Lower levels of estrogen thin out the tissue in the vagina and increase vaginal dryness and tightness after birth, especially compared to pregnancy. You may feel even more dry if you're breastfeeding, which suppresses estrogen, although dryness should dissipate once you stop breastfeeding your baby.
So in broad terms, a young mother with an uncomplicated vaginal delivery will usually fully recover vaginal tightness within the first 6 months of having her first child.
Sometime after birth, the vagina contracts to its normal size. It is very common for a woman to experience changes to her vagina following a vaginal birth. Some women may experience injury via tearing or episiotomy to their vagina. While these injuries heal, the vagina may feel tighter or more tender than before.
“The tissue surrounding the vagina gets looser and softer, resulting in the vagina getting a little longer," says Priya Rajan, M.D., associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University.
All of the tissues in your pelvic floor, including the muscles in your vagina, are stretched during childbirth. But just as you can stretch your leg muscles without making your legs permanently wobbly, your vagina and pelvic floor should be stronger and even tighter, not looser, once you've healed.
Does a Postpartum Saggy Belly Go Away on Its Own? With time, your postpartum belly will start to reduce on its own. Although, there are a few things you can do to help the process along from home.
A Word From Verywell Family
You can rest assured that your widening hips, in most cases, will return back to their pre-pregnancy state, usually by 12 weeks postpartum.
Your Hips Get Wider
For most women, these enlarged bones go back to their original place by about 18 weeks postpartum, but some women keep the extra girth permanently. "My hips stayed permanently wider which was great for me because I had no shape before," said a Reddit user.
Your postpartum recovery won't be just a few days. Fully recovering from pregnancy and childbirth can take months. Although many women feel mostly recovered by 6-8 weeks, it may take longer than this to feel like yourself again. During this time, you may feel as though your body has turned against you.
Although this is possible, it doesn't happen that way for most mums. Bear in mind that your body may change shape after pregnancy. You may find it difficult to return to your exact pre-pregnancy weight or shape. Patience is the key.
The NHS notes that it is normal for a person's vagina to appear wider than it did pre-birth. The swelling and openness should subside in a few days. Even so, vaginal laxity is a common complaint among those who have recently given birth.
Yes. You might notice more vaginal discharge than usual when you're pregnant. This is called leucorrhoea. It usually looks clear or white and doesn't have a strong smell.
Some people describe the feeling as being like intense period cramps, others say it feels like a tightening or pounding feeling in your uterus or across your belly, others describe the feeling as being like very intense muscle cramps, while still other people describe contractions as being like the sort of wrenching ...
The cervix generally doesn't close fully for around six weeks, so up until that point, there's the risk of introducing bacteria into the uterus and ending up with an infection, Pari Ghodsi, M.D., a board-certified ob/gyn based in Los Angeles, tells SELF.
After birth, hormone levels drop quickly and often take the glow with them. In addition, the stress that comes with becoming a new parent and sleep deprivation can quickly make the skin look dull, dry and tired.
"During pregnancy, very often a woman's activity and nutrition levels go down," says OB-GYN Michael Dawson, M.D., of Atlanta Women's Specialists. "These factors mean you gain weight. The extra fat then gets distributed to places where women most often put on weight: the backside, hips, and thighs."
Avoid stairs and lifting until your doctor says these activities are OK. Don't take a bath or go swimming until the doctor says it's OK. Don't drive until your doctor says it's OK. Also wait until you can make sudden movements and wear a safety belt properly without discomfort.
You'll have a (slightly) wider vagina.
Things can also feel looser down there post-childbirth, but it tends to gradually go back to normal. If, however, you have a very large baby (or have had many babies), it might not go back to exactly the way it was before.