8.5 Months Postpartum Update

I am finally back with a postpartum update. I have not written one since three months, and there is a reason for that. Things were going along smoothly, but my milk supply decreased in month four. As a result, I stopped breastfeeding (and a few weeks later, ceased pumping, too) and started bottles, and I felt a big hormone drop at that time. I started having some insomnia that spiraled and persisted through months five and six. I was prepared for the first few months postpartum to be challenging, but not so much at this stage. It caught me by surprise. I saw my primary care physician and began a new medication, and started to feel better during the seventh month (while we were on vacation – which might have helped, too!) and once I hit eight months postpartum, I felt significantly better. In fact, I feel the most myself that I have since having our baby. It is such a relief.

My recovery sped up and then has slowed down, but I am doing much, much better after a challenging birth last December and subsequent surgery in January. I am still in pelvic floor physical therapy but will be able to phase out soon. I am so close to 100%. I think it’s important to remember a few things here – you can do everything “right” and prepare and still have birth and recovery not go the way you had hoped. I was in physical therapy for much of my pregnancy. I did prenatal yoga classes and daily birth prep. And it still did not go as expected. Similarly, the postpartum experience can go any number of ways, and challenges can occur at any point in the journey. I highly recommend pelvic floor physical therapy for any birthing person, even if the birth went smoothly, and to keep your OB, PCP, and therapist (if you have one) up to date, so that you can receive the support you need.

What I have learned through this entire experience – pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum – is that anything can happen. Some events will be miraculous and beautiful, and others will be really difficult. Listen to your body. Keep in touch with your support system. And even if it doesn’t feel like it in the moment, it will all be okay.

I am now eight and a half months postpartum, and while I may not be exactly the person I was before, I feel more like me (maybe the new me) all the time. Motherhood feels easier and more joyful every day. I think about how it felt to care for our son in the first month (so hard!) versus how it feels now (much more natural and fun). I think about the pain I was in and how much stronger I am now (after lots of strengthening and mobility exercises and yoga). There’s an ease and confidence that wasn’t there before. I have grown and changed and learned. I am coming back to myself and evolving as a mother. Life looks different, but it sure is full.