With all the U turns and ring roads, pregnancy is a journey full of anticipations, joy and mixed feelings. It is among the most amazing things women experience. They say nothing is constant except for change. Accept the changes in your body. With a beautiful baby in your hands, it sure is worth it. Women tend to go through a lot of changes during this pregnancy. From being taken aback with changes happening to your body to the fact that someone is actually growing right inside you.
Once you are through your pregnancy ride, the body changes you experience are because of hormones that prepared your uterus for the baby. For moms who are happy to say goodbye to the side effects of pregnancy, know that there are more changes waiting for you after birth. It is better to know those changes beforehand so you don’t cloud your mind with hundreds of thoughts.
Here are some of the most common body changes you may experience after delivery:
1. Belly Changes
The baby bump you once cherished is not going to leave you so soon. The reason is that the pelvic muscles have already worked hard to stretch during the pregnancy period. Your uterus will still be round and hard.
So you notice that brown line present at the center of your lower abdomen? Don’t worry, it will disappear but those stretch marks are not going to fade away so soon. They appear to be bright red for some time after delivery but then change to a silver like shade that blends in with your skin tone.
Even if you happen to be a really fit mother, you will certainly experience some flabbiness in the midsection after birth. Abdominal exercises like yoga poses and sit-ups can prove to be helpful.
2. Breast Changes
Breasts are sure to go through some serious changes and that shouldn’t even come as a surprise. They become fuller, sore, swollen and engorged with milk for a day or two after the baby is delivered. The engorgement can be controlled by taking a hot shower or warm compress.
The swelling seems to go away in about three to four days and the breasts may start sagging because of the stretched skin. At times, the increased cup size during pregnancy is to remain forever even after giving birth. You might even go through leakage of milk for many weeks whether you breast feed or not.
3. Hair Loss
The shiny and fuller hair on your head during pregnancy comes to an end after giving birth. Nobody likes losing hair. It sure is an unpleasant experience. Don’t be all worried when you start losing large amounts of hair few weeks after delivery because it is a temporary phase. You are going to lose an average of hundred hairs each day.
The reason you have such voluminous and lustrous hair during pregnancy is that there is extra blood circulation throughout the body including your scalp. Since that circulation is back to normal after birth, you are bound to lose hair.
4. Back ache
Mothers normally experience back pain during pregnancy. And those who don’t might be taken aback when they experience back aches after giving birth. What is the reason for this pain? During the pregnancy phase, the muscles in the abdomen stretch resulting in pressure on the back causing pain. Your body has been putting extra weight on the back muscles due to which it takes some time for the stretched muscles to become strong again. Till then, you can use heating pad, take warm baths and get massages. Back pain may also be because of poor posture during pregnancy.
5. Bigger feet
Now what has made your feet bigger? It has something to do with all the extra weight you have been carrying during the nine months that tends to put enough pressure to flatten out the arch of your feet. Many women see a change in their shoe size after giving birth. While you may experience swollen ankles and feet during pregnancy, your feet may become permanently bigger after giving birth.
Yet another reason for bigger feet is hormones. The relaxin hormone loosens up ligaments in the pelvic region but it might also loosen up ligaments around the body such as your feet. The hormonal effect plus all the extra weight can result in bigger shoe size.
6. Skin changes
Women who might have experienced acne during pregnancy find out that their skin has started clearing up. On the other hand, women who might have perfectly clear skin during pregnancy tend to notice breakouts or blemishes after giving birth. Other skin changes that women experience are extremely dry skin or red rash around the mouth. These skin changes go away within weeks.
What causes all these changes are extremely high levels of hormones that tends to go down and get your normal skin back. Sleepless nights and not being able to follow you skin care routine properly can also have an impact on your skin. However, remember this too shall pass. It is not here to stay forever. Make sure you take a well-balanced diet and take rest whenever possible.
7. Excessive sweating
There are many women out there who actually soak a pillow with their sweat after having a baby. Excessive sweating may occur after giving birth to a baby but why? When you were pregnant, it was you your body that held all the fluids. Once you give birth to the baby, the body begins to release excess fluid that your body stored during pregnancy. It could also come out in the form of sweat.
You may go through excessive sweating few hours after delivering the baby. It can be very severe. Don’t get all worried as it goes away after some time. Wear lightweight cotton clothes to remain comfortable and apply cold compress on your head. Make sure you drink plenty of water and remain hydrated during this time.
