Gave Birth 6 Days Ago and Feet Are Still Swollen!

It can take weeks to stop swelling. I remember so looking forward to that being done with my first pregnancy!

After my first I was swollen all the way up to my thighs, I could barely bend my knees. I had a c-section and took in tons of IV fluids. It took about 3 weeks for it to go down. It was not comfortable to walk since I couldn't really bend my knees but it was the only thing that really helped me.

I was sooo swollen with my daughter and as soon as I gave birth it went down. I had her on a Thursday so my first pedi appointment wasn't until monday and monday I couldn't tie my tennis shoes! My feet were so huge they felt like they would split in to. No joke! My doc said to monitor my blood pressure and watch the salt intake and keep them elevated as much as possible. About a week and a half later I was normal again! Congrats!

Is it too swollen to walk? Have you noticed feeling out of breath? Do you feel hazy at all?

I had a severe complication with my cesarean that caused me to retain all the fluid instead of losing it. My legs and feet looked like the elephant man's and I was drifting off and having trouble breathing it was so bad (think of Congestive Heart Failure type of symptoms). I went to the ER and they immediately admitted me and started giving me Lasix. Then they checked my main femoral arteries for any clots.

Unless you are peeing a lot, you may want to stabilize the water you are drinking rather than upping it and call your General Dr and OB about your symptoms. It may be nothing, but it could be something too.

My feet were pretty swollen a few weeks before birth and it took a few weeks for it to go away after birth.
I was holding a lot of water - I lost 20 lbs giving birth and then 20 more lbs in the two weeks afterward.
Drinking plenty of water helps your kidneys to flush the excess out of your system - make sure you get adequate potassium - have a banana every day.
Are your feet less swollen in the morning (after laying down at night)?
You could try getting some compression socks.
Put them on in the morning before the swelling gets bad and they will help keep the fluid from building up.
I'd give it another week or so before I'd too concerned about it.

Get some of those socks, the really tight ones, MAN I can't think of what they're called... you're just retaining the extra water weight from pregnancy, sounds like... and keep them elevated like you're doing, all that good stuff. If it isn't better in the next few days, I'd call your doc and make sure your BP isn't high. Feel better and congrats on the newbie!! :)

Thanks for the flashback. I took in so many IV's it took FOREVER for all those fluids to finally go thru. It probably was a good month before my feet went back to normal. Man, that was the LAST thing I thought I was going to have to deal with/worry about after having a baby.

It just one of those things you have to ride out.

Congrats on the baby. :)

You're going to be swollen and retaining a lot of fluid for a few weeks. Usually by about 5-6 weeks, things tend to work their way out.
Not much you can do about it.

Hang in there!

That happened to me too. It was awful. I went to the doctor and they gave me an extra strength benedryl. Turns out I had an allergic reaction to some fluids they gave me. The fluid got stuck in my feet. The benedryl really helped.

Soak your feet in Epsom salts. You can get them at the pharmacy.

It took awhile for my feet to finally start to look normal again. You are doing the right things, they should eventually go down. It's actually a good thing to walk around a bit, because the action of your muscles helps to squeeze that extra fluid back where it belongs. If it doesn't seem to be getting any better at all, or getting worse, or if you are in extreme discomfort, give your OB a call. But in the meantime, snuggle your brand new baby and enjoy life in the slow lane for a little while. Congratulations!

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I just want to make sure you are aware of post eclampsia I had never heard of it but ended up having it after my third. My feet stayed swelled up and I ended up in the hospital with extremely high blood pressure. I would get it checked out if you can. Even just at home or go to a local pharmacy that has a bp machine to make sure.

After birthing our 2nd child, my feet to upper thighs were swollen. not due to high blood pressure or diabetes...nothing like that. The obgyn thought it came from the water they ran around to strip the membranes to induce labor; I did the whole drinking water thing and keeping feet up...nothing went down; so I went to see my chiropractor. My chiropractor had me take 3 tbsp of liquid organic fish oil (not pills but liquid), the bottle cost me $24.99, but within less than 3 days the swelling from my feet and legs went down.

I had that exact problem after having my first, my feet literally looked like huge water balloons! It's going to take awhile for the swelling to go away. Also keep your feet elvated and try not to stand on them too much, watch for salt too! That will make them swell up even more! I think it took me about 2 weeks for the swelling to go down after having my first. It'll go down soon hopefully! Congrat's on your little bundle of joy!

how are you feeling otherwise? you can get pre-eclampsia post partum, so if you are having ANY symptoms of high blood pressure, check with your OB immediately. you really should give him/her/your midwife a call about the swelling - it's always better to be safe than sorry - i do know two friends that were hospitalized with post partum pre-eclampsia, it can be quite dangerous. you're probably "just retaining fluids", but get it checked!

i agree with Dawn - my doctor told me to not lie around all day, but walk a little and get the blood pumping to help flush out the fluid. You'll want to rest, of course, but don't just sit with your feet up all day. Also, when you do sit, be sure you're just propping them up a bit - you can reduce the blow flow to your legs if you're at too much of an angle and actually increase the swelling.