Postpartum Hair & Baby Belly

Hi Lovelies!

Thank you all for your kind and wonderful messages yesterday. May God bless every single one of you with all your needs in Jesus name! Amen!

Today I am going to be discussing Postpartum Hair Loss and Body Changes. Postpartum means after childbirth for those who may not know. (I did not know all these words before I became pregnant so it is okay if some of you do not know them as well. 

During pregnancy, I only gained 13 kg so I was able to lose 7 kg immediately after childbirth. 

I also only went up one UK dress size. From size 10 to 12.

Natural Hair

I had my natural hair till about 38weeks of pregnancy. So it was literally 2 weeks before I was due that I installed grey and gold kanakelon hair attachments. I made my hair in single braids myself before also braiding my mums hair as well. I am not sure how I was able to muster up the energy but thank God I was able to.

As mentioned in my previous post (my pregnancy journey), my baby came at exactly 40weeks and due to the unexpected experience of being a new mum, my braids were in for 3 and a half months! I only took them out before Christmas because people were begging me too. (haha!)

But on a serious note, there was one main reason why I got so comfortable with the braids in my natural hair; 

• After 3-4 months my scalp was still VERY clean. I am not bluffing. I cannot explain the science behind this as I did not expect it. It felt as clean as the day I washed it prior to braiding my hair.
• Also, after I did get around to detangling (not washing) my hair, I barely had any significant shedding. All that came off was only a weeks worth of shed hair and I was so relieved having been told of how postpartum shedding can be a nightmare with clumps of hair falling out. This was indeed a welcome relief and I am honestly super grateful to God for it.

Post Baby Belly (Stomach)

To be honest, I was more concerned about how my belly would look after pregnancy than my hair. I just could not phantom how my baby bump could go back to being as flat as a wall like it used to, but it did!

Soon after I gave birth, my belly was the first thing I looked at (after my baby of course), and it looked flat! Or so I thought, until I had to get up from the hospital bed and my belly fell like a loosely inflated water baloon. I looked 6months pregnant again. 

Which was not exactly bad because I had a moderately flat stomach till 28 plus weeks into my pregnancy. 

Both my moms (my mother and my mother in law were pleasantly surprised). They had heard of women who were pregnant and did not show but they had never seen one until me.

Moving on, the midwife and my mum explained that it was just the excess fluid and blood that was still remaining in my body and after 3 months it would all be gone. 

They were certainly telling the truth. 

After about 3 days, most of the water had gone from my belly but my feet on the other had was still very much swollen. (I had swollen feet at 20 weeks!)

Soon after most of the water had gone out, I noticed I had diastasis recti. This means my abdominal muscles had separated due to the pressure from my baby. 

In other words, within the first month, my stomach was flat, soft and my abs were separated.

Chinwe Juliet

At this point, I had not been cleared to do any exercises so I could not do any.

Instead, I allowed my body to heal naturally while eating and resting very well (THANK YOU MUMMY, MAY GOD BLESS YOU SUPER ABUNDANTLY! ‘Omugo’ is the life!) I have definitely gained more weight now. (haha)

Although, I did have to tie my tummy with belly binders which I will discuss with you all on the best ones to buy in another post.

In summary, I was able to get back my hard defined belly within 3 months. Now I am working out but very moderately. Every time I try to do intense cardio I feel like passing out so I am certainly taking my time to return to my pre pregnancy size. 

Stretch Marks

I was able to evade stretch marks on my belly and I attribute this to three things.

1. I did not gain weight fast around my belly.
2. I did not scratch my belly because skin can get very itchy when its stretching during pregnancy. (My mother in law warned me very sternly to avoid this one and I am glad I listened.) 
3. I was working out 5 times a week, usually switching between strength training, walking and swimming. 

There is obviously nothing wrong with stretch marks, they come in all shapes and sizes and can appear where you least expect them too. It is all part of the beauty and the wonderful miracle of carrying a new human being inside you so please, it is something to definitely be proud of. 

What kind of postpartum body changes did you get? Share in the comment section below!