Contractions after birth

Immediately after delivery, your uterus contracts considerably to close the wound left by the placenta in the uterine wall. This limits the amount of blood loss. This contraction is experienced very differently by women; as not or barely noticeable, to quite painful. These contractions that you can experience after childbirth and often also during breast-feeding are called after-effects. Especially if it was not your first delivery or if the delivery went quickly, you often suffer more from it. The uterus forms a hard, small ball in your abdomen. This contraction causes the uterus to shrink faster.

WHAT TO DO?

A full bladder can irritate the uterus and make after-contractions worse. So go pee regularly. You can also take paracetamol for the pain. You can take up to 6 of the normal 500 mg tablets per day. For the first period it is useful to build up a certain level. You can choose to take 2 paracetamol every 8 hours for the first few days and set an alarm for this. Over the next few days, you can gradually reduce this.