15 Photos That Actually Show What Postpartum Life Is Like

    Hair loss, pills, and milk everywhere.

    Terri Pous
    by Terri Pous

    BuzzFeed Staff

    We recently asked the BuzzFeed Community to show us photos of what postpartum life really looks like. Here are some of the best responses:

    1.

    buzzfeed.com

    "Four months postpartum and I have begun to lose my hair, this happened with all four of my pregnancies at exactly four months. Around month six postpartum, it will be thinned to the back of my head. Good thing is it will grow back, eventually." —sillyadi83

    2.

    buzzfeed.com

    "I was a surrogate and am pumping to feed him. This is 24 hours' worth of milk...he’s a month old. Thankfully, I’m friends with the family so get to snuggle him! It’s exhausting and my boobs hurt, but so worth it!" —kathygreeleyc

    3.

    buzzfeed.com

    "After nearly dying delivering our twins, I finally met our daughter June. She is living with a congenital heart defect and has had two open heart surgeries so far. This was the moment I met the inspiration for my life's passion — postpartum doula care." —summerr4619bcb17

    4.

    buzzfeed.com

    "After my daughter was born 18 years ago, I suffered from postpartum depression. It was horrible and still hard to talk about. Suddenly I understood how a mother could kill their child and why. Once that relaxation struck I told my now ex who watched me sleep that night and took me to my doctor the next morning. Citalopram saved my sanity and my child. Still all these years have gone by and I'm still so ashamed of how I felt that I hate talking about it. I also realize that I have to talk about if only to let other mothers know they are not monsters, that it's your brain, not you. Get help, get meds, talk to you spouse or partner and know you are not alone." —daunejaimesd

    5.

    buzzfeed.com

    "My postpartum reality was not believing that you really are extra fertile shortly after giving birth especially if you’re not breastfeeding. Our first baby was born January 3, 2018, and our second is due December 8, 2018. If you do the math, we conceived #2 when our baby was about 10 weeks old and after I had only had one period." —shannonc4f8cc995d

    6.

    buzzfeed.com

    "This was my reality coming back to work as a probation/parole officer six weeks after my daughter was born. I had to wait to be re-certified since my credentials expired while I was out on maternity leave (luckily paid, through five years of saving my vacation and sick leave). As soon as I was re-certified, 60 files were dropped on my desk. I remember sitting there for a good long time wondering if I could balance being a working mother." —kaciej

    7.

    buzzfeed.com

    "No words needed." —colleens4ad5a6c04

    8.

    buzzfeed.com

    "So my postpartum resulted in this. I have alopecia and once I had my son (this was 2014), my hair decided to jump ship. Today, I am completely bald. My postpartum ended with me having alopecia universalis, and I honestly wouldn’t trade it for anything. I still have a hard time dealing with my hair loss, but my baby is so worth it." —sarak40af10182

    9.

    buzzfeed.com

    "This is me at one week postpartum. Recovering from an unplanned C-section and just overall exhausted. Wearing maternity sweats and a nursing bra. I strategically had the phone cover my face because I hated how I looked. I had a pretty bad case of the baby blues and was nervous I was going to get PPD. I would say that first week and the following week were the hardest." —kmcornejo

    10.

    buzzfeed.com

    "Baby number two came with a dairy sensitivity. While I could remember not to eat ice cream, drink milk, etc., I always forgot about delicious, wonderful cheese. This Post-It was way more effective than I thought it’d be. I’m still breastfeeding and dairy-free, and I have dreams about pizza and layer cake." —amygardnert

    11.

    buzzfeed.com

    "Pumping in my car in the college parking lot between classes because there are no private places to pump inside and I refused to sit in a bathroom and pump." —dainar2

    12.

    buzzfeed.com

    "I suffered severe postpartum depression after the birth of my son, so bad that I didn’t step outside my front door for over three months. This picture is the first time I went outside with my son, and it was a total fucking triumph." —charlottep419fb2af9

    13.

    buzzfeed.com

    "With the constant pain I had behind my incision, I was always trying to see how the cut was healing. For weeks, I felt like I was about to split open because of how bad it hurt every time I moved." —victoriaf4f2309550

    14.

    buzzfeed.com

    "There are a lot of complications that can happen postpartum. Things that might land you right back in the hospital even though you just left. I was not a happy camper to be admitted back to the hospital at a week postpartum because I had a possible blood clot." —kaitlinm47c8f8e51

    15.

    buzzfeed.com

    "What my legs looked like three days postpartum. I was on Pitocin for 30.5 hours and hooked up to an IV for three days. It hurt to walk. Can happily say the swelling did eventually go down." —Homia1kr

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