As I search on my Instagram and look through magazines these days, it seems like everyone is pregnant or just had a baby. They are usually holding the baby with their eyes staring up toward the sun and it looks glorious. I would look at the pictures and scream to my husband "I want a new baby!! " and he'd glance at me unphased saying "you have a one week baby in your arms right now" Oh! Then, I look at my own pictures on Instagram and Facebook and from the pictures appear as if I didn't have a care in the world after childbirth. Just a big fat lie! Well, not a lie but I’ve discovered a picture is only 2d. You can't see what’s on the other side with just a picture. Our Instagram and Facebook pics make it look so d#$@ glamorous. This read is about the other side of the pic...the not so glamorous side after childbirth.
1.) You feel like you got in a fight with Mike Tyson and you lost BAD
The best way to describe how my body felt is getting beat up...and bad. Imagine getting in a fight, you get the life punched out of you and then.... someone hands you a baby. There's really no time to lay in your bed for a week and recover from your a%# whooping. You get your a%# whooped and you take this baby. That's really how the story goes with delivering a baby.
I remember being so exhausted from the contractions, I walked in the hospital ready to push and the nurse saw it all on my face. She knew this baby was coming out and quick. I arrived at the hospital 9cm ( 1cm away from the baby just ready to pop out). They put me in a wheelchair and tears were rolling down my face when they asked me to get on the bed. It was slow exhausting tears like I just ran a marathon run and I was on my hoping to be on the last stretch to the finish line. I was just soooo tired. At least with a marathon, if you ran 25 miles, you at least know you only have 1 more mile to go. With labor and delivery you can be as exhausted as you want but never really know when you will get to the finish line. "How much longer will I have to bear the pain?!"
Then the baby eventually comes and with all the excitement of seeing your new baby, your body is wore out and you are immediately handed the baby to care for while simultaneously trying to get yourself together..Yikes!
2) Granny Panties
I thought after childbirth, I would be running to Victoria's Secret to immediately buy every cute lingerie and bra and panty set I couldn't wear while I was pregnant. Well I soon discovered...It's going to be just a little while longer before getting your sexy back. I vividly remember after one of my births, my husband, Kern, helping me to the bath and bathing me and then putting GRANNY PANTIES on me! The huge underwear went up to my neck. I have to admit when I had to have my husband put granny panties on me; I was just dying inside even at the thought. Now looking back at it, I acknowledge the growth of our unconditional love...that's love right there.
3) Sleep no longer exists..for a while at least
In all my pregnancies, I found it difficult to sleep in the last 2-3 months of pregnancy. For my 1st pregnancy, I remember naively thinking, I'm going to sleep like a baby after I deliver. And like a baby I slept...I just didn't know babies don't sleep too well at night. It takes time for babies to get in their routine of sleeping all through the night. It does vary from baby to baby when they actually sleep through the night but for my 3 older kids, its been about 8 or 9 months before I could boldly say they were "sleeping ALL through the night". When I hear a parent say their child was sleeping through the night since 2 weeks old, I just think they are lying. In my opinion, some parents want to win some imaginary award for who has the best child or best parenting skill. I don't fall for the "ever since I left the hospital with my newborn they slept through the night" line. It's not the truth or they give that baby a strong dose of Benadryl every night. Just be prepared to use the hash tag #TeamNoSleep right after childbirth.
4) People will still think you are pregnant
The baby has came and people will reach for your stomach when are you due? "I’m not” It’s embarrassing for the person asking and for you. Just no bueno. I just don't assume someone is pregnant unless they acknowledge it first. It's just not worth the humiliation. The truth is it takes time for your belly to go back down to size. The uterus is shrinking along with anything else that blew up in those 9 months. I remember when I was getting a pedicure and the woman doing the pedicure asked how far along I was and I told her I wasn't pregnant and her face turned red from the embarrassment so I told her I did JUST have a baby. When she asked how old the baby was, I shyly said 5 months. That's not a JUST had a baby. I guessed I wasn't prepared for her to ask how old was the baby. It was an all around bad and uncomfortable conversation. Needless to say, the conversation was over and we didn't say another word to each other..awkward.
Ok you didn't think I'd leave you stuck with all negative things right... Even though you go through all these crazy things after childbirth it is still one of the best experiences known to mankind. There is nothing that tops raising another human being to me. Is it hard as blankety blank blank...no doubt. However, it's well worth it and pays off huge rewards in the long run. I just think we think its all roses and peaches right after delivery because that's all we see on social media and in the magazines. But, I don't think anyone wants to see pictures of anyone in granny panties or up at 3am changing the 100th diaper of the night. So only the glamorous side is shown and thankfully so...and to clarify I do think childbirth is beautiful but I just told you the other side of the game. And there you have it :)
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