How long after childbirth did it take to feel like'you' again?

[CountdowntoSummer]

Just that really. How long did it take? I'm not talking about weight loss alone but mentally as well. I have birth 7 weeks ago and I don't feel myself at all.. Feel like I'm in someone else's body..the whole world seems strange and different even my own house! Did anyone go through this?

I don't even remember who I was!

I'm a different person now, but it's all good. If you mean, feeling like you're more than just a mum, give it a while. You're only just getting used to your new role in life, don't go wishing it away. The first time I went out for an afternoon without DD, she would have been about 9 or 10 weeks, and it felt very odd. Good, but odd. But it wasn't until MiL started taking her for a few hours once a week that I could honestly say I felt anything other than 'Mum to DD'.

It'll all be fine, don't worry, but it's very early days yet.

I'd say it took 5 months to feel physically recovered, 9 months before I felt more mentally normal and now at 17 months I have my energy back and I no longer feel like the walking dead.

It's an enormous change, give yourself some time.

The honest truth? 2 years.

I did have twins though so my experience is probably less than average.

About a year - when I returned to work.

Still not feeling it dd is 2.5, my body my mental state my everything changed the second she popped out and it's going to be a very long time before I ever get near to what I was before! (In the first year felt like I was in a fog and not really there!)

After DS it was somewhere between 9 months to a year before i accepted my new 'normal'. I had a horrific birth (forceps, 4th degree tear, shoulder dystocia, post natal depression, post traumatic stress disorder) so counselling really helped me come to terms with things.

With DD who is now 16 weeks old i have felt like me again for a few weeks now, probably as its not quite so life changing second time, although physically still carrying a bit of weight & breastfeeding so will be a while longer yet before my body feels like its mine again.

DC2 is 23 days old.

I'm starting to just feel human again, never mind myself I think with number two, I feel more confident in what I'm doing & also need to have a bit of a routine with DC1 and nursery.

I'll be going back to my hobby in 4 weeks, so some time away from dc's and DP for that matter! hopefully that will make me feel more myself!

Is this your first child?

With the first one, probably six months. For a long time I felt like I was walking around in a bubble.

I could of written your post after dd1 who is now 8 .. I felt like I was going to go mad as I didn't feel like I was part of the world .. I can't really explain it, but everything felt odd to me to the point I was convinced I had a brain tumour as I couldn't explain why I get strange .. The good news is it past and have not suffered the same thing after having my other dc .. I did start taking citalopram though no for depression for my increased anxiety

About 6-7 weeks. I had a crash c-section under general anaesthetic and sometimes a general takes a long time to leave the system.

6.5 months, when i went back to work!!

About 6 weeks. Then I wanted dc2! ( born year after ds1)

I returned to working ( from home), by 4 weeks so I suppose I had other things on my mind too. Dh, myself and baby spent first 2 weeks virtually in bed though just feeding, cuddling ds and watching films! Think that helped

Physically I felt back to normal at six weeks. I had a straightforward delivery and no problems.

Mentally, I couldn't say because DD went on to develop breathing problems and ended up in ICU with a tracheostomy at nine weeks.

Reassuring to hear that though it takes a long time, most do eventually feel normal again, and it's normal to take time. mentally I have been fine, but ds is 4 months and physically I don't feel normal yet (episiotomy and ventouse). I wish this was talked about more in pregnancy. No-one ever said to me it might take months or years to recover.

I remember the fog after dd. I sat on my bed staring at the wallpaper feeling like the room wasn't my own. Nothing felt familiar. I couldn't imagine laughing spontaneously or enjoying things. Everything felt contracted down to the magnitude of dd's existence and I felt adrift. If I am totally honest, it took 2 years to get out of the fug BUT I had ptsd and pnd following the birth.

After having ds, I felt the same as I always did. No fug, no discombobulation. Knackered of course but I didn't feel like the world I inhabited wasn't my own.

My dd is nearly 1yo and I'm still shattered and have a wobbly tummy.

8-9 months when solid foods became more popular with ds. Before then I was essentially ebf.

5 years and counting...

I think it was about 8 weeks when I felt like I'd lost that 'out of body' feeling, then about 6 months to feel like my body was back to normal - lost all the weight I'd gained, returned to fully functioning pelvic floor etc.

I think there are varying stages of return to normal. I think I lost that "out of body" shocked feeling around 12 weeks, started feeling I was returning to a social normality around 8/9 months, felt physically normal around 11 months and regained my energy at 15 months (when she started sleeping through!). Experience so far of number 2 (he's only 2 weeks!) is that it happens MUCH faster - I feel like I'm functioning pretty normally emotionally and practically now and feel far less exhausted than I was first time round, in spite (or perhaps because) of having a toddler to deal with too.

When did I regain my washboard tummy and size 10 figure? Er, that's a work in progress....

Don't worry about not feeling like yourself and don't be disheartened by stories of others taking a long time to feel like themselves again. Make sure you are eating well and sleeping as much as you can, you will feel better at some point but in your whole life you only have this precious short time as a new mum so treasure it and relax.

Good advice Mumraa - it is a short and precious time OP - you will feel different, but that's not all bad

With DS it probably took around 8 months but DD is 17 weeks and I felt like me again after about a fortnight. Probably because I didn't have the whole culture shock that I had first time around!!