Postpartum Recovery

I previously wrote about what I included in my postpartum basket here and decided to revisit that list now that I'm home and recovering.

I was extremely fortunate to have, what I'm guessing was, a fairly easy recovery.  I didn't have any hemorrhoids and only had a 2nd degree tear that required only a few stitches.  Since I didn't have any hemorrhoids, I can't speak to any of the creams and wipes, etc. that I had bought for those because I didn't use them at all.

The maxi pads came in handy both before and after the baby arrived.  I used a lot of them once my water broke at home and was extremely glad that I had them.  Nothing else would have helped at that point.  I also used them at home for a few days (once I used up all of the hospital freebies) until the bleeding slowed down.  Starting around 10 days postpartum, I was able to switch to the Always Infinity Overnight pads.

Once everything started healing and itching, the Dermoplast came in handy to provide some quick relief.  I liked having one can of spray in each bathroom and just used it every time I went.  I also found it necessary to have a peri bottle in each bathroom since you have to rinse instead of wipe until everything is healed.  The hospital sent me home with one, so I was glad I had extras at home.  Though, I'm sure that I could have asked for a second bottle and they would have gladly provided it.

Which brings me to the most important part of this post - most of what I needed for my recovery, I was able to get from the hospital.  They were excellent about restocking anything I was out of or just giving me more of something if I asked.  I had spare bag that I had brought and would toss in some extra goodies to take home with me and then ask them to refresh my stock.

My hospital provided all of the following items that I may or may not have accumulated a nice stash of before leaving:

• peri bottle
• maxi pads
• mesh underwear
• Dermoplast
• hemorrhoidal cream/pads
• sitz bath
• lanolin cream
• breast pads
• ice packs for down there
• grippy socks
• baby hats
• vasoline/gauze (for his circumcision)
• rectal thermometer
• hair brush/comb
• basin for bathing him
• baby body wash/shampoo
• diapers
• wipes