[Pinkhighheels27]

Madeline and I are both bring released today from the hospital. We are so excited to go home! However, I will admit that I didn't think I'd be feeling this rough.

BTDM: About how long did it take you to get over the weak, sore, etc. Feeling?

I did tear and I do have stitches.

[Ever]

I think it depends on how badly you tore, how difficult your labour was, etc. It's different for everyone. I honestly don't remember how long it took because I had to follow DD to the NICU and we weren't home for a week, so normal didn't come easy for me.

I'd say though that the soreness wasn't there long. I don't even remember being uncomfortable after a couple of days, just really worn out.

They say the first 6 weeks PP are the recovery period, so take it as easy as you can for a while and let other people baby you, if they're around. The more you rest the faster you'll heal!

And eat lots of fiber. And take stool softeners. I just can't emphasize that enough. Seriously. My constipation hurt worse than my labour. I don't remember my labour pains. I remember the constipation.

[~~Que~~]

It's so different for everyone. It takes a couple of weeks for the stitches to heal up and feel normal. Generally the muscle soreness from labor will go away within the first week. Give yourself a couple of weeks to just lie around with your baby and relax.

I think I'd feel completely normal right now if it weren't for my stupid hemorrhoids (that showed up 3 days AFTER I had the baby). But I also didn't have any stitches and didn't push for very long.

[Jessimaaka]

I was released on Tuesday and I thought they were nuts, I was so not ready - I could barely stand up without assistance! But literally within hours of being home, I started to feel better faster. There's something to being at home, not being poked and prodded so often, etc that probably helps as well. Good luck!

[2pinks&ablue]

I agree, it's so different for everyone! I've been very lucky to have an easy time, but I also generally have had very short labours so I assume that's why.

[Jennifer8080]

Im 10 days pp and I feel amazing for the most part. I do notice that my back and stomach muscles are a little sore a few hours into the day, but I'm also doing waaaaay more than I should be - lifting my toddler, etc. if it wasn't for that I think I would be great. I had 2 stitches.

[alicenwonderland]

2-3 weeks to be able to move normally. I tore badly and wasn't back in complete working order (able to have sex) for nearly 6months.

[MosaicWife]

I agree it depends on how much your body went through. I had stitches with my son and it took weeks to feel ok down there. I remember at my 4 week PP check the doctor asked me if I had taken a mirror and looked down there and my look of absolute horror over the prospect of viewing my deformed parts made him laugh. He assured me everything looked normal but I didn't agree. My belly took a long time to look normal again too. But the afterpains and muscle soreness should be gone in about a week, give or take a few days. But I don't expect to feel like myself at all until at the least three months PP.

[junie22]

My labor was really fast, so I really don't have muscle soreness at all. I did feel pretty weak for the first couple of days. I think my low iron during pregnancy probably contributed to the weakness. And since labor started for me around midnight, I got no sleep that night or the next and scarcely any the next. So I think sleep deprivation contributed to the weakness. Now that we're in a routine, I feel so much better. Sleepy but physically really well. I must admit, though, at 1 week PP, my stitches are still sore. And I have to be careful about moving around too much or they hurt worse. I had a second-degree tear and 5 stitches.

[Jenn1320]

I seriously have never felt better than after Elise's birth. Completely different from my csection and forceps births. It was even easier than Noah's birth, which was a close second.

I attribute it to a fast labor and no tearing. If they couldn't all be that way! I'd seriously have a ton of children!

[newmommysarah]

My energy levels went up after day 4, my tummy muscles started to feel better after day 5 but then my stitches really started to hurt on day 7 and are still kind of painful today 8 days pp. im trying to take shallow baths every day to sooth them but now that Alans back at work im home alone with the baby and haven't had time to look after me today just taking my pain killers and will try to deal with the rest when he gets home.

[Londons Butterfly]

I was good 2-3 days afterwards, but I didn't rip or tear and barely pushed once. Definitely take the stool softeners though, that helped a lot.

[AllyssaM]

With my first - I pushed for 4 hours and I was pretty darn torn up, sore and in pain, needing help sitting and standing, ect. . . Probably for a good week. It got better after that, but I didn't feel back to normal till 2-3 weeks PP.

This time around its been completely different - It only took 5 pushes to get her out, and I was feeling GREAT by 2 days PP. I got released when she was about 36 hours old, took Tylenol a couple times once we got home and haven't touched it since.

[Blessed.Life]

I feel great! Thats the problem though lol. "Down there" I don't feel so great and I tend to over do it... I do have 16 stitches though... I am seriously hoping to be back to normal soon!

[LadyCoconut]

With my first I was on mag for a considerable amount of time, and hemmoraged to the point of being borderline on needing a transfusion, which I decided not to get so that made me weak longer, and then I was given an episiotomy and tore past that... so it took a while before I was feeling like my old self again. I remember nearly passing out at the first pedi appt when she was 6 days old. But it really depends on what your L&D were like.

and like Alice, it was 6 months+ before we were about to dtd again

[Mod-Lady Valkyrie]

With Daniel it took me a couple of weeks to feel something akin to normal physically. I'd had a traumatic L&D, he'd been in neonatal for 2 weeks and I was having to come back to hospital to see him daily, I was anaemic and having awful headaches, and I had torn bad as well. Emotionally, it took a number of months.