If you thought baby’s poop will be the only one that would smell bad in your house, you were clearly wrong. There are many changes your body goes through during postpartum because it’s in the recovery stage. All the hormones, extra fluids, extra blood which has been inside your body is going to make it’s way out and the process is going to create a havoc for you. You will smell a little weird after childbirth. Find out why.
The first reason so as to why you smell different is because of lochia. Lochia is basically all the blood, which has stayed inside your uterus for 9 months. Now it’s completely useless. Lochia is a mixture of blood from the thickened endometrium + traces of blood around the uterine wall where the placenta was attached + dead tissue + mucus from the healing cervix. All of them are 9 months old, so they got to smell bad once they come out. Many women have testified that the smell was worse if they had smelly periods too. Your doctor might check you for infection once you tell him about the smell but that’s very rare. Smelly Lochia is very normal and not a cause for concern. It will stop once your lochia is COMPLETELY over. (All the traces). Yes, even the whitish turbid fluid can be smelly.
The second reason is your sebaceous glands which are completely out of line and will make you sweat a LOT! This is because the body had accumulated so much water during pregnancy. All of it will come out.
Again this problem will be more if you used to sweat a lot even before pregnancy. One more thing which can make the sweat worse is having hot flashes. Hormones are the culprit again. Once they start levelling out, you get hot flashes and sometimes the chills. Postpartum sweats can make you feel a little less fresh.
Moreover, Your doctor will ask you to wait for a certain amount of time before you can take a bath depending on your tears or mode of delivery but that shouldn’t keep you from applying the roll-ons and that deep fragranced lotion of yours. Don’t forget to pack that in your hospital bag.
The third reason is the breast milk. Yes, the breast milk has a certain smell, which kind of smells like your natural odour. This is because your baby will latch only after he smells you and the milk and what could smell better than something she is already used to for 9 months. Breast Milk has a very natural, sweet smell. Some women actually like the smell and feel really nice while they are breastfeeding. This is because oxytocin, the LOVE hormone is supposed to connect you with the baby.
It is heavily active in the breastmilk and that’s why the smallest whiff can give you a tingling sensation inside.
Don’t worry about any of them, they are just normal and just your body’s way of recovering from the childbirth. They would go away in at most 2 months. Do you have any tips for dealing with it? Tell us in the Comments Section Below.