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Saturday, October 5, 2024

6 Health Issues Women Can Experience After Childbirth

Childbirth is something wonderful a lot of women want to experience at least once in their lifetime – but on the other hand, a lot of those women are not aware of all the risks and damages that can happen afterward. It’s safe to say that the painful act of giving birth is not the only struggle new moms can face after they give birth.  That’s why people need to speak up on these topics and spread the information as much as possible, so women can be aware of what can possibly happen. Here are 6 health issues women can experience after childbirth!

1. Cardiovascular diseases

It’s well known that pregnancy and childbirth leave a strain on a woman’s body, carrying and feeding a baby inside of you can drain you quite a bit and impact every part of your body With that being said, some cardiovascular diseases such as peripartum cardiomyopathy can be extremely dangerous, as it can cause heart failure before giving birth or a few months after. Thankfully PPCM is uncommon and it happens pretty rarely, so that’s maybe why a lot of women aren’t aware of it. But it’s always better to know additional information, on top of knowing your medical history and genetics just to make sure if you are prone to a disease or not! Always talk to your doctor about your concerns before you conceive, especially if you are more likely to suffer from cardiovascular illnesses. 

2. Infection or sepsis

Childbirth is not pretty, it’s treated like any wound, therefore the chances of it getting infected is pretty moderate if the conditions aren’t sterile. The infections can be wary, depending on what kind of bacteria it’s causing it, but they can be harmful both for the mother and the baby if left untreated – some can even be lethal!  Maternal sepsis is a severe form of this infection caused by bacteria, usually days following the birth or just after. Sometimes this bacteria won’t be so harmful, but in other cases, it can attack the mother’s system and cause sepsis. This often happens when the environment is not properly cleaned during the procedure, usually, it starts in the uterus and starts to spread in the regions around it. Maternal sepsis is not as common nowadays, thanks to better medical conditions and a cleaner practice, but it used to be deadly back in the day!

3. Anal fissures

Since pregnancy and childbirth take so much physical strength and it causes the women’s body to constantly change in every way possible. In addition to this, the women might face some unpleasant consequences after they come home with their baby, and some of them are extremely painful and uncomfortable like anal fissures. They happen when the skin around tears around the anal, causing wounds and cuts to occur. Thankfully, anal fissure treatment is available to anyone, and it can be solved by taking medicine, and if that doesn’t work a small surgical procedure will be made. The symptoms are easily recognizable and painful, marks can be noticeable on the area along with blood. But all in all, this occurrence is pretty common and not as lethal and harmful as the rest!

4. Postpartum depression

Sure, physical health is important, and in most cases, women suffer from physical issues after childbirth, but not a lot of women are aware of the obvious mental conditions that can also occur after the matter. It’s actually not that uncommon for women to get postpartum depression after they give birth to their child. Most women get the occasional anxiety, stress, and mood swings due to all the hormones, but in some cases, they can develop depression that is more severe and long-term. In some cases, it can get so bad, that the women develop postpartum psychosis that includes paranoia, hallucinations, obsessive thoughts, and even urges to harm themselves or their baby! The mental health of the new mother should be taken seriously just as much as physical health!

5. Anemia

During your pregnancy, you need to take extra care of your vitamin and iron levels, as they can drastically decrease during your pregnancy. This will increase your need for iron and if left untreated can cause iron-deficiency anemia. Altho, this is not that common, if your body doesn’t have enough iron, it can reduce the process of making hemoglobin, or in other words a much-needed chemical in producing red blood cells that are important for delivering oxygen all over your body. On one hand, taking vitamins is extremely important to maintain your wellbeing during and after pregnancy, but you still need to pay attention to iron as well. Anemia can happen after heavy childbirth that leads to a lot of bleeding, leaving your iron levels extremely low. It can also be for a few months after the childbirth, but going to regular doctor’s appointments and taking the right treatment will sort things out in no time!

6. High blood pressure

High blood pressure is pretty common amongst older people, but women who gave birth are also prone to getting it as well. Postpartum preeclampsia can occur after you give birth, causing high blood pressure and too much build of protein in your urine. It’s important to detect and treat it as soon as possible, as if it’s left untreated it can cause more health problems and seizures. This condition can start 48h after the childbirth is finished or it can develop over the course of a few weeks after the childbirth, with the common symptoms being headaches, high blood pressure, blurry vision, nausea, and similar. The causes of this occurrence can warry, and they are sometimes unclear, but it’s a possibility that it can happen due to all the fluids that are involved in childbirth, as they can raise the blood pressure. 

At the end of the day, as long as you know your medical history and get regular checks at the doctor, you can prevent a lot of things from happening and treat them right away. That’s why you should never ignore strange symptoms, pain, or abnormalities and call a professional for advice! It’s always better to be safe than sorry!

Finally, you should take active steps toward prioritizing healing and self-care. You should also look after yourself to give your baby the best possible care. 

Engaging in activities that will help your body doesn’t need to take up loads of your time. A 30-minute soak in the tub, while hubby puts your newborn to sleep, will make you feel much better. So does having that free hour or two each day to relax from mommy duties.

Practices like belly wrapping are also helpful. Belly binding provides external support while internal support is rebuilt in your postpartum belly with restorative exercise.  It also improves your posture and prevents core dysfunction.

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