Parenting
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Ice diapers & other heavenly postpartum must-haves
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- by CafeMom, on Thu Jul 2, 2009 1:26pm PDT
I always say I wish I could go back and relive the days with my
newborn babies all over again — so precious and sweet and tiny,
that time period so short! — but I want to relive all that MINUS
the
giving birth part. Someone else can take care of that in my
relived fantasy. LOL.
Along with my husband and the support of family, friends, and
the pizza delivery guy, I do remember three specific items that I
could *NOT* have lived without in my first week
postpartum.
My Three Must-Have Postpartum Supplies:
- Ice diapers: Did those of you who had
vaginal births at the hospital get those amazing
ice packs for your undies right after delivery? After the birth of
my first child, I was dealing with a pretty bad tear, so
crotch-fitting ice packs, for me, were like gifts from God in
heaven. Once they moved me to recovery, however, they made the
shift to ice diapers (cheaper, I guess), but they
were heavenly just the same. To make them at home, just add water
to the crotch of a diaper and stick them in the freezer. These are
very nice soothers for around the house, and they won't leak
all o
ver the
place.
- Foam anesthetic spray: Oh, the cooling,
numbing, harps-playing relief of this spray! If you have a
hospital birth, they'll probably send you home
with some of this stuff. With my first, they gave me a foam version
to spray on a
maxi pad, as needed. Holy blessed miracle in a spray can! After
the arrival of my second child, they sent me home with Dermoplast, which did the trick but was slightly less
miraculous than the foam stuff.
- Lansinoh Topical Cream with Lanolin:
Smiling angels up above, I love this cream.
Breastfeeding can sure make your breasts hurt! Like really
badly! Cracked, sore n
ipples...ouch! So hallelujah to the mom friend who told me
about Lansinoh topical treatment. You just slather it on for
instant relief and it's safe for baby too, so no need to remove
it before the next feeding (the time for which always arrives, uh,
five minutes ago). Please note, this stuff will stain your bras or
clothing. I didn't care though. I just bought black
nursing bras because this stuff felt so darn good.
Amen to postpartum lifesavers like these!
What products or items made your postpartum experience a
little better? What did you feel you couldn't live without
(aside from sleep, I mean)?
Written by Sheri Reed for
CafeMom's Baby Buzz
Related: products i couldn't live without, postpartum, must-have, lanolin, ice diapers, cafemom, anesthetic spray, after baby
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Posted by Angela Mon Jul 6, 2009 8:12am PDT
Thanks for this. I have a friend who's expecting, and I'm sending her this link.
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Posted by ~Baby Bake Oven~ Mon Jul 6, 2009 8:23am PDT
Thank you for this! Only 16 weeks to go and I'm scared to death about labor...
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Posted by hdg n8tve Mon Jul 6, 2009 8:37am PDT
Hemrroid pads! Freeze or chill them, and its like having both the ice packs and the spray at once. I loved them. LOL. Also, my hospital gave me a spray bottle for personal cleaning, which was a big help b/c the last thing I wanted to do was touch a rough (it felt that way @ the time) washcloth to any tender areas.
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Posted by Elise Mon Jul 6, 2009 10:29am PDT
I used all of those. I had a horrible delivery and the ice packs were pure heaven! I would put the hemmoroid wipes on top of the pad and then spray the anesthetic spray on top of that and that was great. I tried the Lanisoh and didn't like it very much, it was too goopy and it stained. I found a nipple balm by Gerbers at Babys'R'Us and it was sooo much better. It even comes in a stick form so you can just apply it like chapstick. No messy fingers anymore and it doesn't stain.
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Posted by GretchenW Mon Jul 6, 2009 11:01am PDT
Tucks witch hazel pads. Put them right on the maxi. You don't have to have hemorrhoids to feel the benefit. The witch hazel is very cooling and soothing. I used them after my vaginal deliveries.
Lansinoh breast pads are the best. They are super thin and very, very absorbent. My baby is six months and I am still leaky and must use breast pads. These pads make it tolerable. I don't notice they are there until it's time to nurse.
After my c-sections, the biggest help was using pillows/boppy to help me hold the babies. Another c-section must: big granny panties. You don't want low cut undies because the elastic will rub against the incision and that is a huge owie no-no. If you can, ask for some extra mesh/net undies to take home from the hospital. I did after my last delivery. Those things rock.
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Posted by LisaC Tue Jul 7, 2009 6:43am PDT
I found 4 things made my life easier after my son was born.
First, I had a c-section and my doctor had me wear an ABDOMINAL BINDER (kinda like a girdle) for at least 6 weeks. I only took it off to shower and for 20min breaks when I was sitting down. It helps reduce swelling and makes it much easier to walk around, take care of the house, and lift your baby. I found out that most of my friends who had c-sections were not given this and it was very hard for them to move around.
Second, is the BOPPY pillow. My son was nearly 10 lbs and I couldn't hold him to breast feed without pain until we got a boppy. Third, LASINOH CREAM for your nipples. I also found this really helped my baby's ezcema too. Finally, a MOTHER's MINDER bracelet. It helps you remember when you last feed your baby and naps times etc. When you are only gettting short spirts of sleep, this helps you keep track of things. If you are breat feeding this is a big help because it feels like your brains leave with the breast milk lol!
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Posted by Pyra Tue Jul 7, 2009 7:32am PDT
That ice diaper was the best thing ever! I am looking forward to it after I have my second.
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Posted by KirstinG Tue Jul 7, 2009 1:44pm PDT
Yea!! A post on Shine that isn't baised against something!! Thank you.
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Posted by TrphyWif Tue Jul 7, 2009 3:24pm PDT
One thing that was great with my son when first trying to breastfeed were Monoject needles. They are curved, plastic needles that I could fill with formula, then press against my breast while he was latched and slide into the side of his mouth without breaking the seal. Because he wasn't getting anything those first several days that my milk was still not in, this worked great to actually nourish him but also encourage breastfeeding!
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Posted by Liz Tue Jul 7, 2009 3:43pm PDT
I had a rough delivery and anything that touched that area, made me cry. These are the things that helped me.
1. Squeeze bottle (usually is given to you to take home) filled with warm water, I gently squeezed it in the sensitive area during urination, I don't know why, but even peeing made it burn down there. This was the only thing that helped with the pain down there.
2. After applying the overnight maxi pads, I put witch hazel pads on top, and then sprayed some dermoblast on top. I didn't have any fancy ice diapers, so I used a double bagged ice bag, and placed it there as well.
3. Nipple cream is a must! Along with nursing bras and pads for all that leaking that was going on.
4. A boppie is very helpful, even though I had a vaginal birth. The less work I had to do (carrying baby) the better.
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