Whether you've had a vaginal birth or C-section, the timeframe is the same – you can expect to poop between two to three days after delivery.
Constipation after delivery shouldn't last for more than three to four days, but it can be very uncomfortable. Many doctors will prescribe a breast-feeding-safe stool softener immediately after delivery to help with constipation.
It's typical to have your first postpartum bowel movement between three and five days after giving birth. But that's just an estimate. Some women might go the same day they give birth, while for others, it can take up to a week.
When does postpartum pooping get easier? Pooping should get easier as you heal and your body recovers. If there are no compounding complications, you should rebound and regulate within a few days to a week. If you are still having painful bowel movements a week or two postpartum, talk to your doctor.
Increasing number of cesarean deliveries was associated with an increasing risk of small bowel obstruction (OR 1.61, 95% CI 1.46-1.78, per additional cesarean delivery).
Since you'll receive two incisions — one in your abdomen and one in your uterus — your surgeon will close both incisions.
Hemorrhoids (Piles)
A hemorrhoid is a painful swelling of a vein in the rectum. After having a baby - especially after a vaginal delivery - many women develop hemorrhoids. Symptoms include pain, rectal itching, bleeding after having a bowel movement, or a swollen area around the anus.
"Whether you delivered vaginally or by C-section, it takes six weeks for the uterus to contract to its normal size," Dr. Daneshmand says. Resting a heating pad or hot-water bottle on your belly (but not on the incision) can help—and so can over-the-counter pain relievers like ibuprofen.
Remember, that first 6 weeks you are still dealing with uterus and fluid. For up to 12 weeks, muscles are naturally accommodating and shortening. C-moms can also have mild swelling up to 12 weeks.
Changes in poop after birth. As your body recovers from giving birth, the pelvic ligaments and muscles that hold your bladder, uterus and colon can feel stretched or weakened.
For Cesarean births, apply pressure over the abdomen with a pillow. This supports the healing incision while you poop, and also supplements the muscles of the abdominal wall that normally help to regulate pressure during defecation.
About six to eight weeks after baby's birth, your c-section incision should be completely healed, and you'll be able to gradually resume most of your normal activities, including exercising, driving and lifting items heavier than baby.
Gentle exercise, such as walking, will help you recover from your c-section. But avoid anything more active until you have no pain and you feel ready. For example, avoid driving, carrying anything heavy, having sex or doing heavy housework, such as vacuuming, until you feel able to.
The healing process also varies from person to person. Some people may experience tenderness and discomfort for up to eight weeks after a C-section.
3 weeks post-cesarean delivery
After you've been home from the hospital for 3 weeks or so, you might be walking for up to 15 minutes, gradually building up the time if it feels good. Keep up your daily pelvic floor exercises too.
While diet and exercise can help women lose excess fat after pregnancy, a healthy lifestyle can't make a c-section scar and bulge go away. Some women may find their c-shelf sticks around for years, while others may notice the area gradually flattens over time.
By the six-week mark, your vagina, perineum or C-section incision should be healed, and your uterus should be back to its normal size. Throughout those first weeks, you'll experience a lot of changes – from new levels of tiredness to hormone fluctuations.
You likely will feel sore for a few days and very tired for several weeks. It may take 4 to 6 weeks to feel like yourself again, and possibly longer if you had a cesarean (or C-section) birth. Over the next few days and weeks, you may have some bleeding and afterpains as your uterus shrinks.
If you've had stitches or a tear, doing a poo won't make the tear any bigger, or make your stitches fall out. It's understandable to feel vulnerable about this part of your body at the moment. But your tear won't get any bigger, and your stitches will stay firmly in place.
Painful urination after a C-section
That has to do with the fact that C-sections almost always include having a catheter placed, which can cause soreness and pee pain for a day or two. If you spent time pushing before having your C-section, that can cause the same temporary symptoms too.
Ideally, your doctor will cut through the same scar so that you don't have multiple scars on your abdomen and uterus. Sometimes scar tissue can be difficult to cut through but your doctor should be able to cut through it.
At the beginning of a caesarean section, six separate layers of the abdominal wall and uterus are opened individually. Once the baby is delivered the uterus is closed with a double layer of stitching.
Coughing and Sneezing Will Hurt
Eskridge, who underwent two c-sections of her own, experienced the same thing—and offers some useful advice: “Splinting (holding a pillow against the abdomen over the incision) is very helpful in preventing pain with coughs, sneezes and laughing,” she says.
During a C-section, your organs are usually just moved aside so that the doctor can see your uterus better. But the organs stay within the abdominal cavity and aren't taken out. In rare cases, the intestines may be temporarily lifted out for better visualization and space to operate, but not permanently.