Each woman
has a unique pregnancy, a unique birth experience, unique children, and unique parenting
styles. I was always told this, but I never truly understood until having my
son Arlo.
My pregnancy
was fantastic. I breezed through the first trimester with no nausea, had an
excellent second trimester where I felt full of energy and traveled across
Canada with family. During my
third trimester I finished my Master’s Degree and I walked across the stage at
convocation a week before Arlo was born. I had great energy levels throughout
my pregnancy and even worked at a fitness facility where I was doing close
shifts until 11pm until I was 39 weeks pregnant. I stayed as active throughout
my pregnancy and felt confident doing cardio, lifting weights and teaching spin
until the day before Arlo was born. One friend I worked with called me the “pregnancy
unicorn” and I understood all too well that my experience was unique to me and
to this pregnancy.
As you might
imagine, my labour and delivery story is also unique. I will describe my story,
but it’s not to scare you. By telling my birth experience, I want to share with
you how I was able to recover and get back into exercise.
I was in
labour for almost 24 hours (from start to finish). I was positive for Group B
Streptococcus (a normal bacteria found in the vaginal tract, but requiring
antibiotics in labour) and was told to head into the labour and delivery unit
if my water broke. My contractions started at about 5:00am on the Wednesday and
stopped at 9:00am. I went for a walk with my husband and after getting to the
end of the block, I thought I had wet my pants. I ended up calling the labour
and delivery room and essentially said “I know it’s possible I peed my pants
but my water could have broke as well”. It wasn’t the usual “gush” you hear
about. My water did break and I was induced around 1:30pm that afternoon. I did get an epidural. My contractions were
coupling (coming two at a time with no breaks) and with little sleep the night
before I couldn’t relax. After receiving the epidural, Arlo’s heart rate fell
and at one point we thought I was going in for an emergency cesarean section. Arlo’s
heart rate dropped one last time and the doctors needed to get him out
immediately. I was told to push (I maybe had time for 6 pushes) and heard the
words forceps and episiotomy. In the midst of the emotion, all my husband and I
were concerned about was the safe arrival of our unborn child. While I did have
a vaginal birth, I sustained 4th degree tears.
Arlo Jasper
Vriend was born at 4:01am on Thursday November 24, 2016. Thankfully, we heard
Arlo’s little cry a minute after he was born and he was placed in my arms five
minutes after delivery. I required stitching that lasted about 45 minutes and
was told “this is about as bad as it gets when it comes to tearing”. I was
terrified. Not only did I have a newborn child but I was unsure what 4th degree
tearing was. I had no idea what kind of trauma I sustained. How was I supposed
to look after this newborn child while unsure if I could walk, go to the
bathroom, or look after myself?
What I
learned is, many women who have a vaginal birth will have
a superficial tear that heal relatively quickly and do not require stiches. A
small percentage of women who deliver vaginally end up with a more serious tear
in their perineum that extends to or through the rectum. A third-degree
laceration is a tear in the vaginal tissue, perineal skin, and perineal
muscles that extends into the anal sphincter (the muscle that surrounds your
anus). A fourth-degree tear goes through the anal sphincter and the
tissue underneath it.
I’m here to
tell you that you can and will return to exercise after whether you have a “traumatic”
birth or a birth with no complications. You will be able to return to exercise
after a cesarean section. It may not look the same, you might need more time to
recover, but you will get back to it. I’m going to share with you my five tips
for an effective recovery to ensure you return to exercise the right way.
1. Take your time and rest.
I
took almost eight weeks off of any exercise other than walking. For the first
three weeks I had to sit on an invalid ring (the official name for a donut –
not nice!). There felt like a large led weight in my pelvic floor if I walked
for any duration. I truly believe that taking the time I needed to truly heal
the trauma part, was crucial. Yes – I almost went stir crazy in the house and
the hormones didn’t help, but had I not taken the time I needed, I might never
have healed.
2. Take the medication you need.
I
was prescribed some pretty heavy duty pain killers that I needed to take every
three hours. At one point over the Christmas holidays, I figured I could tough
it off and get off the pain killers. I realized very quickly, I didn’t need to
be a hero (and wasn’t very good at it). Check with your doctor and pharmacist
that the pain killers are safe, but take what you need to heal. While you need
to look after this newborn baby, you need to look after yourself. And if you
are in pain, that’s very difficult to do.
3. Go see a pelvic floor
Physiotherapist.
This
is probably the best advice I could have received and could give to you. Even
if you didn’t receive 4th degree tears and even if you delivered via scheduled
cesarean section - GO SEE A PHYSIOTHERAPIST. I had the opportunity to attend
the Royal Alexandra Hospital’s pelvic floor physiotherapy clinic because I had
such severe tearing. I also sought out a private physiotherapist who
specialized in pelvic floor therapy. The internal exam was scary but so was my
first bowel movement with 4th degree tears (was it going to open my stiches?).
All three physiotherapists that I saw provided me with techniques for safe
bowel movements, exercises to repair and strengthen my pelvic floor and make me
feel like I was normal again. I am happy to report that I have not struggled with
bladder incontinence but still struggle to hold gas from time to time. I still complete my exercises
(including relaxation exercises) and feel stronger than ever.
4. Ask for help.
I
spent a lot of my first two months with Arlo healing and learning about myself
and my new family. I am fortunate to have amazing family and friends nearby who
were more than willing to help when I needed it. People were more than willing
to provide food, advice, gifts and a listening ear when I needed it. I couldn’t
have done it without them.
5. When exercising again – seek a
post-partum exercise specialist and do the modifications.
I
am an extremely competitive person. I have always been an athlete and a
competitive athlete. Not exercising intensely for eight weeks in the cold of winter
nearly drove me crazy. At one point two weeks post-partum I cried to my husband
saying “I used to be a productive member of society and now I sit and
breastfeed for five hours a day!”. Having a baby is a big change and so when I
was cleared for exercise, I wanted to jump right back into where I left off
pre-pregnancy. Just because you are cleared for exercise by your doctor doesn’t
mean you can go all out. Just because you had a cesarean section and are
cleared for exercise, doesn’t mean you can take the highest intensity route.
Your body changes after pregnancy and needs time to heal (more than eight
weeks). The only reason I can run, jump and exercise at this intensity now is
that I attended Fit Your Life classes (with Jamie and Kellie) and chose the low
intensity exercises for another 3-4 months post-partum. I needed to re-learn
how to control my pelvic floor and exercise with breath and purpose. Don’t rush
back too fast. I know it seems slow but you can and will get back to full
exercise, in due time.
I’m sure
there are many other tips out there. What did you do to return to exercise? Did
it take a long time? This list is not exhaustive. Everyone will have their own
unique journey back to exercise, just as each pregnancy, labour and delivery, and baby are unique. One thing that I learned for sure is that women are
superheroes. I am amazed by the body’s ability to grow a beautiful human being,
sustain such trauma, and heal again. Remember
– you are amazing!
Erin
Comments
Post a Comment