30 recovery guides
Postpartum recovery
What healing after birth actually looks like — bleeding, stitches, mood, hair loss and the six-week check, sourced to NHS, RCOG and ACOG.
RecoveryAfterpains and Postpartum CrampingAfterpains are your womb contracting back to size, and they get worse with each baby. Why feeding…RecoveryC-Section Recovery Week by WeekA week-by-week caesarean recovery timeline from NHS, NICE, RCOG, HSE and ACOG guidance, including…RecoveryC-Section Scar Care and HealingHow to care for a caesarean wound day by day, what NICE recommends, how to spot infection early,…RecoveryC-Section Recovery: What You Can and Cannot DoWhat you can do straight after a caesarean, what to hold off on, and the NICE recommendation that…RecoveryContraception After BirthYou can get pregnant three weeks after birth. Which methods start immediately, which wait, and the…RecoveryDiastasis Recti After PregnancySeparated stomach muscles are normal in pregnancy and usually narrow by eight weeks. How to check…RecoveryDriving After a C-SectionThere is no six-week driving law after a caesarean. What NICE, the DVLA and the RCOG say, why…RecoveryEmergency vs Planned C-SectionHow an emergency caesarean differs from a planned one afterwards: anaesthetic, pain relief, the…RecoveryPerineal Tears and StitchesHow first, second, third and fourth-degree tears heal, how to care for stitches, why opening your…RecoveryPostnatal Depression and Baby BluesBaby blues fade within two weeks and need no treatment. Postnatal depression does not. How to tell…RecoveryPostnatal Exercise: When and How to StartWhen you can start exercising after birth, how the answer changes after forceps or a caesarean, and…RecoveryPostnatal Nutrition: What You Actually NeedThere is no special postnatal diet. What the NHS recommends after birth, the one supplement singled…RecoveryPostpartum AnxietyAnxiety after birth is under-recognised, treatable and not the same as ordinary worry. The…RecoveryPostpartum Bleeding (Lochia)Lochia is the bleeding after birth. How heavy is normal, how long it should last, the colour…RecoveryPostpartum Constipation and the First PooNo bowel movement for a few days after birth is normal, and your stitches will not burst. The…RecoveryPostpartum HaemorrhageHeavy bleeding after birth can happen up to twelve weeks later, not just in the delivery room. The…RecoveryPostpartum Hair LossPostpartum shedding is delayed hair loss caused by falling oestrogen, not true hair loss. When it…RecoveryPostpartum Incontinence and the Pelvic FloorLeaking urine, wind or stool after birth is common and treatable. The risk factors, how to do…RecoveryPostpartum Night SweatsNight sweats after birth are caused by a sudden oestrogen drop and shedding pregnancy fluid. What…RecoveryPostpartum Pre-eclampsiaPre-eclampsia can start days or weeks after birth, including in women whose blood pressure was…RecoveryPostpartum PsychosisPostpartum psychosis usually starts within two weeks of birth and needs an urgent same-day…RecoveryPostpartum ThyroiditisPostpartum thyroiditis affects up to 1 in 10 pregnancies and mimics anxiety and depression. The two…RecoveryRecovering From a Forceps or Ventouse BirthWhat differs after forceps or ventouse: tear rates, continence, perineal pain, marks on your baby,…RecoveryReturning to Work After Maternity LeaveUK statutory maternity leave and pay figures, your rights when breastfeeding at work, and the…RecoverySex After BirthThere is no rule about when to have sex after birth. What the NHS and HSE actually say, why dryness…RecoveryThe Six-Week Postnatal CheckWhat the six to eight week postnatal check actually covers, what is not on the list, what to raise…RecoverySleep Deprivation in the Fourth TrimesterCoping with newborn sleep deprivation: what the NHS says helps, the symptom separating exhaustion…RecoveryVBAC: Vaginal Birth After CaesareanVBAC success rates, uterine rupture risk, who it suits and who it does not, and how UK, Irish and…RecoveryWhen to See a Doctor in the Weeks After BirthThe postnatal red flags named by NICE, the NHS, the HSE and ACOG, which ones are emergency calls,…RecoveryYour Body After Birth: What Changes and What SettlesWhat changes after birth and roughly when each thing settles, from lochia and afterpains to joints,…