How to Deal with 4th Trimester Challenges
Maybe you’ve just gotten your first positive pregnancy test, or perhaps you’re already approaching your due date. Either way, you couldn’t be more excited to meet your baby! However, you still feel like you’re in the dark about the reality of the postpartum period, sometimes known as the “fourth trimester.” Emily Graham, of mightymoms.net discusses common 4th trimester challenges with Dr. Alexis Elias, from Empower Pelvic Floor PT. Here are a few common issues that mothers tend to encounter during the fourth trimester — from physical recovery post birth and alleviating discomfort while breastfeeding, to finding reliable work coverage — along with solutions for coping with them.
Work on Your Physical Strength
No, you shouldn’t be lifting weights or returning to high impact activities like running right after giving birth — this is an important time to let your body heal and recover. But being absolutely sedentary is also not appropriate. The “6 week mark”, commonly understood to be the time when new parents can return to exercise, is far too early to return to pre-pregnancy exercise levels, but simultaneously too late to start rehab. Immediately post-partum, Dr. Alexis of Empower recommends getting back in touch with your core and pelvic floor with deep breathing (diaphragmatic breathing). Additionally, managing the pressure in your abdomen by pelvic bracing while moving from sitting to standing, lifting baby, and whenever you are laughing, coughing, or sneezing is necessary to protect the pelvic region. Not everyone needs to be doing a million kegels a day - some people have too much tension in their pelvic floor, which is one of many reasons a pelvic floor assessment is not only recommended postpartum, but also during pregnancy. It’s helpful to get a baseline, to understand different pushing techniques, and to strengthen and lengthen your muscles in preparation for baby accordingly. Your body undergoes changes during your pregnancy and subsequent delivery, whether you have a vaginal or C-section delivery.
It’s always helpful to have a postpartum pelvic floor assessment (along with an assessment during pregnancy), regardless of the type of delivery. Dr. Alexis, Empower Pelvic Floor PT’s physical therapist, can perform an assessment and develop a rehab plan that will help strengthen and improve stability of this important muscular region so you can prepare for birth and get back to feeling your best more quickly postpartum. Schedule a consultation today to get started!
Prepare for Leave from Work
Whether you are a stay at home parent, plan to return to work soon, or somewhere in between, you’ll still need lots of recovery time after you give birth. Therefore, it’s important to ensure that your duties will be covered after you welcome your baby. If you’re self-employed, you’ll need to be proactive about preparing your clients for your absence and getting crucial tasks taken care of during your time off. Inform your clients and customers that you’ll be stepping back for a while in advance, and consider budgeting for a virtual assistant to handle client communications during your leave period. If you can coordinate additional support, call in for reinforcements - friends and family and community.
Choose the Right Wardrobe
You may already have a maternity wardrobe picked out — and perhaps you’ve even had to start wearing maternity outfits exclusively by this point in your pregnancy! But you’ll also need to choose a wide range of comfortable pieces for your postpartum wardrobe. Cafe Mom recommends adding a few wrapped tops, maxi dresses, control-top leggings, oversized shirts, and supportive sneakers to your closet. You’ll also need nursing bras, so look for styles made of breathable fabric that offer plenty of stretch and easily-opened flaps. Additionally, most of the high waisted and flowing clothes from pregnancy are completely appropriate to wear postpartum.
C-Section Recovery Guidelines
Even if you do not expect to need a C-section, you may want to spend some time reading up on C-section recovery recommendations in order to prepare for this possibility. For example, Happiest Baby states that afterward, you should not do chores or lift anything heavy besides your baby, treat your incision with care, and wear compression stockings to protect against blood clots.
Additional postpartum supplies you’ll need on hand if you have a C-section include items like skin salve for soothing the incision site and an abdominal binder to help support your tissue and muscles during the recovery period. Lastly, you’ll need comfortable clothing. High-waisted underwear designed to sit above your C-section incision won’t cause pain or irritation like standard underwear tends to (and you can even find them in cute styles for great deals on Amazon). Also look for high-waisted leggings or yoga pants. In addition to supporting healthy wound recovery, you can wear them day or night — a major bonus for tired mamas who don’t have the time or energy to shower or even change clothes!
Additionally, Pelvic PT can help you improve your core function postpartum and reconnect with that region, along with teaching you how to work on your incision and decrease adhesions at and around the scar.
Feel Comfortable While Breastfeeding
While some women find breastfeeding easy and experience little to no complications, lots of women find it challenging, even if they enjoy the opportunity to bond with their baby! Dealing with ups and downs is normal when it comes to breastfeeding. To cope with pain or discomfort and prevent potential infections, experiment with different holds to find what works best for you and your baby. You can also use a lanolin cream to soothe irritated skin. Pelvic PT can help with positions and stretches to ease upper back pain that often accompanies breastfeeding.
Hormonal Shifts
Throughout your pregnancy and postpartum period, you’ll experience significant hormonal changes — and the emotional swings that can accompany these changes aren’t always easy to cope with. Many women experience the “baby blues” shortly after giving birth, which is characterized by a week or two of low moods. It’s thought that the baby blues are caused by a dramatic hormonal drop that occurs after having your baby.
You might also notice new symptoms when your menstrual cycle returns. If you’re exclusively breastfeeding, it can take quite a while before your cycle comes back — but be sure that you continue using a form of birth control during this time as a precaution. Sometimes the cycle can return quickly, even when exclusively breastfeeding.
You’ve probably heard plenty of advice about what to expect during your first three trimesters. But the fourth trimester is just as important! These tips will help you delegate your work responsibilities, choose a cozy and comfortable wardrobe, and cope with physical and hormonal changes during the fourth trimester.
*The content of this website, such as graphics, images, text and all other materials, is provided for reference and educational purposes only. The content is not meant to be complete or exhaustive or to be applicable to any specific individual's medical condition.
