Learn what to expect during the fourth trimester and the initial postpartum period for your recovery and your baby’s health.
What to expect during postpartum recovery
Regardless of if you’ve had a vaginal birth or C-section, postpartum recovery can be hard and stressful for everyone. Your hormones changing, having a new baby to care for, and your body trying to recover are all very emotionally and physically draining. Knowing what to expect can help prepare you for it all.
Vaginal birth recovery
The recovery period for vaginal births typically lasts a full four to six weeks. However, recovery can vary depending on if there were any vaginal tears during labor. If you had a painful vaginal birth that created vaginal tears that required stitches, you can expect the stitches to dissolve after the first two weeks of recovery.
Some other symptoms you may experience during the recovery period are vaginal tenderness and soreness, bleeding, discharge as your uterus sheds the thick lining it maintained during pregnancy, enlarged breasts, tiredness and more. Checking in with your doctor about healing and being mindful of signs of infection are important during the healing stage regardless of the delivery method.
C-section recovery
Postpartum recovery from a C-section birth is usually longer and for a full recovery, it can take up to 6-8 weeks. Women that had C-section births can expect to stay in the hospital longer and have restrictions on bending and lifting heavy items.
Although most symptoms such as enlarged breasts and vaginal bleeding will stay the same for C-section recoveries, women that had a C-section birth can expect to feel pain, soreness, and tenderness around their incision area. Patients may experience C-section digestive problems temporarily and have sensitive stomachs. If an emergency C-section was performed after laboring, overall body pain, soreness, and vaginal pain after a C-section can be expected.