Postpartum recovery secrets revealed

First do a 42-day re-examination and assessment, and then adjust in stages according to your own situation, avoid the IQ tax, and grasp the four core dimensions of pelvic floor function, rectus abdominis closure, posture adjustment, and emotional management. It is more reliable than following the trend and buying 100 Internet celebrity recovery products or signing up for a crash course worth tens of thousands of yuan.

To be honest, I went with my best friend for a 42-day review last week. During her pregnancy, she stocked up on a box of abdominal belts and pelvic correction belts, and also secretly signed up for a "7-day rapid weight loss confinement class." The result of the review was that the rectus abdominis was separated by 3 fingers, and the pelvic floor muscle strength was only level 2. The previous coach She was also asked to do abdominal crunches every day. Before the reexamination that day, she coughed twice and leaked urine. She was so frightened that her face turned red on the spot. The box of goods was now gathering dust in her storage room. It added up to a thousand yuan, which was not as useful as the evaluation of more than 100 yuan.

Take the most quarrelsome question of whether the abdominal belt is an IQ tax. Different practitioners have different opinions: the clinical advice of obstetrics is that wearing it for the first 3 days after cesarean section is really useful, mainly to compress the wound and reduce the traction pain during activities. There is no need to wear it regularly after vaginal delivery. If it is worn 24 hours a day after confinement, the core muscles will be passively exerted for a long time, resulting in disuse atrophy, and the separation of the rectus abdominis will be aggravated. And what the postpartum rehabilitation doctor said makes sense. If you feel your belly is heavy when you go out for activities, you can wear it for 1-2 hours a day, and you must take it off when you are lying down. It cannot pinch the lower edge of the ribs, and it cannot be tied so hard that it makes breathing difficult. Both views are correct, but they are applicable to different scenarios. There is no black-and-white answer.

When many people mention pelvic floor muscle recovery, they directly search for Kegel tutorials and follow them. Don’t practice blindly. I have seen something even more exaggerated in the group of mothers before. Someone followed the online celebrity tutorial for three months, and finally the sneezing and leaking of urine became more serious. After going to the hospital for a checkup, it was found that the pelvic floor muscles were hypertonic and accompanied by mild uterine prolapse. I regretted it very much. You must first understand the state of your pelvic floor muscles. If they are hypertonic and the muscles are in a state of tension for a long time and cannot be relaxed, the more you contract, the greater the pressure on the pelvic floor will be, and the leakage will be aggravated. In this case, you must first do abdominal breathing and use fascial balls to relax the pelvic floor. After the muscle tension is reduced, practicing contraction will be effective. Only with relaxed pelvic floor muscles, regular Kegel exercises will be effective. You see, it’s the same urine leakage, but the recovery method is completely different. Practicing without evaluation is just a waste of time.

There is also great controversy over the separation of the rectus abdominis. Some people say that you should never do crunches if they are separated by more than 2 fingers. Others say that you can do it as long as your core is stable. How can it be so absolute? My cousin had 2.5 fingers separated during a reexamination 42 days after giving birth. The doctor said her transversus abdominis strength was still good, so he taught her to do kneeling abdominal breathing activation. She subconsciously closed her belly when holding the baby. She didn’t go to an institution to do any electrical stimulation that costs thousands. Two months later, she only had half a finger left.

Many people see that they have fake hip width and mother’s butt after giving birth, so they buy pelvic correction belts as soon as they get pregnant, and some people spend a lot of money to have their bones adjusted. In fact, you have to first figure out whether your pubic symphysis is really separated, or whether it is a problem with your posture while carrying the baby. If the pubic symphysis is separated by more than 2cm, you really need to use a pelvic belt to fix it under the guidance of a doctor. If you just usually hold the baby with your waist slumped and the center of gravity thrust forward, then it will be useless if you tie the baby. First change the posture of holding the baby, and tighten the core when holding the baby. Don't put all the weight on your waist and hips. Take 15 minutes a day to do several sets of clam poses. My former sisters in the group of mothers had their hips still wide after wearing a pelvic belt for two months. After changing the position of holding the baby and doing clam poses, it was visible to the naked eye that the hips had retracted in three weeks.

Oh, by the way, the most easily overlooked thing is actually emotional issues. Many people equate postpartum recovery with losing weight. They stare at the scale every day, force themselves to run 5 kilometers a day, eat water and cook vegetables just after confinement, and cry anxiously when the scale falls slowly. It is really unnecessary. It takes about 6 months for postpartum hormone levels to slowly return to pre-pregnancy levels. If you mess around just after giving birth, you will be prone to hair loss, endocrine disorders, and even postpartum depression. When my best friend just gave birth, she weighed herself every day and cried every day. She was 15 pounds heavier than before she was pregnant. Later, I walked with her for half an hour every day after meals. I replaced her mother-in-law's greasy breast milk soup with a lighter one. I ate more protein such as fish, shrimp, and eggs, and I didn't feel hungry. I slowly lost 12 pounds in three months, and my complexion was much better than before.

Actually, there are no so-called secrets. They are all honest words that everyone has learned through countless pitfalls. Don’t believe those gimmicks about “getting back to your pre-pregnancy body in 30 days”. Everyone’s body is different, and recovery speeds are inherently fast or slow. Some people return in two months, while others only recover slowly in a year. This is all normal. Don't compare with others, follow your own pace, being comfortable is better than anything else, right?