I read a ton of blogs about what to expect with labor and delivery. I read so many versions of "the stuff no one tells you" so I thought I knew what to expect going in to the hospital. Here are a few things I wish I would have known or taken more seriously:
*Your family (whoever is waiting at the hospital with you) gets all the nitty, gritty details about your body and your baby. Since they hear this information, they sometimes think it's appropriate to ask you about it later on. Beware.
*I starved myself in the hospital. I thought I had to pay extra for the food so I only called to order one breakfast and one dinner. I was there three days. I wish someone would have told me that I was paying for it anyway in my final bill. Big idiot moment for me.
*Take everything the nurses bring you; diapers, ice packs, creams, sprays, wipes, all of it. Ask them to bring you extra. Pack it away and send it home with visitors.
*Don't let a nurse interrupt you while you're feeding your baby. I had the hardest time getting Hiccup to latch and as soon as I did a nurse came in wanting to check on him and me. I should have told her to come back later cuz after he stopped, he didn't want to start again and it just made me frustrated.
*Your mama's instinct will kick in. Immediately. Follow it. Don't let anyone talk you in or out of what you feel. You are the mom, that is your baby. You make the final decisions.
*Since I'm allergic to most pain meds, I brought my own for after delivery. The nurses will still try and give you their prepackaged pills but I had my own and my dr said it was ok. I took extra-strength Tylenol while I was there. They gave me Colace and Iron while I was there too. You can buy a bottle of each for around $3 a piece, so do that and bring it with you. It'll save you the $7 per pill they'll charge you later. For those of you with great insurance that'll pay for everything, live it up and soak it in and don't worry about my fretting over pills. ;0)
*If you've never swaddled a baby, have a nurse teach you. They're experts.
*I thought I wanted people/visitors there with me the entire time I was in the hospital. What I really needed was time to relax and catch up on my sleep. I'll know better for next time and just have people come visit at certain times.
*Seeing your baby's daddy transition immediately into a daddy is one of the best things in the world. Cherish that moment when they first meet each other.
*Take so many pictures. You can always delete the bad ones later. You don't want to miss a moment and everything seems to happen so quickly. You're exhausted by the time your babe arrives and you'll forget so much that you wanted to remember. Also, black and white pictures are your best friend when it comes to the terrible hospital lighting.
*Get up and walk around after delivery. Not immediately after but don't wait too long either. It will be hard and you will need help. You don't have time to worry about being embarrassed, the nurses are there to help you. The more I moved around (slowly but surely) the better I felt. I feel like this helped me to heal much quicker than I expected to and I wasn't experiencing too much pain by the time I went home.
*It will take your body awhile to bounce back. You're swollen, you're tired, you're sore. Your body has essentially been to war and now you're recuperating. Some parts of your body you won't even recognize but they'll be back to normal before long. My belly band was my best friend for my post-baby-belly bulge. Thank goodness that the baby doesn't mind your changing body and neither does his daddy. :0)
No comments:
Post a Comment