What did you do when you came home from hospital?

[HanBang]

I am being discharged tomorrow after a tricky birth and a week long stay in hospital for me and DS. I couldn’t wait to get home but now feeling like it will be an anti climax.

I don’t feel that lovely feeling you’re supposed to feel going home to begin our family as a 3. I know it’s a combination of being stuck in hospital feeling lonely - obvious restrictions on visitors and general baby blues - but I just feel meh about it. Whereas previously I would have been talking about cracking open the champers!

Can I ask what you did when you finally came home if you had a stay in hospital for more than one night? Or anything else special you did? Obviously I would have loved to be someone who got out promptly and had the best cheese toastie of their life but I feel I’m past that stage after a week of hospital food!

Help - I need a pick me up!

Had a foot long from Subway.

Had a Chinese takeaway then went to bed because after 72 hours of no sleep in hospital I was hallucinating that I could hear babies crying everywhere

I can't remember with DS1 but with DS2 it was business as usual as now ex was being an absolute bastard. Someone remarked on how amazing I was being out and about so soon (school run) but I wasn't amazing at all, had no choice. My pelvic floor was shot and I wet myself walking too far.

Nice bath, takeaway and rubbish tv.

I can't remember in waht order but...
Hot shower, cup of tea, marvelled at the number of pillows I had in bed and got told of for moving the sofa to get in cupboard under the stairs.

I stayed in 1 night in hospital and came home afternoon second day.

I felt like I had been hit by a bus. Spent ages in the toilet (was all very painful; I had quite a bad tear). Basically I was in a lot of pain, couldn't sit, DD was screaming the place down by this point as she couldn't feed (we had issues breastfeeding- main reason they kept us in overnight). I hadn't slept the last 2 nights - one in a very intense labour and the other because I couldn't figure out how to turn the light off in my hospital room. I was a mess.
Sent DP to tesco at midnight (it was a sunday) to buy nipple shields - HUGE relief.
Basically first day at home wasn't great!

@PlugUgly1980

Put the baby down in the car seat and thought "what do we do now?!"

This! Both times. It's a very strange feeling.

With my first ee just gaf a string of visitors. I had a section and was thoroughly sick if the disgusting hospital food. The day after I got home we went out for lunch- first time breastfeeding in public! Second child I was also keen to get out and about. I just remember pushing a double buggy around town...

Got home finally after 10 days in hospital. Delirious with exhaustion, had a little cry and cuddled baby a lot. DH was wonderful but I remember being so exhausted that I didn't know if I was coming and going.

First few weeks were like lanading on an alien planet. Be gentle with yourself. Make sure you have plenty of tea, cakes and biscuits to get you through. And lots of comfy clean clothes.

I nipped to the supermarket on my way home and then cooked dinner, I admit I'm unusual. I had no complications though and was discharged in under 24 hours so not the same.

Having a glass of champagne on your return sounds like a lovely idea!

Got into bed for two weeks. Ate cake and slept. You will be in bliss when join get home! I was in a week like you and it was SO good to be home.

Had a load of in laws invite themselves over. Irritating fuckers! Dodge that if you can!
Cuddle your baby, binge watch something good on Netflix.
Congratulations OP!

My DH made me a bath.. I really like citrussy smells and for some bizarre reason, he did me up a bath with lots of citrussy smelling things and candles and..wait for it fresh limes sliced up in the water!! What the fuck was he thinking, my vagina had been fucking ripped to shreds and he added citric acid to my bath.
I made splashy noises and said it was lovely then had a shower!

I don’t feel that lovely feeling you’re supposed to feel going home to begin our family as a 3

What bollocks is this? I've never heard of it.

I was pissed off that everybody else was enjoying a 'newwww babeee' and I was just knackered and sore. I ordered 1st child)kebab 2nd child)chinese and 3rd)it's not important but I ate a lot that night.

Oh as for champers I tried a beer, got halfway down it. Only did that with number 1 because it turns out giving birth and booze is not a great mix.

The cruel trick of giving birth and being exhausted is why.

My memories of the first weeks with all 3 are nighttime memories by myself with baby.

First baby 4 days in. Second baby 3 days in. Third baby - the bastards sent me home the same day. I didnt even get that weird school mash, yoghurt and wrapped biscuits.

@ParisianLady xxxx I leaked some poo onto a lovely bed my stepmum made me.
But I got away with it. Because of the blood I also leaked.

Tis a beautiful experience

I got home, had a shower and change of clothes, then went straight back to the hospital. My son was in NICU for 12 days and having to walk out the hospital with the empty car seat was the hardest thing I've ever done and ever will do. I just wanted to get back and see how he was doing (I didn't actually ever want to leave him but obviously I had to go home sometimes, to change shower and change clothes and try and get at least some kind of rest, can't say I slept because I don't think I did sleep properly until he was home).

Put baby down in her crib in the livingroom and sat with my cat who I'd missed for the 4 or so days I'd been in hospital. Some close members of my family then popped in for a quick visit - mainly to bring food particularly the takeaway order I'd phoned in on route home haha. We got home pretty late so then it was just eat, sort baby, get to bed (I'd showered a lot in hospital as it was the only place I could pee comfortably lol)

The next day was better, it was mainly just the 3 of us trying to mesh together and relax. The midwife popped in on her rounds, my dad stopped in to drop more food off, beer for DP and tiny baby clothes cos DDs clothes were all too big. My mum and gran stopped by at night to help me shower/sort my hair and bathe DD for the first time (petrified me lol)

Then we had about 5 days of it just being us mainly as we had asked everyone to give us that space and time.

Nothing special, nothing amazing but memorable for us, and just what we needed.

I was in for 4 days pre-EMCS and then discharged when DD was 6 days old.

Completely agree with others that said we put her down in the car seat and thought “so what do we do now?!”

Also had a Chinese takeaway, watched rubbish on the television and gave my cats massive cuddles. And then milk came in that night so leaked that everywhere 😅

Got home and burst into tears. Think it was fear!

After DC1 (7 days in hospital) - went to Asda!
After DC2 (5 days in hospital) - some children from the cup de sac and their parents came round to meet the baby. I don’t think they stayed long, as I remember waking up on the sofa.

Stared at the baby! Got a takeaway. It was actually lovely and felt like Christmas for some reason.

You can lose hours reading hundreds of beautifully illustrated answers to this very question on this blog: the-mothers.co.uk/ .... scroll down to the posts with just names rather than the ‘mothers in lockdown’ ones and it’s one of the set questions the participants answer.

I had 2 slices of pate on toast and a big glass of cold fresh orange, it was heaven! And then visitors were coming round so I just sat on the sofa in my pjs and passed baby along to everyone!

I only stayed a night but ate my McDonald's I bought on the way home .
Tbh I felt a bit bombarded as PIL's were round within an hour. I didn't want them round but DP invited them anyway. It was actually my mums birthday so went round there for the evening and I ended up sleeping.