Sabiha is happy and content. Her two week old baby is a sweet child who feeds well, has settled into a routine and is not fussy. Sabiha feels energetic and wants to know how active she can be. She had a normal vaginal delivery.

Resuming normal activity

You can start moving around your room in the hospital as soon as you feel up to it. You can walk to the bathroom. You can have a bath the very next day after your delivery. You can wash your hair in a few days and as often as you want after that.

You might feel tired and exhausted after the delivery because you are still not used to the baby’s schedule. Rest whenever the baby is sleeping.

If your episiotomy is still hurting, you can use Sitz baths. A Sitz bath is just a basin filled with warm water in which you can sit for a few minutes. This soothes the sutures. You can have a Sitz bath two or three times a day till the sutures have stopped hurting.

Once you are home, you can resume your normal activity gradually. You can climb stairs. One month after the delivery, you should be able to completely resume all your normal activities, including driving your vehicle. After 4 weeks you should be able to start postnatal exercises to get back into shape.

Kegel’s exercises

Kegel's is a specific type of exercise for the muscles that support the rectum, vagina and the urethra. Strengthening these muscles can help bladder control after a vaginal delivery, and decrease the risk of getting a prolapse.

To learn how to contract the right muscles, try to stop the flow of urine when you are urinating. Do this several times. Once you know how to squeeze the muscles to stop the flow of urine, you know how to contract the right muscles.

You can then start doing these exercises, anytime, anywhere, while you are sitting down. You can squeeze the pelvic muscles at least 20-30 times, at least three times a day.  Make sure you empty your bladder before doing the exercises. Check with your obstetrician, if you are not sure how to do them.