What you can easily forget in all the excitement is that you take care of yourself too!

To help you focus on YOU, we recently asked our nurses and midwives what postpartum recovery advice they give their patients.

We received advice for you from over 100 nurses!

Take note of the clear themes – limit visitors to take that time to bond with your new baby, accept help from others, do skin-to-skin and sleep when the baby sleeps!

Good luck in all your new parenting adventures!

Top 20 tips from our nurses and midwives:

1. Absolutely choose a hospital for the care you will receive and not the new beautiful building. You’re much more likely to receive a positive birth experience and the education you receive from your postpartum nurses will make all the difference in the world.
2. As a former postpartum nurse, I noticed how often new mothers put their needs last. It seems often families look at postpartum time as party time. I have seen c-section moms sleeping in the same room as 15-20 family members talking loudly and passing baby around for hours. My best advice is for new mothers to have 1-2 designated family helpers to be there to help care for baby while she gets much needed naps throughout those exhausting first days. Baby’s hunger cues are often missed when there are too many visitors for long stretches of time. It is difficult for new mothers to set limits.
3. Don’t be afraid to ask people to leave. I have seen so many new mothers that are worn out from feeling like they cannot turn people away. Turn off your phone too. I wish I did for the first couple of days.
4. Breastfeeding is an acquired skill for you and baby, be prepared to be patient and try, try again. It is a wonderful thing for you both, but needs to be learned. Do not suffer in silence, please contact your OB/midwife for lactation nurse help/referral if you are having difficulty with latching and/or very sore nipples.
5. Sleep when baby sleeps.

6. If you had a cesarean, take a pillow for the car ride home to support your incision for the bumps in the road.
7. Use the Dermoplast (benzocaine topical) spray before having a bowel movement…it’ll make the process a whole lot more comfortable and a lot less scary.
8. If someone offers to come over so you can shower, take them up on it.  For c-section moms remember not only did you have a baby, but you had major surgery.
9. Trust yourself and your instincts. Pick and choose the advice, tips, expert advice etc. that works for you. And know that if you’re worried about being a good mom, you already are.
10. Padsicle! Pad, ice pack, tucks, then a spray of Dermoplast.
11. Know your body. When you get home, use a hand held mirror to look at your perineum or you cesarean section incision. This way, if you experience problems, you will have a baseline to know if something is different, for example: increased swelling, redness, tenderness, or drainage from incision. It is helpful in knowing when to contact your physician with these issues.
12. Limit your visitors. You will not get this time back. Use it to bond as a family, seek help with breastfeeding. Skin to skin is the best bonding tool! We want to help you succeed with breastfeeding. You can press your call light for every feeding if you need to. Your baby needs your love and protection. You are your baby’s primary advocate. Not all mothers’ choose to or are able to breastfeed. How you feed your baby is your decision and your nurse will support you. Ask visitors to wait until you’ve been home for at least a couple weeks. Settle in, recover. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. If someone wants to visit, ask them to leave their little ones at home.
13. Sleep when the baby sleeps. Keep drinking water to flush out the excess fluids and keep hydrated. Accept help from anyone willing to cook a meal, run errands or do housework so you can rest and spend more time enjoying your new baby. Get outside for a walk. Fresh air and activity help to restore and rejuvenate sleep deprived minds and bodies as well as improve the blues!
14. While planning your new routine, ask someone to watch the baby for an hour of each day for you to spend as you please.
15. Good nutrition is key. Have a healthy snack each time you feed baby if you don’t have an appetite. Try to get a good four hour blocks of sleep several times a week. Ask support people to change, burp, comfort baby and only bring baby to you for breast feeding to extend your sleep when tired. Have a good support system and don’t be afraid to ask them for help. Soak up the sun when you can. Have an enjoyable activity to look forward to each week. Try to get out of the house, but if you can’t do something you enjoy at home or pamper yourself. Relax and enjoy your baby. Use what works for you and don’t try to follow everyone else’s advice.
16. Accept offers of help and assistance with meals, cleaning etc. I tell father’s to give moms one uninterrupted hour to herself each day. She can bathe, sleep, read, or anything that she wants for that hour. Daddy needs time to get to know baby too!
17. When you get home, set visiting hours and have each visitor bring groceries or food (they’ll be thrilled to get what you need). And stay in your pajamas. Most people will be less likely to overstay their welcome.
18. Once “settled” in with the baby reach out to a Mother’s group ( stroller club, baby sitting co-op, Mommy and me Gym or Yoga class), to get out of the house and receive and provide support to other new Mom’s.
19. Give yourself a break. Sit at the bottom of the shower and cry if you need to every now and then, parenting is hard work. Learning to breastfeed is hard work and so is incorporating another member into your family. Sleep deprivation and shifting hormones will, in fact, make you feel crazy at times but it will get better. You will find your new norm. It’s not all cute onesies and hair bows, it’s more like poopy onesies and newborn rashes, and that’s ok.
20. You’re stronger than you think! Don’t worry about what others might think. Enjoy every moment.  Parenthood is a beautiful experience. Allow yourself grace & room to grow.

Do you have advice for new moms as well? If so let us know. We’ll keep rolling out the advice.

For additional resources for mom visit our Healthy Mom&Baby website!

1. No one wants you to have the birth you want more than we do. Except maybe you, of course… We want to support you to stay healthy and have a healthy baby. If you end up with an unexpected birth experience, we mourn the loss of the idealized birth with you, and are here to help the experience you have be the best possible.
2. Most providers will not stay with you during labor. Many times when a woman is admitted, she’ll ask when her provider is coming. Providers have busy offices to keep up with and demanding surgical schedules. Your nurse will be the one that stays by your side. Your provider will check in on you frequently and we give them continuous updates throughout your labor.
3. We will not remember what your stretch marks looked like, how much cellulite you had, or what your vagina looked like once we walk out of your room. Guaranteed.
4. Labor is painful. Everyone thinks their labor is different than everyone else’s, that no one could have labor pains as bad as yours. But the truth is, labor hurts for (almost) everyone. The best thing you can do is take prenatal education classes so you know what to expect. A lot of fear and pain comes from the anxiety of not knowing.
5. Educate yourself on the benefits of breastfeeding. By now, everyone should know that there are a million and one reasons to breastfeed. There is so much evidence out there that supports all of the benefits of breastfeeding. No one comes to the hospital with a plan to breastfeed thinking that they may not be successful. So educate yourself prior to having your baby. Know what the most common problems are, success strategies and what to expect the first few weeks. Commit yourself to breastfeeding your baby!
6. Designate someone as your photographer. Your partner will be caught up in the moment. They’ll probably forget all about the camera. Before you go into labor, designate someone as your personal photographer or hire a professional birth photographer. You will not remember the way your partner looked at you. You may not remember how your partner looked at your baby for the first time. You want to make sure you’re able to look back and remember all of the little details you may later forget.
7. Talk to your provider. Your doctor and your midwife work for you . It’s a privilege that you’re allowing them to be a part of the birth of your baby. Don’t forget that. Discuss in advance things you would like, and ask questions. You want to know early in your pregnancy if you picked a provider who you aren’t comfortable with so you can change providers if you need to. No question is too silly. Trust me; they’ve heard it all before!
8. Don’t be afraid to speak up. Frequently, women are admitted to the hospital and they feel as if they have no say in the care that is provided. But you can speak up! You have the right to ask questions, to get those questions answered, and you have the right to say no.
9. Don’t get induced unless you have a medical reason. Even if your back hurts, and you have trouble sleeping at night, and you’re going to the bathroom 500 times a day, remember that your baby is baking in there! Every minute matters. So find methods to distract you if you’re very uncomfortable, and aim to go the full 40!
10. Take it all in and cherish the moments. Every day, nurses take care of women who can’t get pregnant, who can’t stay pregnant and we care for women who will not get to take their baby home after delivery. Having a healthy baby is a lifelong, priceless gift. Cherish every moment, because before you know it, the toddler playing with your car keys will be the 16 year old asking to borrow your car.

Cara and Baby Simon

By, Sarah Copple, BSN, RNC- MNN

Stepping into the “Skin to Skin in the OR- Don’t Let Triplets Stop You” session at the AWHONN Conference last year, I had no idea what a difference it would make in my nursing or in the experience of my patients and their families.I decided immediately that surely if skin to skin could be done with triplets in the OR, I could implement it in my facility. My nurse manager, Deb Tell had also attended the session and was onboard with making the change.

Upon return to Iowa, I approached two women who were having repeat cesarean sections and taught them each about the benefits of skin to skin care and asked if they would be interested in having this time with their baby in the operating room.  Next, the families and I discussed the potential plan with their obstetrician and once everyone agreed I moved on with laying out the plan to the unit.

The day of the first scheduled C-section with planned skin to skin in the OR came quickly.

That morning I came to work just to help out with this new process.  I talked with the obstetrician again to confirm the logistics and discussed the plan with the anesthesiologist and all the staff involved in the care for Rose and her new baby. Our team recognized that working seamlessly together was the key to success. We made sure to have a backup plan if the baby or Rose (our first mom!) were not stable at the time of delivery or became unstable while skin to skin. We also discussed with the parents that the plan was not a guarantee, but we would try our best to make it happen. We headed back to the operating room and everything went exactly as planned.

Later, Rose described the experience as “magical”.

Rose, Wes and Baby Theo

 “Theo’s birth experience was quite a memorable experience. It was as natural as a cold, sterile surgery could be. Rather than being whisked away, weighed, cleaned, dressed, and given meds, Theo was put onto my chest, right in front of the blue curtain.  It was so instinctive as his crying immediately stopped, he snuggled right in, and started rooting around to nurse. I hardly remember any of this process because I was so focused on my new son so close to me.

I wish I was more eloquent with my words to describe the overwhelming flood of emotions I felt at that moment.  I was able to have the skin-to-skin experience that has always been reserved only for vaginal births and got to do something that I never thought I’d be able to do.”

Then it was time for C-section number two with mom Cara. Immediately after delivery I carried her baby straight from the Cara’s abdomen to the head of her bed as I was drying and stimulating him. I placed him on her chest and placed dry blankets and a hat on him. He was able to remain there for 25 minutes. She was amazed with the experience!

Cara and Nurse Sara

“It was awesome; I never expected to get that opportunity.  I lost track of time, I was zoned in on him forgetting that I was in a surgery room. It was just all about having a baby.  This time I was not worried about bleeding, surgery or other things that concerned me the last two c-sections, I was just focused on my new baby.”

Kurt explained how important it was for his wife to get the opportunity to hold their son prior to coming out of recovery

“Our other two c-section births gave me the chance to have first contact with our children.  I felt better that my wife, as a mom, got the opportunity to hold our son first.  I understood that she was sad that she did not get the chance to hold our first two children until we were in recovery.” 

We started with a few patients and the word has quickly spread to others on how great of an experience it is, it even made the local news!

Since then, we have been working on staff education and creating an official procedure for our maternity center. I have given my first webinar “Skin to Skin Following a C-section” for Blank Children’s Hospital Advocacy and Outreach Program to nurses across the state of Iowa and a few from Illinois.

“If I had to tell women who were having a repeat cesarean about this, I would say go for it.  I would say that is was such a positive experience and just a little extra work to coordinate with the doctors, nurses and anesthesiologists is definitely worth it. I had such a positive experience.  Holding my son on my chest afterward is even hard to put into words because it was such a magical time and it made the experience a wonderful one” said Rose.

Hearing how awesome this experience is from our patients makes it worth standing up against adversity and the discomfort of trying something new.

I am hopeful that our patient’s comments and the positive experiences we have had will help to further motivate our team members to be supportive of this awesome change, truly putting women and families at the center of the care we provide.

Sarah Copple is a Unit Based Educator and Staff Nurse at Methodist at UnityPoint Health – Des Moines in Iowa. She is married with three beautiful children and enjoys being active outdoors (including riding bikes and running half marathons).

 
Resources
Leading Nursing Journal Finds Mothers and Babies Benefit from Skin-to-Skin Contact after Cesarean Birth

Learn more about what you can learn at the 2017 AWHONN Convention.