I looked at my vagina for the first time since giving birth the week before my 6-week postpartum checkup.
I'm so glad I did.
I won’t lie, this scared me a little. I had a third degree tear and many stitches along my perineum. They eventually dissolved but turned into bumpy granulation tissue. When I touched my perineum during showers, it felt swollen, tight, and irritated.
Read More“Scar tissue needs to be rehabbed too,” says Lauren Collins a pelvic physical therapist at Body Connect Health and Wellness.
Honestly, what a concept!
Read MoreYou’ve heard of writing a birth plan, but have you thought about your preferences after delivery?
I know. I know. You’re sick of planning and writing things down in anticipation of something, for which no amount of preparation will fully prepare you.
Here’s the thing. A lot happens in the first 24-72 hours of giving birth, and while you think the hard part is done, it’s just the beginning.
Read MoreIt took me seven months after giving birth to get myself to see a pelvic physical therapist (PT). But I should have gone much sooner. Perhaps around the six-week postpartum mark.
Instead I suffered more than half a year with a wobbly back, unstable-feeling hips, back and shoulder pain, vaginal heaviness, and incontinence (urinary, gas, and ocassionally fecal). I hoped it would all go away on its own since, well you know, childbirth is natural.
Read MoreGoing to a physical therapist (PT) after pregnancy and childbirth isn’t standardized care in America, but it absolutely should be.I sat down with three therapists at Body Connect Health & Wellness (where I get treatment) to learn more about why every mom should check in with a pelvic PT at least once after childbirth.
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