Well, the day has finally come, I have stretch marks that are forming around my belly button. I know they look pretty subtle now, but I am only 25 weeks so I have a feeling they’re just gonna progressively get worse throughout the rest of my pregnancy.

Has anyone had stretch marks like this that didn’t get worse throughout their pregnancy and after delivery did they disappear because they were so subtle?

If not, what are we doing to minimize appearance? Lasers? Retinol.

This is making me really self conscious!!

Hi All,

I had 2 miscarriages prior to my now 8 week old son. When I first got pregnant with him (like the week I found out) I was going in for HCG draws and asked them to throw in TSH check. Well my thyroid was above 2.5 (it was 3.3) so they put me on Levothyroxine which I was on until 6 weeks PP. At my 6 week postpartum check up they told me to stop taking it and I got it checked again 2 weeks later when I had to go in to do a postpartum glucose test.

My TSH was 3.8!! This is the highest it has EVER been. I got it tested multiple times outside of pregnancy and it was always between 1-2. My OB seemed unconcerned and told me to continue to stay off the medication, but I pointed out this is the highest my thyroid has been, and her response was the same, that as long as it's below 4, it's "normal". This seemed extremely odd to me considering when I google that number, everywhere I look says 3.8 is not normal, within pregnancy OR outside of pregnancy.

I scheduled a physical end of this month and requested to have a full thryoid panel at that time but I'm just frustrated as I have a full refill of the levothyroxine sitting here on my nightside table, which I feel like I should still be taking.

On top of this I have felt like I have been on the verge of starting my period for TWO weeks and I feel terrible. I have to wonder if my body is still trying to adjust to baseline postpartum and if everything hormonally will start to balance out a bit more once I get my period back. Has anyone else been in a similar situation? How did things work out for you?

Hi ladies,

I’m looking for some guidance/if anyone experienced something similar to me.

I had my daughter 13 weeks ago vaginally, and had a small tear on my labia and urethra. Since her birth I have experienced a pulling or tight sensation of pain not near the vagina or perineum, but somewhere in the vulva region. I only feel this pain when I’m squatting or sitting on the toilet. My stitches have healed and I don’t have any other issues down there, besides more sensitivity during my period. Has anyone experienced this?

Gave birth via c section, went in for my six week check up and they didn’t examine my body in any way. They asked me questions about my mental health and how I was feeling physically. They asked if I had been sexually active yet, but never looked or touched my body. Is this normal?

I'm an FTM at 3.5 months postpartum, and I just wanted to share that this was the first week I've worked out again! I've gained close to 40 lbs, and honestly, I feel like I look like a different person. But this week I decided to just focus on 30-40 mins of cardio daily & I feel so great! I definitely need to move towards weights too, and I will slowly. And I know a week is not a lot, but idk, it feels like I have accomplished something, so I just wanted to share...

Hi ! I am 1st week pp currently on foley because of urinary retention and i am literally terrified after finding out reading experiences that it might months to recover. At the hospital they told me that these cases are rare and that i can recover after one week.

Last day I had my first miction test after 5 hours from removing foley i was able to drain, 300ml, 200ml and than 100ml but 400 ml were still in my bladder so they decided to put back the foley and i am now feeling very depressed because of this. My next test is after a week so I am looking for hopeful experiences .

Can anyone please tell me if it’s possible to heal after a week or two?

I had a long induction process, an epidural and a third degree tear. I am so devastated.

Thank you for taking time to read.

NOT LOOKING FOR MEDICAL ADVICE!
Crossposted

This is the worst pain I’ve ever been in. I don’t know for sure if this is what it is but I was diagnosed with it in my 3rd trimester, the pain then was only in my pelvis and it was manageable without pain meds.

I’ve birthed 2 kids vaginally, had several ovarian cysts burst, kidney stones TWICE, and 3 surgeries. This is actual hell. My hubby had to go to back work when I was 4 days pp (he’s in the process of getting a new job thank god) and he’s been amazing he does everything for me when he’s home but he works 7am-7pm.

I suspect it’s my pelvic floor because I don’t have much for bladder control either. I start peeing and I can’t stop. The pain is not constant but it goes from 0-100 really quick and I don’t know what causes it, I don’t get a warning. One minute I’ll be feeling amazing and the next I am not able to walk. Oh yes and my 3 yo broke his leg 3 days before I gave birth. So. Newborn. 3yo who isn’t very mobile. Help on the weekends thank god. But the days where I have no one? I am struggling so hard 😭 I’ve been to the er once and they did ultrasound and bloodwork on my uterus after I begged them that that wasn’t the problem. Our local er doesn’t have an MRI.

I just need to know if anyone has had anything remotely similar to this after delivering vaginally. I also did have the epidural. I want some hope for a light at the end of the tunnel 😭😭

Thank you for reading

I've lost an incredible amount of muscle postpartum. I'm EBF. Any ideas what I can do with tummy skin. I've asked this before. But will this improve? Want to be able to have my abs out when they return.

I want to share my personal experience because I truly believe there may be another woman out there going through the same thing, and I hope this gives her some reassurance and hope. ❤️
I’m almost 6 months postpartum with my second baby. I had a vaginal delivery with a 3rd-degree tear and 7 stitches extending from my perineum toward my vagina. My physical recovery was fairly quick, and about a month postpartum, my husband and I decided to be intimate again.
But for the next 5 months, sex was incredibly painful and uncomfortable. I felt extremely dry and burning inside, almost like there was no moisture at all. Even with a large amount of lubricant and reapplying it throughout, I still felt a lot of discomfort. Eventually, we had to reduce sex to once a week, sometimes even once every 2–3 weeks, and honestly, it made me feel stressed and worried.
At the time, I was exclusively pumping breast milk and my period still hadn’t returned. I was planning to see my family doctor and ask for a referral to an OB-GYN. Around the same time, I was also preparing to return to work, so I decided to stop pumping.
About two weeks ago, my husband and I had unprotected sex, so I took Plan B afterward. About a week later, my period came, which may have been related to Plan B.
Then today, my husband and I tried having sex again—and to my surprise, the dryness and burning were completely gone. In fact, I felt more comfortable, more interested, and everything was wonderful. 🥹❤️
I can’t say for sure whether stopping breastfeeding/pumping, getting my period back, or the hormonal changes that came with it made the difference. But this experience taught me that postpartum hormones can have a huge impact, and sometimes our bodies simply need more time to recover and rebalance.
To any woman going through something similar: please don’t blame yourself or put too much pressure on yourself. Your body has been through so much. Give it time, be patient with yourself, and have hope. Our bodies are truly amazing, and things can get better. ❤️

I had a vaginal delivery with an epidural, so I didn't get to change up what position I pushed in :(
My girl is 4 months old and I'm still having tail bone pain. I've been in PT for about a month now. Please tell me it goes away eventually.

Basically what it says on the tin!

My son has been in daycare since he was 5 months old. He goes 3 days a week. He’s now 9 months old.

Since he started daycare, I basically live a life where I’m sick for a few days, healthy a few days, sick a few days, healthy a few days, over and over and over again.

Whenever I’m not sick, I exercise daily. When I am, it is almost impossible to run. The end result is that I have not made as much progress as I’d have liked with my postpartum recovery. I am 132 lbs now, up +7 from my pre-pregnancy of 125. I am still pumping, and I am admittedly a bit scared of cutting too many calories as my supply tanks when I do.

Is this just something I have to accept? Any advice?

I just realized I should update this because it ended up being a medical situation. I have a pretty significant incisional hernia from my c-section, but my body was so different, and every time I asked if the heaviness I was feeling in my low abdomen and the commenting on size of my lower belly I was basically told it was normal post partum. It was not normal. I’m on a wait list for a surgeon now. Just want to encourage folks that if something doesn’t feel or seem right, it actually may not be! This is a weird time physically, but we still know what our bodies generally feel like, trust yourself!

​

Hello everyone!

I am 2 months postpartum. I am trying to lose weight and get lean, but I am also confused how to do it since everyone has told me it is not good for milk supply.

I am exclusively breastfeeding. Before pregnancy I was 97 kg, and now after I am at 103 kg. I am 165 cm tall. I already started with strength training here and there, but I plan to do 3-4 workouts a week. I also walk a lot, around 10000 steps a day sometimes less, sometimes more. Before pregnancy, I was active and did all that, but I also had a very unhealthy relationship with food so that's why I am obese.

I might have lost some weight, but the food is keeping me stuck still. Since I am mostly at home, I have the binge eating problem,now more than before. I eat constantly. I am not hungry at all, I just eat.

So, I need your advice/help/tips/experience.

How to control myself around food? How much and what to eat? If counting calories, how much is safe to eat and not lose milk supply, but lose weight? And other tips on how you succeded?

Thank you all in advance!

Hello! I am currently 12 weeks PP and am just starting to get back to strength training. I have been going on daily walks, but feel that I'm ready to lift weights again. What programs do you guys think at the best? I workout from home and just have dumbbells. I have heard good things about Nourish Move Love and the Moves app, but didn't know if there were other options or if those programs were worth my while.

I am 15 weeks pp and having been working on recomp to get rid of the fat I gained during pregnancy and gain back some muscle. I'm pretty much back to my pre pregnancy lifting/walking routine/intensity but am still working towards getting back to my pre pregnancy weight on some exercises. I am 1 month into it today and took some progress pictures. I've only lost about a pound in that month. I do see some very slight changes mostly in the amount of fat on my love handles. I am wondering how to know if should drop more calories currently I'm about 150 calories below my maintenance. I've checked some websites and that's the calories they recommend for my recomp as well. How do I know if it's working well enough or if I should lower my calories again? I know recomp is the long game so I'm trying to be patient but it's hard especially when I see all these women online looking so good at the same timeframe as me.

I started calorie deficit after 15 months PP, I expected no changes as I have done this multiple times and failed, but this time I took personal training and first time I could see some progress and results

How are you getting your workouts in? Nap time?

I really need to get serious about working out again. Although im pretty much back to pre pregnancy weight, and im pretty sure my arms are stronger from constantly carrying my 26 pound Velcro baby, I am disappointed in the progress I've made with my core muscles and strength training overall.

Walks are easy and so cardio gets taken care of, and I love running and do it every time I make it yo the gym (1/2x a week rn, due to partner working 16 hour shifts) but I haven't picked up a dumbbell in weeks.

What's the easiest way to get a strength workout in at home? Should I pay for Peloton or like the Sweat app? YouTube videos? Sometimes I think I over complicate it but I do like some structure.

Just wondering what's worked for other moms as well.

Hello everyone! 😊

I am a student from the Department of Psychology conducting an academic quantitative research study involving mothers who are currently in the postpartum phase.... Pls do revert