Never Mess With Post Pregnancy Complications And Here Are The Reasons Why

Complications After The Birth of Baby

                                                       

                                       

#1. Breasts

Changes occur in the breast tissues by the hormones during early pregnancy. An increased size of the breasts indicate pregnancy and the nipples may feel tender and become darker. You may also notice in the morning a sticky yellow substance coming out of the nipples during 24 to 36 weeks of pregnancy. It's 'colostrum', a nutrient rich milk the baby drinks in the first 24 to 36 hours after birth and is highly suitable for the baby. 'Colostrum' is low in volume but high in protein, minerals, calories and vitamins ideal for the baby. It also contains antibodies that forms a shield in the body against any sort of infection.   


After delivery breasts become swollen, engorged with milk for a few days. Hormone levels surge to enable the body to produce more milk as soon as the 'placenta' is detached from the uterus. The swelling recedes within three to four days but the breasts tend to sag because of stretched skin. Some mothers experience a painful situation when their breasts become red or hard as a consequence of high volume of milk. 

The pain is the result of swelled and inflamed tissues. It also becomes impossible to feed the baby as the nipples become flat due to extra pressure. The doctors advise to apply crushed ice in small bags to soothe the tissues and to relieve the pain. It will take a few hours to work but comfort is assured. As the hormone levels are very high during post pregnancy period, most mothers tend to become overloaded with milk, more than the amount needed by the baby. When this happens heating pad or hot water bottle covered with cloth may be applied. After this, expressing some milk out relieves the tissues and the flattened nipples. Hand held pumps available in medical stores may also be used.

#2. Postpartum Hair Loss

Hair loss after delivery of the baby is common and not a cause of anxiety as soon it returns to normal growth cycle. Any average person loses 100 hairs a day but during pregnancy a woman loses much less due to high level of estrogen that prolong the growing stage. Soon after delivery estrogen level drops back to normal level.and those extra hair fall during the first six months. This type of hair fall stops within six to twelve months and hair regains its past lustre and beauty. A healthy diet full of vitamins and nutrient helps to prevent excessive hair loss. A new hair style, colouring or use of products (hair thickeners) save this situation to a great extent.

#3. Back Pain

                                                 

Back pain for the first few months is common in the post delivery period as the stretched muscles of the abdomen take some time to become normal and strong again and as the body puts extra weight on the muscles of back. Relaxin, a hormone during pregnancy relaxes the joints and ligaments of the pelvis so that the baby pass through the birth canal easily. After delivery of the baby the level of this hormone takes three to four months to come down to normal level. Once it does the back pain begins to subside. Following a few things help to reduce this pain :-

• Stretching exercises under expert advice will help restore strength and reflex of hip and back muscles before long

• To pick anything from floor bend knees and not waist

• A 'front pack' may be used to carry the baby when you are on the move

• Never allow obesity to win over you after the birth of the baby

• The baby should be close to the breasts while breast feeding than bending over to the baby

#4. Postpartum Constipation

                                                   

Constipation is painful and troublesome specially if the mother had suffered from it during pregnancy. A lot of factors might be behind this - medication during pregnancy, prenatal vitamin, hemorroids, stitches from an episiotomy or from C-section. A diet rich in fibre, plenty of water, milk and fruits combined with daily exercises will ease the situation in no time. Read more   

#5. Incontinence

Incontinence is a term used to describe loss of urine from the bladder or bowel motion either accidentally or involuntarily. It may range from just a small leak to a complete loss of bladder or bowel control. Urinary incontinence may be attributed to pregnancy, menopause, chronic disorders like diabetes or asthma. Faecal incontinence means loss of control over bowel movements either minor or total. Severe diarrhoea, constipation or weak back passage muscles may be responsible for this. 

Prevention

• Sufficient drinking water at least 1.5 to 2 litres daily spread throughout the day unless otherwise advised by doctor 

• Healthy diet rich in fibre - vegetables, fruits, cereals, whole grain breads to avoid constipation

• Avoid drinks containing caffeine as they irritate the bladder

Treatment for Urinary Incontinence : Treatment of urinary incontinence depends on the severity of the situation and the underlying causes. First of all least invasive treatments are tried. If they fail to produce satisfactory result then other options available are tried. 

Types of treatment

• Behavioural  Techniques : They include 'Bladder Training' to lengthen the time between trips to toilet ; 'Scheduled Trips' to make a pre fixed scheduled e.g. every one hour or two hours to go to the toilet rather than waiting for the urge ; Diet & Fluid Management to control consumption of alcohol and other drinks containing caffeine, cut back liquid consumption, losing weight and physical activity.  

• Pelvic Muscle Exercises : These exercises also known as Kegel exercises are prescribed by doctor to strengthen the muscles responsible for controlling urination.

• Electrical Stimulation : This includes placing of electrodes into rectum or vagina to stimulate the strength of the pelvic floor muscles. 

• Medications : They include 'Anticholinergics' to calm and soothe an overactive bladder ; Mirabegron to relax bladder muscles and increase the capacity of the bladder to retain more urine ; Alpha Blockers to relax bladder muscles, muscle fibres in prostrate to empty the bladder with ease ; Topical Estrogen - this is usually in the form of a cream/ring or patch to tone up and rejuvenate tissues in the urethra and vaginal areas.

• Medical Devices : They include 'Urethral Insert' acts as a plug to prevent leakage and 'Pessary' a ring inserted through vagina to prevent leakage.

• Interventional Therapies : They include 'Bulking Material Injection' - one type of synthetic material injection into the tissues surrounding 'urethra' ; 'Botox' injection into the bladder for those who have an overactive bladder ; 'Nerve Simulators' a device is placed under the skin like pacemaker that deliver painless electrical pulses to the nerves that control the the bladder. 

• Surgery : If the procedures described above are not effective then the last option involves surgery such as -- Sling Procedures ; Prolapse Surgery ; Bladder Neck Suspension ; Artificial Urinary Sphincter

Treatment for Faecal Incontinence : Here also depending on the severity of the situation type of treatments may vary. Such as :

• Medications : Bulk Laxatives ; Anti-diarrheal Drugs ; Injectable Bulking Agents

• Healthy Diet : Food rich in fibre and adequate drinking water

• Physical activity

• Therapies : They include Bowel Training ; Vaginal Balloon ; Biofeedback ; Posterior Tibial Nerve Stimulation

• Surgery : Here also the last available option is surgery such as - Sphincteroplasty ; Sphincter Replacement ; Sphincter Repair ; Colostomy ;  

#6. Vaginal Pain and Discharge

After delivery vagina may feel stretched, using cold packs soon after delivery brings back comfort. There is a vaginal discharge named 'lochia' mostly of blood and the left out of uterine lining right after delivery and it may last for several weeks. Use of hot water bottle or heating pad gives a lot of comfort. Normal sex life may resume 4 to 5 weeks after giving birth but you may feel vaginal dryness due to breast feeding. If you are not breast feeding your baby then normal menstrual cycle may come back seven to nine weeks after delivery. In case of breast feeding normal menstrual cycle does not resume for several months, may be not before breast feeding is stopped altogether. 

#7. Stomach

                                                     

Hormonal changes start taking place soon after the birth of the baby and  stomach should come close to normal within about four weeks. The decrease in the size of tummy is slow but steady. All the cells in body that swelled during pregnancy tend to come to normalcy by releasing the extra fluid in the form of  urine, vaginal discharge and sweat. Just after delivery the uterus normally weighs about 2.5 pounds but it comes down to only 2 ounces within six weeks. 

After giving birth, one may still bear a dark line down the stomach named in medical terminology 'Linea Nigra' and stretch marks also. The linea nigra is caused by pigmentation when the muscles stretched keeping pace with the growing baby and normally should fade within a few weeks. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to get rid of those stretched marks completely soon. Those stretched marks are caused by the stretching of the skin during pregnancy. 

Eventually the lines look fine streaks closer to the colour of the skin and spread over stomach, buttocks, thighs and breasts. Moms generally experience a bit flabbiness in the tummy after giving birth. A little exercises, yoga are of great help to bring the tummy as it had been. What is really a problem to get rid of are those stretch marks. 

They are not going to leave you soon completely though they will fade over a period of time. A cream derived from vitamin A may be of help but doctors generally prefer not to prescribe it when you are breast feeding as it may harm the baby. So, mothers have to rely on exercises and healthy eating habits.


#8. Skin Discoloration

Almost all pregnant women develop changes in skin color known as 'hyperpigmentation' and hormonal changes is to blame for this. When body raises production of  melanin it generally leads to discoloration of skin causing patches. These darker spots mainly centre around breasts, nipples and genitals. Apart from hormonal changes, changes to circulation and immune system have all an effect on skin. All these changes that go on inside pregnant women make them susceptible to changes of the skin, hair and nails. A pregnant woman may develop :-

• Changes in skin color(pigmentation)

• Stretch marks

• Acne

• Itchy skin and red rash 

A pregnant woman is more likely to develop stretch marks and pigmentation if her mother and sister also suffered from these during their pregnancies. Some pregnant women suffer from extremely dry skin while others may develop red rash around mouth and chin.

According to doctors skin discoloration is not a major problem and not to worry about at all and all these problems clear up after the birth of the baby. However, if skin discoloration is accompanies with pain, acute itching and causes serious discomfort it must not go untreated and doctor's advice must be sought. This may be indicative of you suffering from serious skin conditions such as 'intrahepatic cholestasis' , 'pemphigoid gestationis' and 'impetigo herpetiformis' that may affect your pregnancy if not treated well on an urgent basis.


Prevention 

No woman can escape skin discoloration completely during pregnancy. However, its effect may be minimized by being a little extra cautious about skin. Long exposure to sun leads to hyperpigmentation specially on those parts of skin that are directly open to sunlight. Use reputed quality sunscreen lotion to minimize bad effects of direct sun light.




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