Your Bladder May Fail
"One of the main issues that many women have to deal with almost immediately is incontinence," said Dr. Mary Rosser, an assistant professor in the department of obstetrics, gynecology and women's health at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx. Pregnancy and childbirth can weaken the pelvic floor muscles and, in some cases, cause damage to the nerves controlling the bladder -- regardless of how you deliver. Kegel exercises (think tightening your pelvic muscles as if you were trying to hold in urine) can help. Rosser typically tells her patients they can start kegel-ing almost immediately after birth, with the caveat that it shouldn't hurt. if it does, hold off until everything's healed."
You'll Lose Your Hair
No, not because of the stress of those early sleepless nights, but because during pregnancy the hair cycle "arrests" in the growth phase, explained Dr. Staci Tanouye, an OBGYN with the Mayo Clinic. Many pregnant women report having the thickest, fullest hair of their lives for the same reason. After pregnancy, the cycle restarts, so "there can be quite a bit of hair loss," Tanouye said. Many moms will get back to their normal thickness after a couple of months; others may end up with thinner hair indefinitely. But, silver lining! According to Rosser, the excess hair that also sprouts up on women's faces and bodies during pregnancy (the result of increased androgen, the male hormone) also typically falls off after baby is born.
You'll Sweat More
When you're pregnant, your body produces and retains more fluid, and after your baby's born, that fluid needs somewhere to go. That's why, in the days and weeks after their babies are born, many women experience serious night-sweats, in addition to peeing a lot more frequently. It's something Rosser personally experienced when she had a baby. "I'd told women about it, but I was dumbfounded," the OBGYN laughed. "I would wake up in cold sweats to the point that I had to take a shower to get warm."
Your Vagina Will Be Bigger (And Maybe A Little Gassy)
Yes, after you have a baby, your vagina will change. And no, it probably won't ever fully return to its pre-birth shape. But in most cases, any vaginal widening will be relatively minor. "After several weeks, women will see that it regains some muscle tone," said Rosser. "It shouldn't be a big change in the long run." It's also possible, though less common, for women to begin experiencing what is, essentially, vaginal gas. Dr. Shieva Ghofrany, an OBGYN with Stamford Hospital, in Conn., said she's had otherwise healthy patients tell her they notice a gas coming from their vaginas after they have babies. "Somehow, with all the changes, gas can escape from the rectum and slides into the vagina, then sneaks out," she explained. It should stop within a few months, said Ghofrany, who generally tells women to give their bodies a full eight to 10 months before everything truly settles down.
You'll Lose A Cup Size
It's not uncommon for women to drop a full bra size after having a baby, and we're talking compared to their pre-pregnancy chests, not those glorious mid- and post-pregnancy breasts. "They get saggy, they get smaller and it happens more with each pregnancy," Rosser said, adding that studies show the changes have less to do with breastfeeding than with pregnancy itself, as well as factors like whether a woman is overweight or a smoker.
...And Your Breasts Could Leak For A Long Time
It's no surprise that breasts leak milk right after women have babies, but it is surprising for many women to discover that this can go on for years. Rosser's had women tell her their breasts began leaking a small amount up to two years after having their baby, typically triggered by hearing a friend or sister's newborn cry. Though it's usually harmless, Rosser does encourage women to go see a doctor to ensure that the discharge is normal.
You'll See Spots (In The Mirror)
Some women, particularly women with darker skin, develop melasma during pregnancy -- small patches of darker skin that look like freckles on their cheeks or foreheads -- explained Ghofrany. In some cases, the spots will fade, but many moms find that that melasma, often known as the "pregnancy mask," becomes permanent. If it's a concern, melasma can be treated with topical creams, Ghofrany said.
Your Feet Will Be Bigger
Immediately after your baby's birth, you may find that your feet and ankles swell, sometimes even more than they did when you were pregnant. Again, this has to do with all that fluid your body makes and retains during pregnancy, Rosser explained. It needs somewhere to go. Though that initial swelling should go away relatively quickly, many women find that the foot growth they experienced during pregnancy lasts for 6 months or beyond, and in some cases ... indefinitely. "Your feet can permanently go up by a size or two," said Ghofrany.
Your Overall Shape Will Change
"One of the things that many women don't realize is that even if they get back to their pre-pregnancy body weight, it'll be shaped differently," said Tanouye, who said that most of the changes will be in the "boobs, bottom and hips." Many women describe these hard-earned, motherly shape changes in the same way: "By the three month mark, I hear from a lot women that they're feeling better physically and better about their bodies -- and that they're feeling softer overall," she said. Perfect for snuggling equally soft babies, we say!
Keep Reading
PHOTOS: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/24/a-beautiful-body-book-project-jade-beall-photos_n_3467178.html" target="_blank">This Is What Mom's Bodies Really Look Like</a> ON THE BLOG: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/allison-tate/mom-pictures-with-kids_b_1926073.html" target="_blank">The Mom Stays In The Picture</a> QUOTED: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/30/kristen-bell-redbook_n_3673820.html?utm_hp_ref=parents&ir=Parents" target="_blank">What Kristen Bell Thinks About Post-Baby Body Pressures</a>
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