After delivery

The post delivery period is a mixture of happiness, joy and apprehension and most of you plunge in to this unknown world of motherhood with a dedication to be the best. But do not forget to take care of yourself in this bargain as there are many things that are important to take care of in this period.
This is not only to infuse you back to life but also to make your body fit for the next pregnancy to come.

Perineal care

The part to suffer most after the normal delivery is your perineum that is the area and muscles around your vagina and anus. These are stretched and sore and if there has been an episiotomy, the pain and discomfort in sitting and passing urine and stools can take the joy away for the first few days.

Tips to relax

• Sitz bath or sitting in a hot water tub can work wonders to relax your muscles .you may also put potassium permanganate in the water to take care of the infection. Sitting once daily can be of immense help at this time.
• Wear loose cotton cloths so that nothing sticks on to the stitches.
• Keep the area clean and dry
• Do not try to apply things locally unless your doctor has recommended an ointment.
• Avoid constipation by consuming light and high fiber diet.

Bleeding and cramps after delivery

After the delivery, you may continue to have a bloody discharge called LOCHIA. This will last from 4-6 weeks. During this time you must relax and take it easy because your uterus also takes the same time to come to its original size. The area where the placenta was attached also heals in 6 weeks time.
Try to use sanitary napkins at this time rather than tampons.
The discharge is blood red in the start which changes to pinkish brown within a week to ten days and gradually pales towards the end. The quantity also reduces towards the end.
You may consult your doctor if the bleeding exceeds 40 days.

I am still getting abdominal cramps (after pains) after the delivery. Is it normal?

Yes, for a few days after the delivery, your uterus may still have contractions as it is involuting to its normal size. It is more commonly if it is your second or third child as the uterus has to work harder to come to its original shape.
Again it will be felt more when you are breast feeding as the hormone OXYTOCIN responsible for milking also contracts the uterus.
Generally the pain is bearable but if it becomes difficult to cope up with it, you may use the following remedial methods.

• Deep breathing and meditation during the pains.
• Rasp berry is supposed to have a soothing effect in such conditions and a couple of leaves soaked in plain water can do the works.
• Most of the times the discomfort is because of flatulence and can carry on for more than a month. During this time the age old remedy of your grandmother of taking boiled water mixed in cumin and carom (jeer and ajwain) can work for you.
• Also try to avoid constipation by drinking lots of fluids, and consuming a high fiber food as this will aggravate all the problems.

Take care of your breasts

Many of you will face problems of dry or cracked nipples in addition to engorgement, heaviness and pain in the breasts.
Keep them clean but it is not necessary to wash them after each feed. Also wear loose clothing that do not stick on to them and if you milk a lot, keep breast pads to prevent too much wetting and fungal infection.
When you are feeding the baby, it is better to complete from one side first and then move on to the other side. But this may cause engorgement and pain in the initial stages if the baby doesn’t drink too much. In these cases, you may have to express out the milk by breast pumps or manually. Asking your husband to help out is another painless way to express out the milk.
Sometimes the pain may be due to ‘mastitis’ which is infection in the milk ducts. So if you notice redness along with pain, you must consult your doctor for this.

Take it easy

6 weeks is the minimum time required by your body to recuperate from the tremendous job of delivering a baby to this world? Even your uterus needs that time to come back to its original shape. So take it easy, relax (if your baby would let you) and enjoy this period. Do not worry about dieting, weight loss or your job. Nature wants you to sit back at this time and form a new relationship with everyone around you.
In case of a cesarean section you may need to rest for three months.
Do not go in for any strenuous exercise at this time or any kind of fat reducing exercise.

In fact even having sex at this time may cause infections as your body is susceptible at this time. You can find other ways of getting intimate like hugging, kissing or just holding hands and staring at your baby.

Also do not forget your supplemental pills of calcium or iron for the months to come.

So sit back, relax and indulge in your baby.

also read other after delivery section in our site and also read about the post delivery nutrition in the site

One of the most effective means is to give your child a piece of chilled piece of water melon.You may cut the pieces and refrigerate it for a day or too.Whenever your child is gritting his teeth or geting irritable, you may give him a slice after removing the seeds.

You will have to supervise the child though.

read more about all this in the parenting section which will be updated shortly.

All you new fathers can be assured that your baby already knows you too well by now. Even in the womb, she has been discriminating and hearing the sounds from outside and your ‘dad to bump’ chats have been well recorded by her.
Also try to give her physical pleasure by hugging her and kissing her. Studies have shown that you can be better friends with your child if you have bathed her in infancy.
You may sometimes feed your baby the expressed milk if possible.
Help your partner out in everyway possible by being there, singing for your baby and doing nappy changes too.
It will surprise you how much of pleasure that can be for you.

If your baby has already crossed 6 months, be innovative and play loud games with her including ‘peek a boo’ and see her laugh and clap. By 8 month your little one is already developing a sense of humor.
We will tell you another secret too. Your baby finds it easier to say ‘dada’ than ‘mama’ and with proper support and training from you, hear her utter the first word. (You may want to hide this from your partner now… though) .

read more in our ‘pregnant dad’ section.

                  Usually the baby spends most of its time crying when she is awake. Crying is the only mode of communication between the baby and her mother Hunger and thirst are the primary causes for the baby’s continuous crying. Even the wet diaper may cause the baby to yell. In a routine a crying baby does not mean that she is ill or in trouble. The crying episodes usually begin during the first week of life and lasts unto 3 months of age as this is the time when the baby gets accustomed to the external environment and is the period when her neurological, digestive and emotional systems are getting adjusted as per the existing surrounding.
                    So it is of prime importance to keep in mind that your baby can have episodes of fretful crying lasting from 45min to 1 hour. This can be considered absolutely normal and can be ignored.     

read more about this in our newborn section after 10 days.

This is a period of confusion for you, as your wife is a different person from what she was and you start discovering new moods in her.

•  Remember that she is not one now but two and there are lots of physical and hormonal changes taking place in her body.
Right now what is uppermost in her mind is the changes taking place in her body and only telling her that she is gaining weight or becoming heavier might initiate a tirade of lectures about how insensitive can you be. So let her crib so if she wants to but what she needs from you is the assurance that she is still as beautiful. You must also give her a patient hearing to everything that she is gong through.
You both know that this is a temporary phase. So take it positively and enjoy her soft voluptuous body now.
Try to understand that she does not need your comments or solutions but only your patient sympathetic hearing.
If you look at it positively through untainted mindset, your baby’s mother is the most beautiful thing in your life right now.

• You also have to be prepared for the waxing and waning of sexual desires in her at this moment.

In the first trimester she may not be too keen on this as she is going through tremendous hormonal changes, morning sickness, gastric problems, physical changes in the body and mood swings. Be supportive of her at this time and simple hugs with a gesture of appreciation that she is the best thing in your life can work wonders to alleviate her mood.
In the second trimester, she might be more open to enjoying sex and some of them might even enjoy it more because of increased sensitivity of the vagina .in such is the case, you may even experiment with new positions and activities.
In the third trimester, her mood for sex may again ebb because of the physical discomfort .if you are an adventurous couple, you may find a way out. Do not pressurize her for anything at this time.

• Try to reschedule your work so as to be there with her in the antenatal visits and the antenatal classes. This would mean a lot to her at this time because everything that is happening is as new and weird for her as it is for you. So why not share the experience together.
• Also be prepared to hear to all kinds of vague pains and aches. Help her out in whatever way you can and instead of making a tired face and saying.” it is expected”, be concerned and say that it will all go soon and till then you are with her

• Have someone to talk too about any other concerns if you do not want to tax her mind any more. You may even share your feeling with her family or her doctor, or your friend but you too need as much support as her. She may not do much for you at this time and you must bear this with patience. After all, you do not have to take the actual discomfort and pain as her..

Read more about ‘expecting dads’ in our site.