When you are pregnant, it is only natural to focus on the day of your delivery
and not to worry too much about what comes afterwards, right? However,
it is important to understand that many things that you do or don’t do during your pregnancy
will have an impact on your postpartum recovery and also how long it’s gonna take, right? Yes. So,
in this video, we are going to share with you the 6 things that you can do while you are still
pregnant, in order to help you with a faster postpartum recovery. Yes. Nathalie is
a pregnancy and birth consultant and TCM therapist and Mathias is a researcher and science Geek and
we are helping expecting mommies naturally and science based. We are happy that you are watching this!
Okay, so let’s first discuss the two parts of your body which should receive your particular
attention when preparing for labor, if you want to have a smoother postpartum recovery.
And that’s simply because these two parts of your body will be affected the most
during your delivery. So let’s have a look at what we are talking about:
Alright, so, this is your pelvis when looking at it from above,
right? And the red area in your pelvis, that’s your pelvic floor. And so, during your delivery,
your baby has the task to, well obviously first descend in the pelvis, and then at some point,
to move through your pelvic floor. And by doing so, your baby’s head will stretch the
pelvic floor and roll it out to a tube which leads to the exit, if you will, right? Yes.
And obviously, because of the extreme forces that are at work during this whole process,
women often suffer from problems related to the pelvic floor after their delivery. Examples here
are urinary and fecal incontinence, difficulties emptying the bladder, painful urination,
painful sex, more frequent urinary tract infections but also things like lower back pain.
Right. Luckily though, it is possible to at least decrease the likelihood of such postpartum issues,
particularly urinary and fecal incontinence, by preparing the pelvic floor for the delivery.
And the best way to do that according to scientific studies, are pelvic floor
exercises during pregnancy. So, how do pelvic floor exercises work? Well, it’s pretty simple.
All you need to do is tighten, hold and relax your pelvic floor muscles as a regular exercise.
Now, it can be a bit tricky to identify the right muscles. The easiest way to identify your pelvic
floor muscles is when you urinate. When you do, try to stop and hold the flow of urine mid-stream
and at the same time, try to hold in gas. Hold the tension for about 2 seconds,
and then let go again. The muscles that you use to do that are your pelvic floor muscles. Yes. However,
this should not be a regular exercise, right? This is really just to identify your pelvic floor muscles.
Right. In fact, when you do pelvic floor exercises, it is important to do them with an empty bladder.
All you need to do is tighten the muscles, hold them for about 5 seconds and then relax them for
at least another 5 seconds before tightening them again. Right. Moreover, when you do,
keep the muscles of your abdomen, your thighs and your glutes relaxed.
Finally, we would do these exercises either sitting or kneeling on all fours,
3 times a day, 10 to 15 contractions per session, right? It’s also possible to do them while you sit
in front of the TV or read a book. Some women also do them on the subway and make funny faces
without being aware of it. But that’s a different story. And we would start in the third trimester,
unless of course, your provider does not approve. Exactly. That’s actually very important:
please always talk with your provider first if it is okay to do these exercises, okay?
The second part of your body which will experience the most strain
is obviously your perineum which is the area between your vagina and anus.
Now, as you can see on this picture, the whole area down
there is surrounded by your pelvic floor muscles. So, by preparing your pelvic floor, you are
already doing a great job. Yes. However, since the floor of the tube that your baby forms with the
head will experience the most strain, it pays off to have a particular focus on the that area itself
when preparing for a delivery. And that floor is your perineum which we can prepare for a delivery
with the help of a perineal massage. This will not only make tearing less likely. A perineal massage
can also reduce the risk of needing an episiotomy as studies have found. And not having to deal with
cuts or tears down there will obviously speed up your postpartum recovery. Absolutely. However, it
is important to do the perineal massage the right way. So, please bear with us. Later in this video,
we are going to give you the link to a video which teaches you how to do this the right way.
No matter how well you prepare your pelvic floor and perineum, a delivery will always
somehow affect the area down there. And so, it is important to make sure that you buy some products
already before the baby comes to have them readily available. Right. So first of all,
you will need pads. Lots of pads and the thicker the better because the vaginal discharge can be
very heavy during those first couple of days. Next, you will want to prep those pads with
something that contains witch hazel or if you live in Europe and can get your hands on something that
is called Retterspitz, go for it! Yes. It is a German product that is being recommended by many
obstetricians and midwives for the recovery down there, right? But again, it can be any perineal spray
which contains witch hazel. We will link to some products in the description below this video.
And just that you know: ideally, you do not only prep some pads. You also put them into
the freezer before you deliver your baby. Yes. You will love the cold feeling down there.
Next, you will want to buy some Epsom salt. Soaking your perineum in a warm bath or sitz
bath with Epsom salt several times per day can encourage healing, reduce the risk of infections,
and reduce swelling. On top of that, it can also help with hemorrhoids. Yes.
Talking about hemorrhoids. It is also a good idea to have some remedy for hemorrhoids at home.
But please go for natural products only, like the ones that we mention in the video description.
Next, you will want to make sure that you have something at home which helps your digestion,
i.e. a stool softener. Yes, personally, we are not big fans of such products. In fact, we encourage
you to try fruits first because fruits will normally do the job. However, it’s just good to
have a backup product readily available. Yes. And finally, product wise, we also recommend buying
disposable underwear. Trust me, it will make things so much easier as long as you suffer from
that heavy discharge. So, do yourself a favor and go for disposable underwear. And just keep in mind:
whatever underwear you are wearing is not supposed to look sexy when you recover from your delivery.
Okay? Yes. Exactly.
If you follow our channel, then you probably know that we are big proponents of exercising
to prepare for a delivery because exercising can help you with a smoother and faster delivery. Yes.
However, it is also worth noting that everything you do exercise-wise to have a smoother delivery,
will also help you with a faster postpartum recovery. Yes. And that’s pretty
obvious because everything that you do to facilitate your baby’s descent, for example,
by bringing more flexibility into your ligaments, can also protect your body from injuries during
your delivery. As a result, your postpartum recovery will go smoother and faster too. Yes.
And if you want to know what kind of exercises can help you prepare for your delivery and
postpartum recovery, please bear with us! We show you which video to watch at the end of this video.
We are always surprised that most pregnancy resources when they talk about postpartum
recovery, they only talk about the physical aspects of postpartum recovery. And the reason
why we are surprised is because so many women also suffer from mental issues after a delivery. Yes.
On top of that, one should not forget that our mental state also has an impact on our physical
well-being. Yes. Good point. This applies even more for your postpartum recovery. Exactly. Also,
keep in mind that you will never know how you are gonna feel mentally after your delivery.
Yes. Even if you are a mentally strong person, this has nothing to do with it because it is mostly
a matter of hormones why so many women suffer from mental issues or even postnatal depression.
And because of that, we encourage you to think about strategies to deal with potential mental
health problems already while you are pregnant. Do you have any friends who could support you?
Are there any local support groups? Which therapist are you gonna call
if required? Support is key when recovering postpartum. Yes.
Talking about support. What we mean by planning your support network is taking a moment and
writing down a list of people that you can call when you need help postpartum. This can be your
mother, your sister, a good friend, but also people like your doula, your doctor, your therapist
or your midwife. Yes. Just don’t put the name of your mother-in-law on that list. Sorry,
did I say this loud? Anyways. These people are your postpartum support network. So, build that
network while you are still pregnant, inform those people that they are part of your network
and then make use of them postpartum. We know so many women who believe that they have to do
everything by themselves, starting from preparing food, doing the laundry, cleaning, you name it.
And it always ends up in the exact same way: they don’t take enough care of themselves
and that is why their postpartum recovery takes much longer. So, go build your support network!
One of the most common reasons why a postpartum recovery can take much longer than expected is
because women are not aware of what’s normal and what is not normal during a postpartum recovery.
As a result, they often see a doctor either very late, or even when it’s too late. Yes, because of
that, we always recommend that you inform yourself already during your pregnancy about what is normal
and what is not normal postpartum. Please trust us: it can make a huge difference in terms
of your postpartum recovery. Yes. So, if you want to know what is normal and what is not
normal postpartum, watch the video that pops up now. Moreover, we promised you our video on how
to exercise during your pregnancy for a smoother and faster delivery. Yes and finally, we also promised
you a video on how to correctly apply a perineal massage. And of course, you can also find the
links to all three videos in the description below this video. Right. If you have found this video helpful,
we would be super happy if you could leave us a like below this video! Yes. And for more useful tips
and tools on pregnancy-related topics, make sure to subscribe to our channel and to hit the bell!