Everything after birth feels like an absolute dream. You can’t quite believe it’s over with. 9 months has led up to this and it’s over, you’re a parent and your life is changed. Everyone is over the moon. It’s amazing how much joy a baby brings on everyone in your life, not just you. It’s beautiful really. You’ve created something that makes everyone else happy and there yours to keep forever.

But it’s not all rainbows and flowers.. From what I went through, I’ve made a list of the troubles you’ll go through after giving birth;

• You’ll feel like you’re peeing acid – pour warm water over you whilst you pee and drink loads of water, it really helps.
• You’ll be exhausted and emotional so be ready for tears over literally anything.
• You’ll still get contractions, how outrageous is that!? It’s just your uterus going back to size. Also, they get worse when you cuddle your baby because of the hormones the love between you releases! It’s pretty cool but bloody painful too.
• As fore mentioned, you will bleed more than you think. It’s not normal bleeding either, it’s massive clots too. It’s gross and creepy but it will happen. Get some granny pants you don’t mind chucking afterwards.
• If you gave birth vaginally, your fanny will hurt….really hurt.
• You’ll feel like you’ve got the worst hangover of your life. As hard as it is, drink loads and try to rest. My someone else do everything. You just gave birth!!!
• You probably won’t eat for like a week. Try too, it’ll only make you feel worse.
• You might feel like you have absolutely no idea what’s going on, what to do or when to do it. Don’t worry, I’m sure everyone feels like that. Trust your instincts. Do what you think is right. Your baby, your rules!
• DON’T feel bad if you feel like you can’t do it. You can. It’s like the first day of a new job. Everyone wants to know how it’s going and you probably won’t have a clue. It’s completely normal.
• There not made of glass. Your baby is a baby yes, but don’t feel scared to pick them up, move them, burp them. I was scared to touch N for a while in case I broke him and now I’m as heavy handed as they come.
• When your milk comes in, you’ll look like Jordan (it’s brilliant) but it hurts like hell. Invest in a massive comfy bra for these days and get some ice on them.
• I’ve said it before but do NOT feel pressured into visits too soon. Yes, people want to see your baby but you need time to bond with them and get into the swing of things first. You wouldn’t let someone else try your new Xmas present before you did right? Same ( sort of?) thing.
• The first few days are weird. Baby’s literally sleep 95% of the time and barely eat at first. Don’t worry. They will let you know if they’re hungry. They’ve just come from one world into another so they’re adjusting. They’ll be screaming at you all day and eating every 30 minutes in no time.
• If you’re breastfeeding, be prepared for your nipples to hurt. Grab some nipple cream and if you’re determined to breastfeed, persevere. It won’t hurt forever, you just need to get through the first few weeks and it’ll ease off.

You’ll settle into things soon, maybe straight away, maybe after a few weeks. Personally it took me ages to get used to having a baby. It was a huge adjustment and I’m still not convinced I’m doing it right..