My Postpartum Body

Hello again. I totally should be sleeping, but this post shouldn't take as long as the other one about J.R.

My weight: At two weeks postpartum, I've lost 20 pounds. I've still got a postpartum belly, and can't fit into any of my pre-pregnancy pants yet, but I'm okay with that right now. I can wear all of my shirts, though the ones that show off my belly I don't wear because of the extra skin and all the stretch marks. Some sit a little higher than they used to now...

My chest: I have grown two whole cup sizes! My back protested for the first couple of days because of the shift in where I'm carrying my weight. That's why my shirts ride a little higher than they used to. Some I can't wear at all because they are uncomfortably tight in the chest area. I also had some medical issues with my breasts in the first week after J.R. was born. Two nights after I got home from the hospital, I got a fever and chills so bad I was shaking uncontrollably. We called Labor and Delivery, and were told that I needed to take Tylenol and check on me again in an hour. The fever went down, but didn't break until later. When it did, I started sweating pretty bad, which I hated. The next morning, my fever was even higher, so I went to Urgent Care. They asked questions leading toward mastitis, but I didn't have any symptoms besides the fever, so they were worried about endometriosis. That was scary, because that used to cause maternal death before modern medicine, and that can cause sterility, even with modern medicine. So they ran tests, but we wouldn't get the results for two days. But when Bryan brought J.R. back to nurse, we noticed that my breasts were very red. The doctor was actually relieved, because that was a better diagnosis to get than endometriosis. So they gave me antibiotics, and told me to come back if I developed any other symptoms, and if my current symptoms didn't get better. I was back the next day, because I developed abdominal pain, and that made me scared that I did indeed have a uterine infection. They ran tests, and determined that I had an inflammation of my urinary tract, which was causing the pain. Those further tests also revealed that I did not have endometriosis, or appendicitis, which was another concern because of the abdominal pain.

My belly: The bulge goes away little by little every day. The stretch marks are fading, though very slowly. My linea negra hasn't gone away at all. I still get a little bit of internal pain every now and then, as my uterus contracts further and further. Other than that, I'm feeling pretty well.

My lower regions: J.R.'s birth gave me hemorrhoids! They aren't uncomfortable, thankfully. I didn't even know they were there until I got home. My internal stitches hurt for about a week after I got home, but they aren't so bad now. I still hurt a bit if I walk around too long during the day, but day to day isn't bad at all. Once in a while, it still hurts to sit down on anything hard. Tight-fitting undies or pants are out of the question.

Miscellaneous: While I was pregnant, I got a bunch of little red dots all over my face and chest, as well as some other places, like my hands and upper arms. Now, almost every one of them is completely gone, with no evidence that it was ever there. My swelling has also gone down everywhere except my hands. It takes a whole lot of work to get my wedding rings off. I did it just now for the first time, and it wasn't comfortable whatsoever.

I'm hoping to be able to fit into my "fat" pants by this time next month. Since walking is one of the things that calm J.R. down the best, he may help me along in that endeavor. I know breastfeeding will help with that as well. I'm glad I didn't give up on doing that. Bryan helped SO much with that. One day, I was so despondent, crying so hard from the pain, and seriously dreading each feeding, so Bryan made a trip to Babies 'R Us to get nipple shields and Lanolin cream to help. Unfortunately, using those made it very hard for J.R. to nurse without them when I had to do that at the hospital when I went back for the second time. So I deal with the horrid latch-on pain without the shields. I managed to pump for a couple feedings, but it's hard to find the time to do it and get a decent amount, and the pump pulled skin off my areola, so I haven't done it again. I will most likely try again soon, though. Breastfeeding makes it pretty impossible to go anywhere or do anything without bringing J.R. along, or having to make any trip a very short one.

Well, that's about it for what's going on with my postpartum body. I will add pictures of me soon, once I find the time to take one when I'm dressed. :)

TTFN!!!