For a woman after childbirth, returning to her usual state is a matter of paramount importance, hence the concern with the question: is it possible to go to the bathhouse while breastfeeding.
For those who, before pregnancy, were accustomed to cleansing the body with weekly or periodic trips to the bathhouse, returning to the usual ritual is of vital interest. But many pleasures are not recommended. The main argument against water procedures that young mothers listen to is the negative impact that increased air temperature can supposedly have on the lactation process or the quality of breast milk.
Is it possible to go to the bathhouse while breastfeeding?
The answer to the question whether it is possible to go to the bathhouse while breastfeeding does not depend on the harmful effects of water procedures on the quality of milk or the process of its separation. It is determined by the state of the body of a woman who has recently given birth. For a mother who wants to go on healthy hygienic procedures, the main importance is the period that has passed since childbirth, as well as the cessation of specific postpartum discharge. After childbirth, the danger of visiting a room with heated air may be due to unstable lactation.
The benefits of the procedure have been proven over hundreds of years of long-term, successful use: for cleansing the body, healing processes, renewing skin cells, optimizing blood circulation.
Before visiting the bathhouse, it is better to consult with your doctor, and also ask him about the possibility of starting the usual hygiene procedures. At the same time, you can find out whether visiting the sauna is allowed while breastfeeding, taking into account the characteristics of the body.
If a bathhouse with its moist air is a common phenomenon in the mentality, then a sauna with dry air can be considered a relative innovation for Russians, and the question of whether it is possible to steam in a bathhouse during breastfeeding and whether it affects feeding needs to be clarified separately.
Bath and sauna while breastfeeding
During breastfeeding, a healthy woman is not prohibited from visiting baths and saunas. There are prejudices among nursing mothers that exposure to high temperatures can cause breast milk to deteriorate and even disappear completely. But this is absolutely not true . Moreover, exposure to heat when visiting a steam room has a beneficial effect on lactation, increasing the amount of breast milk produced. The main thing is to adhere to the rules for visiting baths and saunas during breastfeeding.
A visit to a bathhouse or sauna relieves stress, and a young mother definitely needs a break from everyday problems
How long after giving birth can you visit the bathhouse and sauna?
If the mother regularly visited the bathhouse or sauna before the birth of the baby, then you can resume bathing procedures after the body has finally recovered from childbirth. You should not steam until the postpartum discharge ends. This happens after about 1.5–2 months. Women whose delivery took place by cesarean section should refrain from visiting the bathhouse until the suture heals and a scar forms on the uterus. It is also not recommended to visit the bathhouse/sauna until lactation is properly established.
What precautions should a nursing mother take in a bath or sauna?
The safety rules are:
- Staying in the steam room should be limited in time. First of all, you need to listen to your body and if you experience any ailments (dizziness, palpitations, tingling in the chest), stop the procedure.
- Even if bath procedures were easily tolerated before childbirth, after childbirth the body may react to high temperature differently than before . Therefore, it is not recommended to be alone in the steam room, as loss of consciousness is possible.
- Don't hang out on the top shelf. For a nursing mother, a place at the bottom or middle level is ideal.
- The temperature in the steam room should be increased gradually.
It is ideal to go to the sauna after the fever has subsided.
- Visiting the sauna after the gym is not recommended for a young mother, since the loss of a large amount of fluid during intense exercise, combined with being in the steam room, can lead to dehydration . And, as a result, deterioration of lactation.
- It is necessary to visit a bathhouse or sauna 1.5 hours after eating. You cannot steam on an empty or full stomach.
- Replenishing fluid in the body is very important when in a bathhouse. Since its lack leads to a decrease in milk production.
- Cold dousing after thermal procedures is not recommended, as there is a high probability of chilling the chest.
- Colds during breastfeeding are always inappropriate. And the mother’s immunity after childbirth is often reduced. Therefore, to avoid getting sick, you should dress warmly after thermal procedures. It is advisable to visit the bathhouse and sauna during the warm season.
- If, after visiting the steam room, your breasts are filled with milk, but it is not possible to latch on to the baby, then you must express yourself until you feel relief . Otherwise, inflammation of the mammary gland (mastitis) may occur.
- It is better to enter the steam room with an empty breast, after feeding the baby. This will help avoid discomfort from strong breast engorgement and will not interfere with complete relaxation.
After your first visit to the bathhouse or sauna, observe whether there is less milk in your breasts. If lactation decreases, postpone any bath procedures for several months.
How to stay hydrated
When visiting a bathhouse or sauna, be sure to drink a lot to replenish fluid loss. For this, still mineral water, herbal teas (mint and sage should be avoided), unsweetened and weak tea with milk are perfect. You can also drink juice or berry juice. All drinks must be warm.
When visiting a steam room, be sure to drink a lot to replenish the lack of moisture in the body
How long to stay in the steam room
The first visit to the steam room should not be long. 2-3 minutes is enough. Gradually, the duration of the procedure can be increased to 5–10 minutes. It is permissible to repeat entering the steam room up to 3 times.
Is it possible to use a broom
You can use a broom while in the steam room. But you shouldn't be overzealous with it. And be sure to avoid getting into the chest area. Brooms made from aspen, linden, oak and birch are ideal.
The benefits of a bath after childbirth
After childbirth, the woman’s well-being comes first, because full lactation depends on it, which means nutrition, development, and health problems of the baby. After childbirth, it is not recommended to expose your body to high temperatures.
There is not a single authoritative medical source or competent doctor who would unequivocally prohibit visiting the bathhouse, suggesting that this only causes harm, not benefit. A visit to such an institution has long optimized the activity of the entire body.
A young mother can restore the body, its processes, increase productivity, and the safety of its work:
- optimize the functioning of the central nervous system and circulatory system, gradually eliminate the consequences of the birth stress experienced by the body;
- remove waste and toxins so that they do not affect the composition of milk produced for the growth and development of the child;
- relax muscles, tone the skin, get rid of excess fat deposits that have lost their energy reserve functions after the baby is born.
After childbirth, you can even steam in order to boost immunity and prevent possible diseases: bronchial asthma can be a contraindication for a woman. But even doctors recommend attending such procedures to prevent infectious diseases. They are extremely undesirable for the baby; he must be isolated during the procedures.
When can you visit a bathhouse for the first time after childbirth?
Gynecologists do not recommend visiting the bathhouse until your postpartum discharge has stopped. The uterus is especially vulnerable during this period and infections can penetrate into it through the slightly open cervix. In addition, visiting the bathhouse is prohibited after surgical birth until the suture is completely healed. When the scar is not completely formed, infection can occur.
Moreover, you can go to the bathhouse after childbirth only when it is not exotic for a woman. If you regularly visited the bathhouse throughout your pregnancy, then after 6–8 weeks you can give yourself this pleasure for the first time after the birth of your baby.
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You can take a steam bath no more than once every 7 days. Such a schedule for visiting the bathhouse will be beneficial and will not put unnecessary stress on the body of a nursing mother.
If visiting a bathhouse is not the norm for you, visiting the steam room should be postponed for several months.
Contraindications for visiting the bathhouse
Contraindications to visiting for a nursing woman are only general. The bathhouse is compatible with lactation, and breastfeeding has never been a reason for a ban. Thousands of women visit baths and saunas if their cardiovascular system and blood pressure are functioning normally, there is no bronchial asthma, and breastfeeding is not an obstacle if the fluid lost during sweating is replenished in time.
It is better to start visiting in the summer, after staying in the steam room. A bathhouse while breastfeeding can affect your health when temperature changes occur from a steamy, cold outdoor atmosphere or frosty air.
Rules for visiting a bathhouse for a young mother
At the first postpartum visit to a bathhouse or sauna, a woman should be attentive to the slightest changes in her condition. If the doctor gave a positive answer to the question whether she can go to the bathhouse during breastfeeding, and she had a normal pregnancy and childbirth, this does not mean that there is no need to limit the time spent.
When feeding a child, you need to be extremely careful about exceeding the norm or very high temperatures, otherwise the milk may cause severe lactostasis or not arrive on time due to the fact that the body has lost a lot of fluid. A young mother should drink plenty of fluids (you must take recommended drinks with you). It is also important for her to follow the prescribed precautions.
Is it possible for a nursing mother to visit the bathhouse?
The bath will help the young mother relax after sleepless nights
Do not believe rumors that high temperatures can lead to loss of breast milk. Rather, on the contrary, lactation will only intensify, but provided that the nursing mother visits the steam room without fanaticism, within reasonable limits. The only condition that must be observed is that you should go to the bathhouse no earlier than 2–3 months after giving birth. During this time, the young mother’s body will fully recover, and lactation will normalize.
The high temperature in the bath does not spoil the milk and does not “burn out”, as was previously thought.
When a nursing woman should not go to the bathhouse:
- any diseases of the heart and blood vessels;
- obesity 1–2 degrees;
- diabetes;
- colds and viral diseases;
- convulsive syndrome.
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Each woman’s body is individual, and her well-being depends on both her general health and age. In any case, before visiting the bathhouse, you should consult with a specialist.
Precautions for nursing mothers
The main rule is not to overdo it, and carefully monitor your well-being. For the first few months, it is recommended to visit the bathhouse no more than once a week, while covering your chest from exposure to high temperatures (take a large cotton towel, terry for this).
Is it possible to go to the sauna during breastfeeding - find out additionally from your attending physician: how much he considers this a positive thing. It is not recommended to expose your body to intense impact - a broom or changes in water at different temperatures, so as not to provoke a rise in pressure or lactostasis.
It is the cosmetological procedures carried out in the bathhouse using plant or animal ingredients of natural origin that allow you to quickly and effectively put in order after childbirth the face and body of the woman giving birth.
What to take with you
The set a nursing mother wears when visiting a bathhouse is slightly different from a regular bath set. In addition to a towel, soap and shampoo, you need to take with you:
- Breast towel. You will need it in the steam room if the milk flows due to high temperatures.
- Headdress. Be sure to take a felt bath cap with you so as not to overheat your head.
- First aid kit. In the first aid kit you need to add ammonia, medications to lower blood pressure, and necessary medications for known diseases.
- Slippers.
- If you are going to a public bath, it is better to take a sheet with you; it should be ironed with a hot iron.
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When can you start taking a bath after childbirth and rules for safe swimming for nursing mothers
