Little Man is now over 6 months old and I am finally getting around to what I used postpartum. Most of what I got from the hospital, I ended up not using (peri bottle and mesh underwear). Prior to going into the hospital, I created two postpartum recovery baskets (one for each bathroom in our house) so that everything was ready when I got home. Below is a list of things I had in my baskets as well as other things that I used.
Please bear in mind that my postpartum recovery may not be the same as yours. I had an induced vaginal birth due to preeclampsia followed by a D&C due to a retained placenta. I also had an episiotomy and I bled for about three weeks after delivery if I remember correctly.
Frida Mom Peri Bottle
I absolutely loved the Peri Bottle because of the curved spout. It was so much better than the one that the hospital provided. Because I had an episiotomy, I ended up using this for the first 4 weeks postpartum before I felt comfortable even just patting with toilet paper. I will definitely be using this again in the future.
Always Discreet Disposable Underwear
The hospital gives you mesh underwear to wear in the hospital and some extra for when you get discharged. I absolutely hated the mesh underwear. It was uncomfortable and I just didn’t feel myself at all. It felt weird to wear clothes over them and I still felt like I was in the hospital immediately after birth. After my first shower in the hospital the day after I delivered, I immediately switched to the Always Discreet and I could not believe how comfortable I felt and also how normal I felt. They provided great coverage for postpartum bleeding and for those pee sneezes as well. I used them the first week fully and then the second and third week I only wore them at night for the extra coverage and to give me a break from having to wear a big pad.
Dermoplast Spray
Dermoplast is an amazing thing especially as your stitches are healing and you are ITCHY. The hospital gave me one and I ended up buying another one so that I had one in each postpartum recovery basket. You think you won’t need it and I definitely thought that in the hospital until everything started healing and it itched and burned and you don’t want to touch it.
Tucks Pads (or anything for hemorrhoids)
The hospital provided me with Tucks Pads, but I preferred the wipes because it was easier to line the pads (or the disposable underwear) to get more coverage.
Bidet
I know this may sound a little conventional and it doesn’t fit into a basket, but I found a bidet to be a lifesaver after giving birth. You really can’t use it in the first week or two after delivery because I could not bear to send a stream of water towards all that happened down there, but once I was quite a bit healed, it was very helpful, especially cleaning the extra blood off when I felt gross, but couldn’t hop in the shower. The one I have listed has a wash, women’s wash, and nozzle clean feature and it was extremely easy to install. I believe my husband installed it in ten minutes.
I also used pads once the bleeding started to subside. I don’t even know what brand I used, just whatever I had in the house. I also recommend sleeping on a towel the first week or two because you will leak breastmilk and you will sweat a lot so having the towel underneath you saves you from washing your sheets almost daily. I also recommend buying new underwear because be honest, when was the last time you bought underwear. Honestly, that was the best advice I was given postpartum and it helped me start to love my postpartum body, knowing that I had underwear that fit. The last piece of advice I have is to shower every day, even if it’s just a quick rinse. You’d be surprised at how normal you can feel just by taking a quick five-minute shower. Each night, after I fed Little Man, I would give him to my husband and I would get ten or fifteen minutes alone in the shower. I found it a huge help to have that little time where my body was my own and I could be alone and not rushed.
Is there anything that you would add to the list as well?