How to Prepare For First Postpartum Period

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. 

Medical Disclosure: This post is based on my personal opinions. I am not a medical professional. If you are unsure about trying any of these recommendations consult with a medical professional first. 

Your first postpartum period may be a lot different than your normal period, which means it’s best to prepare for it in advance. 

In most cases, your period will return after your six-week checkup. However, if you’re breastfeeding it could be delayed by a few months. 

Here are my best tips for preparing for your first postpartum period. 

Read Also: Postpartum Clothing Must-Haves

Hydrate

After giving birth you should already be making sure that you are drinking plenty of liquids to stay hydrated and even more so if you’re breastfeeding. 

Plus, by staying hydrated you can help prevent becoming bloated and it can also assist with cramps. 

What I like to do is have some nutmeg and water once a day when I start having PMS symptoms. To take, I simply get some hot water and sprinkle some nutmeg in it. Yes, it’s not the best tasting beverage in the world, but it does help with the intensity of the cramps. 

Use a heating pad

If you didn’t use a heating pad after giving birth, I highly recommend investing in one before your first postpartum period arrives.

Having heat applied directly to your stomach can help with the cramping and can be used as frequently as you’d like. 

Plus, if you’re breastfeeding it can also work to help provide relief for clogged ducts. 

Make time to rest

Understandably, it’s hard to find time to rest when you have a newborn. 

However, during your first postpartum period, you’re going to want to actually follow the advice of resting when the baby sleeps. 

By making time to rest you’ll be able to cope with tiredness and fatigue, which is most likely heightened during your period. 

Exercise

If you were cleared to resume exercising at your 6-week visit, try to fit in 15-20 minutes of exercise each day of your postpartum period. 

Exercise can work as a form of natural stress relief, which in return, helps to alleviate cramps. 

From my experience, the first 5-10 minutes can be hard, but after that, I notice that my cramps tend to start easing up. 

Read Also: How to Start Working Out at Home

Consider a Yoni Steam before it starts

Yoni steaming is something that I had been researching for about a year, or so, but just got around to trying.

It’s said to have been used for centuries with the focus of healing and toning the vagina. So, it sounds like the perfect thing to try out after the six-week period passes, right?

These days there are spas that offer Yoni Steams or there are at-home kits that allow you to do it at home, such as the Nookie Cleanse V Steam Herbs from Boujee Hippie. 

Based on my research the reasons I choose to do a Yoni Steam to prepare for my first postpartum period include:

• Balancing periods: It’s supposed to provide cramp relief when done before your period and reduce the number of days it lasts.
• Postpartum healing: As I mentioned earlier, the main reason for the Yoni Steam is to heal and tone the vagina, which is definitely something that is needed after giving birth. 
• Regulates cycle: Breastfeeding does make your cycle unpredictable, but for those experiencing irregular cycles outside of breastfeeding a Yoni Steam may be able to help. 
• Hemorrhoid relief: If hemorrhoids were a side effect of labor or pregnancy a Yoni Steam may be able to help promote healing. 

How to use the Nookie Cleanse V Steam Herbs from Boujee Hippie

As long as you’re not pregnant, on your period, have an IUD, or have any sort of infection you should be clear to do a Yoni Steam at home if you’re comfortable doing so. 

It just requires having something like a sitz bath seat to make the mixture in.

I used 3 cups of boiling water and 1 cup of the Boujee Hippie herbs. I let the water cool for about 3-4 minutes before sitting over it with a towel on my lap for 20 minutes. 

It was a little hot at first, but after the first 5 minutes it was more relaxing AND the herbs smell amazing. 

Final Thoughts

No one looks forward to their first postpartum period, or any other period, for that matter. However, as painful as it may be these tips can help make your first postpartum period a little bit easier.