The 6-Week Doctor Visit

This week I had my 6-week doctor appointment. I wasn't nervous, but I definitely came in with a lot of questions. I wasn't told after I delivered how badly I tore, so I was curious about that. I heard tears are measured in degrees, and all I knew was that it hurt and seemed to take a while to heal. I also was incredibly antsy to workout again, and wanted to make sure I had the go ahead, especially since I'm breastfeeding. And my husband had some questions he wanted me to ask about- did we have the go ahead to have some mommy & daddy fun? What were my birth control options?

For the momma's out there wondering what happens at this appointment, it was relatively quick and mostly painless. They checked my weight (still 10 lbs over pre-pregnancy) and blood pressure, like every prenatal appointment. The nurse asked all the same questions from the prenatal appointment as far as my general health went. Then the doctor does a vaginal exam to check how your healed and if your uterus is back in the right position. She also checked my breasts since I am breastfeeding. I will say the vaginal/uterus exam was a little bit uncomfortable, but not as bad as the cervix check from pregnancy.

I found out I tore in two different places, both second degree tears. Third is the worst, but I guess having tears in two places might have been why my lady parts felt pretty raw for so long. However, everything was healed up "nicely" my doctor said, lol. I got the go ahead to workout! I went to a hot yoga class the next day. I'm thrilled! And to my husband's delight, we got the go ahead for in the bedroom too. (Lube, ladies. Buy lube.)

I was surprised that my doctor recommended condoms for birth control, just because there are only a few varieties of the pill you can take when breastfeeding, and you have to be taking the pill for at least 30 days for it to be effective. Plus, there is no way to know when you're ovulating until you have your first postpartum period. If you're looking for a longer-term birth control, she recommended the IUD, but since we aren't sure quite when we want another little one, she recommended condoms and the pill.

Hope that demystifies the postpartum visit for ladies out there who had vaginal births!



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