"No One Told Me": Why Are Women Not Sufficiently Informed About Postpartum?

101 mothers reveal the postpartum realities their doctors never mentioned

A first-time mother asks the r/beyondthebump community what they wish they had known about postpartum recovery before giving birth. She is looking for practical insight, advice, and personal stories to help her prepare

Summary of Comments

The thread (101 comments) reveals a striking pattern: women consistently describe being blindsided by normal postpartum experiences that no one warned them about. Major themes include severe mood swings, constipation emergencies, temperature dysregulation, prolonged bleeding, and physical recovery taking far longer than expected. Many commenters express shock at how unprepared they felt despite reading and researching beforehand. Several describe serious complications, including hospitalization for UTIs, postpartum hemorrhage, and sleep-deprivation hallucinations, that they were initially dismissed for. One commenter captured the thread’s essence: “You really can’t be prepared. For anything.”