Post Partum Survival Kit

Fragrance Free

About a week before Robinson's due date, it suddenly dawned on me that since he is brand new to the world, he may feel overwhelmed by all of the fragrances I wear in daily life. Not just perfume, but body splash, body lotion, deodorant, etc. I decided right then that I would not bombard by newborn son's delicate olfactory senses with such pungencies, and I set about purchasing fragrance-free everything. You may want to consider this a little sooner, in case you don't have the luxury of being pregnant for ten months like me.

Epsom Salt
This c-section mama loved her epsom salt baths after returning from the hospital. It helps relieve minor aches and pains, it's relaxing, and it eases some of the swelling.

Lactation Station
During my short but spectacularly disastrous stint as a nursing mother, I acquired quite the arsenal of supplies, which I ended up assembling on my coffee table in what I lovingly referred to as my "lactation station". Some of the supplies were obvious ones (nursing pads, wipes, lanolin) and some were added as I took to the internet in search of helpful tips (vaseline, olive oil, nipple butter). I housed all of my items in a corningware dish, but if that seems too pedestrian, you could go rustic with a galvanized bucket, or crafty with a glazed ceramic bowl from Color Me Mine. You're really limited only by your imagination.

Compression
I'm told that compression garments were not always used post-delivery. Just another reason I'm glad to have given birth in the 21st century. They're standard-issue if you have a c-section, and I say wear it as long as possible. Binding helps the tummy go down more quickly, it relieves discomfort, and helps the skin to tighten up. Once my hospital compression garment became too roomy, I switched to the Belly Bandit, lauded by such "hot moms" as Brooke Burke and Kourtney Kardashian. One or both of them gets paid to sing the Belly Bandit's praises. I'll sing their praises for free. It really helps. I'm wearing mine now.

Shapewear
Wrapping myself in super-strength lycra gives me the courage to face the world. Spanx it til it fits, ladies!

Big Accessories
Do these earrings make my butt look big? No, they don't! Accessories always fit and can make you feel like a glam girly-girl, which is a shot in the arm to any new mom who is months away from fitting into her jeans. Just throw on your big Jackie O sunglasses and go on with yourself, big girl!

Coffee
It's my favorite way to get caffeine, and the best way to start my day. You're probably going to be sleep deprived. Do I even have to tell you this?

Forgiving Footwear
I started this journey wearing a size 7.5 shoe. Sometimes I would buy my stilletos in a size 8. Now I'm pretty much a size 8 all the time, and my feet were extremely swollen for at least a month after Robinson's birth. I made the mistake of cramming my foot into a size 7.5 shoe to run errands one day. Never again.

Haircut
Many will disagree with me on this: brave mommy warriors who declare that their baby will not rob them of their hotness or their bangin' hair. I agree with those mommies wholeheartedly. I don't even want to tell you that it was my girlhood dream to be in a Pantene commercial, but I will share this tidbit of information: the hormones that caused your hair to grow longer, thicker, fuller, faster will reverse. Don't fret--you won't lose hair in clumps or have bald spots. In fact, nobody will even notice--however, as I've watched about 1/3 of my hair fall out over the past couple weeks, I'm glad it's not still super long and layered. It's just a big freakin' mess to vacuum my bathroom floor every day and clean my shower drain daily. For those reasons, I'm glad for my all-one-length hair that falls just past my shoulders. See, I'm not saying to go get a bob or a pixie. Actually, it wasn't a conscious decision on my part. I just had a hormonal post-partum moment one day where my hair was annoying me and so I took a pair of scissors to it and lobbed off four or five inches. It was less of a Britney Spears head-shave moment and more of a Pedro from Napoleon Dynamite moment.

Skincare
There was so much of my old skincare regimen that was against the rules when I was pregnant. It had been so long since I engaged in my twice-daily skincare rituals that I had nearly forgotten them. Resuming this routine helps to give me some much-needed "me" time and start feeling like myself again.

What else, moms? Are there any other post-partum lifesavers that you wouldn't have thought of prior to becoming a mom?