Recovery: postpartum belly shot

before (the day i went into labor)

in-between (the day i got discharged, 2 days postpartum)

After (taken today, 10 days postpartum)

if you have been following my blog or are one of the few people that get to see me on a frequent basis then you know that i stayed smaller than usual through out my pregnancy. you also knew some of the other joys i got to experience such as nightly contractions for my entire third trimester, a few scares of pre-term labor and almost having gestational diabetes. well, luckily i don't have to go through any of those anymore now that my little Bales has entered the world. but, i also have had a lot of people ask me how my recovery has gone and what my secret is. well... i have no idea what my secret to a quick recovery is but i will try and let you know how it's been for me and maybe it will answer some questions.

the day before i had Bayli i weighed 137 pounds. i weighed 122 pounds when i first got pregnant. that's a total weight gain of 15 pounds. (this is not recommended.) i tried to gain more weight than that but my body just did not pack on pounds like some women. (i am assuming this is because of two things. my genes -thanks mom!- and my thyroid medication regulating my metabolism) i also never wore maternity clothes and still fit into my size 0 jeans as i entered the hospital the day i delievered Bayli. this was a good and a bad thing. it's nice to not have to buy maternity pants and to keep my small hips, but it also meant that i had a difficult time delivering my 5 pound child. for most women this would be so much easier than the average 8 pound child but my doctor said that if Bayli would have been a mere 1/2 pound bigger i would not have been able to deliver her naturally and would have required a c-section because of how small i was.

after having the baby i was back down to my pre-pregnancy size and weight after a mere three days. some things i did to help speed up the process is kegel exercises for the entire pregnancy. i wrote a post about all the supplements and drugs i took here if you want to read that, and after delivery i tried to get up and moving around the hospital as soon as possible, i didn't stay in bed and instead sat on the couch or walked around. i also helped with the fundal massage and tried to do some myself even though it was painful. a fundal massage is just basically a deep tissue belly massage postpartum. it stimulates the uterus to contract and helps in slowing any bleeding after delivery of the placenta. it also helps to get your organs back in place. the final thing that i believe helped me recover the fastest is breastfeeding. i could feel my uterus contracting and getting smaller every time we would have a good feeding session.

i have been home now for a full week and truly feel back to normal. my bleeding is down to what would be expected from a usual menstrual cycle and the pain from my tears are non-existent as long as i don't forget to take my Advil. Bayli has been an amazing baby and would sleep through the night if i didn't wake her up to feed her once in the middle of the night. this sleep im sure has aided in my recovery as well. i truly don't feel sleep deprived... yet. (knock on wood) today, i put back on the clothes that i wore in the hospital and took a picture of me 10 days after delivery. i truly feel great, i love the way i look now and couldn't have wished for a better baby or an easier/faster recovery.

but, as a final say in this matter. every pregnancy and every baby is different. you could be a person who works out, takes their vitamins and watches what they eat their entire pregnancy and still puts on lots of weight. only so much is under your control. i understand that i am very lucky to have this easy of a pregnancy and this fast of a recovery. i guess god understood that since we were on the pill when we got pregnant, that he gave me an easier pregnancy in return. :)