Why did no one tell me, and does anyone else agree, that worse than labour...

[bohemianbint]

...was going for a wee afterwards? And the prospect of having to poo, jesus....

I practically needed gas and air to go for a wee, and was told to either do it in the bath (nice) or pour tepid water with lavender oil in it over ruined fanjo whilst weeing.

Don't get me started on the fear of pooing afterwards, I think I put it off for days.

Did anyone else find this really awful? Why does no one warn you?!

[nickytwotimes]

Um, i was okay with weeing.
Pooing was a bit scary though!

[LadySanders]

ha i sympathise, was preparedfor it 2nd time round and took loads of califig..

[cluelessnchaos]

I was ok, was drinking gallons of water, and had piles so was lathered in ointment. I know, TMI.

[bohemianbint]

I'm just preparing myself for the whole thing again this August...

Maybe it was just because I had a few stitches, is it alright otherwise?

[ReverseThePolarity]

Oh god yes I was terrified of pooing and put it off for days until I just couldn't hold it in any more (sorry if tmi). And god it hurt.

I had to wee standing up leaning over the toilet for weeks.

(I'd had an episiotomy.)

[Disenchanted]

I had stitches with DS1 and the weeing after was awful

With DS2 I didn't tear and was terrified of weeing ... but it was fine when I finally did.

It must've beet he stitches.

Pooing was fine both times.

[cyteen]

[nickytwotimes]

I had a few stitches. Must depend on where they are!

[bohemianbint]

I think the poo thing was the fear that, having just had a whole baby come out, other things might fall out too...

[tyaca]

bohemiam -- the weeing thing broke me after tbh. it took me a fortnight for my stitches to heal and that was really a turning point for me. being able to sit down comfortably for more than twenty minutes was bliss too...

with the weeing, i would get an aftershock of pain. kept a jug in the loo for days afterwards, would drown myself in tepid water while peeing, but then the pain would STILL kick in after.

[Fridayfeeling]

Took a week to go for a poo after DS1.

[cyteen]

So can anyone tell me, since we're all being good and open about bodily functions: how soon after giving birth does constipation tend to relieve itself? What I mean is, I've been very bunged up throughout this pregnancy so far which is not like me. Presumably the hormones that cause it don't instantly vacate the body once the baby's out, so...when I first go for a poo after giving birth, should I expect the added effort and discomfort of constipation, or will it all just fly out?

[ten10]

Both toilet functions were a bit of a nightmare due to lots of internal and external stitches. Very very painful.

Also I got a chesty cold immediately after giving birth and was desperate to cough, this was even worse that going to the toilet, felt like my insides were going to fall out.

Thankgod i didn't have a poo for nearly a week after the birth.

no-one warned me about these really nasty details/consequences of childbirth, but then i don't think there was nothing i could have done to prepare for it.

[addictedtoharibo]

I had loads of stitches - big episiotomy and it didnt hurt at all. I was shocked as friends had told me about it and I was dreading it - but nothing!

Must be the position of them and the position you pee or something lol!!!

x

[PinkTulips]

nope, peeing was ok and pooing doable as long as you hold yourself

worst for me was the stitching afterwards, had a pain relief free birth but wished i could ask for a epi when they were rooting around with needles, tasmpons, thread and tweezers for 30 mins!

[PinkTulips]

cyteen, was a week both times for me much to HV's concern. but i had diorheah both times before labour and couldn't eat while in labour

[bohemianbint]

Christ PinkTulips, you had no local or anything? I think I had a local and gas and air for the stitches, which seemed to take aaaaaaaages. Not my favourite half hour of my life.

See, the holding thing, is it just psychological? Would it stop your insides falling out?

[BecauseImWorthIt]

Best tip I had was to make sure I had eaten plenty of fibre before DS1 came. I was in hospital for a week beforehand and every meal I ordered was very heavy on fibre!

Can especially recommend prunes and Bran Flakes for breakfast!

[PinkTulips]

nope it eases the pain alota dn has the added benefit of making you feel more 'secure'

hospitals here are staffed by imbeciles, they also used the wrong thread, told me it would dissolv which it didn't and i had to take a nail scissors to them 3 weeks later.

worst thing was dp didn't know i was going to be stitced and fecked off to the shop! i was on my own for all of it with dd in an incubator across the room

[sagitta]

I was terrified last time, and it was awful. I think I would have held on for longer except the MW and HV kept asking me if I'd pooed yet! Due again on Saturday, and the stitches/ post-birth pooing scares me more than the labour does!

[BillyElliot]

i had a section so was catheterised for a long while after so the wee wasn't an issue. but omg the poo! i called it the horse's poo and thought about photographing it as it was so impressively big. the fact it disappeared is a testamont to modern plumbing.

[JodieG1]

I was fine weeing but with the pooing it hurt inside, the pain was really unbearable and I remember nearly crying. It was awful.

[bohemianbint]

LMAO BillyElliot!

Sagitta - good luck, maybe it's better second time around? THat's what I'm hoping!

On the upside, I didn't poo during labour, which was the one thing I was really dreading (but expecting.)

[cyteen]

Oh god yes, I'm ashamed to say I'm dreading the chance of crapping mid-labour more than the actual birth itself

[bohemianbint]

Cyteen - I think labour can give you diarrhoea (is it one of the signs?) so if you're "lucky" you might get it all out beforehand.

Gosh, this is a lovely thread I've started eh?