdominal muscles were separating. I guess your body has to make room for that growing baby somehow! But boy, was it painful! After delivery, I remember feeling my stomach and thinking, “will my abs ever go back together?” I was so nervous to exercise even though I was cleared at my 6-week checkup. And once again, no one prepared me for this or suggested ways to correct it.

Even though my healing process was harder than I anticipated, I would do it all over again for my baby girl. Nothing beats motherhood and the bond you have with your child. She is everything to me and my love for her makes me forget all about the postpartum pain. "



The above post was written by a dear friend of mine. If you are like her and would like advice on how to prepare to get your body back after baby, talk to me!  I'd love to help.  As mothers, our bodies take a beating with pregnancy and childbirth. Muscles stretch out and get weak and need guidance on getting their strength and coordination back.  I suggest working on this before starting an exercise routine and definitely before your next pregnancy.

-Amanda Fisher, DPT
amandafisherpt@gmail.com

Getting my Body Back after Baby

Alright Ladies!  I'm finally back at this blogging thing again! :)  It's about time, right?! 

I have been so busy with this new role as a Mom that I have not taken the time to post anything lately.  Nor have I had to time to work out.  Seriously.

One of the first things people ask me is, how far are you running now?  If you know me, you know I was a workout-a-holic before having Jackson.  I ran or did some form of cardio exercise at least 6-7 days a week to stay in shape, especially during my pregnancy. Then after having a cesarean, life got a lot harder.  The first night home from the hospital I remember not being able to get out of bed, because I hadn't practiced not having the bed move for me.  I ended up rolling over to my side and then rolling out of bed to get to my hungry baby.

I had heard about cesarean recoveries, but I had never expected it to be as challenging as it was.  I had no abdominals to help me go from lying down to sitting up.  I was constantly pulling on my pants or using furniture to help me sit up to feed my baby. If I walked too far, or went up too many stairs, I would feel an achy discomfort in my lower abdomen around my incision scar.

With my profession as a physical therapist in women's health, I knew I needed to start strengthening my "core" pretty early.  For the first 6-8 weeks post partum, I did pelvic floor exercises (aka Kegels) to improve the strength in my pelvic floor muscles since they had been weakened and stretched out with pregnancy.  I also started re-training my lower abdominals to work properly again.  I worked on closing my post partum abdominal separation with exercises.  The separation, or diastasis,  FINALLY closed 16 weeks post partum.  I never thought it would take as long as it did to get those muscles back where they needed to be.

Even though I have been strengthening my core over the last couple of months, I can still tell I need to remind my core to stabilize when picking Jackson up in his car seat and maneuvering into and out of the car. I am so glad I had the knowledge to regain my strength and am excited to get back to one of my many passions-running!  If you or anyone you know is wanting to regain their strength after childbirth, don't hesitate to ask me for advice!  This is my passion and I want females to restore their core to prevent issues in the future. 

-Amanda Fisher, DPT
amandafisherpt@gmail.com