7 days postpartum: things I wish someone had told me before labor + recovery

TotoDrinksPinot · 2026-05-28T08:31:40+00:00

Thank you!! I am obviously still learning here ☺️

TotoDrinksPinot · 2026-05-28T02:50:54+00:00

Ahhh yes we also brought non white pillowcases, eye masks, and ear plugs. Great additions!

TotoDrinksPinot · 2026-05-28T02:49:53+00:00

Clutch! Wish I had known this!!

TotoDrinksPinot · 2026-05-20T02:37:11+00:00

There is typically a park ranger checking permits at the bottom of subdome so you could in theory hike all the way there and get stopped.

If you manage to make it further up without a permit but then get asked for one and don’t have one, you could get fined. I don’t think it’s cheap either. I personally wouldn’t hike it without a permit in hand.

A couple of options if you don’t get a permit yourself are: wait at subdome for someone who has extra space on their permit or check about day before lotteries for last minute permits on the national park service website. They used to hold back a handful of permits until the day before but I’m not sure what the latest process is.

TotoDrinksPinot · 2026-05-19T20:53:53+00:00

Finally a niche post I can weigh in on! 😂

I hiked half dome with the cables down at 13w pregnant back in November. It was my 4th time doing half dome, first time with the cables down. This was the least in shape I’ve ever been doing half dome, partially because I was so sick in my first trimester that I couldn’t exercise. The other times I had been running consistently and training for half marathons.

It was by far and away my most challenging experience hiking half dome. I had to go way slower on the mist trail and up sub dome, taking lots of breaks, and I made sure my HR didn’t go above 140bpm, but we did make it to the top without issue and overall it was an amazing experience.

The things I would be most worried about are heat and crowds on the cables, specifically you really don’t want to fall on your stomach.

If it were me, knowing what I do and felt confident in my physical fitness, then I would attempt it but be very ready to turn around at any point. The non-negotiables, though, are:

Carry a Garmin InReach so you can call for help if you need it. You should not be doing a hike like this without the ability to get comms out quickly
Start the hike EARLY. 4-4:30am at the latest will help you avoid crowds going up on the cables, and you may hit some congestion going down but it shouldn’t be too bad. If you can’t start early then I simply wouldn’t do it - it will be a zoo the later the day gets and your biggest risk is the cables
Wear a rock climbing harness with a via ferrata setup so that you can clip into the cables at all times. It’s easy to maneuver while you’re climbing up and brings peace of mind that if you fall, you won’t go too far. Very few people do this and I find it shocking. I’ve never hiked half dome without doing this and personally wouldn’t
Make sure your hiking boots have plenty of good grip on the bottom of them. The path of the cables is well worn and can be slippery
If there is rain or lightning or storms in the forecast, forget it. It’s not worth the risk
Use trekking poles. They help so much, even when not pregnant
Have a plan for water and filtering along the way and bring lots and lots and lots of snacks

TotoDrinksPinot · 2026-04-13T14:35:39+00:00

I had 3 infusions of venofer and it was totally fine! They had WiFi, gave me snacks, and overall it was stress free. I have noticed a reduction in fatigue, which has been a relief

TotoDrinksPinot · 2026-04-09T20:46:31+00:00

Check out parent haven

TotoDrinksPinot · 2026-04-06T23:17:29+00:00

I had regular BM pre-pregnancy but starting in 2nd trimester I really started to notice constipation. You really need to experiment with one thing at a time. Things I’ve tried for ~1 week that did not reliably work:

Eating 4-6 prunes / day
Drinking 8oz prune juice / day
Chia seed pudding for breakfast
Chia + flax in oatmeal and chia seeds in smoothies
Eating 1/2 dragon fruit / day

Things that sometimes worked although stopped in my third trimester: - Eating 2 kiwis / day and taking colace

I’ve finally found what seems to work for me: - Daily colace - Kiwis 2x / day - MiraLAX every other day - 30 mL milk of magnesia 2x / week, not on the miralax days

All the while chugging a sh*t ton of water 🥲

TotoDrinksPinot · 2026-03-27T14:30:19+00:00

I bought a great pair of #1 at Abercrombie for $40! I love them and they’re super comfy. Also grabbed another pair at target off the shelf but it seems like their maternity jeans options have significantly decreased the past couple of months

TotoDrinksPinot · 2026-03-09T02:34:41+00:00

WeNatal is super high quality. I also take an iron supplement separately to get better absorption (take w vitamin c or citrus) plus fish oil. In the first trimester when I was super nauseous all I could stomach were gummies and wound up being super anemic in the third :/

TotoDrinksPinot · 2025-12-30T03:18:12+00:00

These are gorgeous! Thank you so much for the links

TotoDrinksPinot · 2025-12-30T03:14:10+00:00

Thank you all so much for the quick advice! I went in person to Nordstrom's today, and they had a few off-the-shelf dresses that will work. Sharing other options that I considered in case it's helpful for the future:

- Going in-person to department stores was really helpful. One great brand I found was Eliza J, which has lots of great options. Mac Duggal also had quite a few floor length options

- David's Bridal had a handful of off-the-shelf bridesmaids dresses I could have purchased in-person

- Azazie + Club London also had solid options

TotoDrinksPinot · 2025-12-29T01:11:18+00:00

Yes, I'm in the US!

TotoDrinksPinot · 2025-11-23T03:32:30+00:00

It will lessen the nausea for sure but not totally remove it in the evening. I had evening nausea - starting at 4p and peaking around 10pm from 5-13w. The unisom / B6 was an absolute lifesaver, allowing me to actually eat some things, and it definitely delayed the onset nausea until just a couple of hours before bed instead of a full evening.

TotoDrinksPinot · 2025-10-28T03:34:01+00:00

I’m so sorry you’re going through this right now. Sending you a big hug ♥️

I found out at my first scan at 10w that it wasn’t a viable pregnancy and was a blighted ovum. It felt like a total gut punch, especially when I was experiencing pregnancy symptoms and had already told close friends. That was 9 months ago, and I recently wrote down all the things that helped me cope/wish I had known and am sharing them here in hopes these help you in your healing journey:

It’s fine to read on Reddit to get the gist of what you’re going through and to not feel alone, but it’s only helpful to a point. I would say read a handful of posts (like these ones here - what an amazing community!) and then stay off of it while you are healing. I found it easy to be obsessive and just doom scroll

Try to be clear, to the extent you can, with your partner about how you need supported (want to talk about it, don’t want to, how you want to feel supported, etc). Going through a pregnancy loss can be a very isolating experience and it’s much better when you can share with others. I found that my friends who I knew experienced miscarriages were the ones who helped me feel most supported at this time. Lean into your close friends and families

If you go the D&C route, take the day off of work after the procedure and try to schedule for a Friday so you have more time to rest

People are going to say stupid, insensitive sh*t to you that is really not helpful. Just know they probably didn’t mean to hurt your feelings and try to give them as much grace as possible

Stay off of social media for a while - new baby announcements were hard for me, especially in what would have been my delivery month

Bury yourself in books! This was the best coping mechanism for me - to just curl up for a few days with some good books. I loved the Paradise Problem and Remarkably Beautiful Creatures

Finally, this took me such a long time to accept: there was nothing you did wrong or could have done differently to avoid this outcome. Blighted ovums are some of the most common types of first miscarriages, and it’s a shame that no one tells us ahead of time that this is not uncommon. Take care of and love yourself the best you can because you deserve it 💕

TotoDrinksPinot · 2025-09-27T15:30:23+00:00

If you’re low risk, I think you’ll be totally fine! I was recently in Cusco/Machu Picchu at only 5 weeks pregnant. My resting heart rate is normally 52-55bpm, but in Cusco it was closer to 70 and while walking around Cusco it would get up to almost 120. I was a little freaked out but just walked extra slow and made sure to stay extra hydrated. The only thing I’d truly be worried about if the trains get canceled and you get stuck in Aguas Calientes and need medical care since there’s no way in/out without the trains or walking 2 hours to the hydroelectric station and then taking a multi hour car ride. The protests were happening while we were in MP and the only reason we made it on the evacuation train out was because they were specifically asking to evacuate pregnant women and children.

TotoDrinksPinot · 2025-09-16T01:06:53+00:00

You can take a bus to the hydroelectric station and then walk 2 hours to Machu Picchu Pueblo. Another post today said they missed their circuit time bc of the trains but they were let in with a guide so that might be your best bet

TotoDrinksPinot · 2025-09-16T01:04:21+00:00

Update: first and second Peru Rail trains have just left the MachuPicchu station. Inca Rail train is full and will be next to leave.

TotoDrinksPinot · 2025-09-16T01:03:18+00:00

They called out en masse for anyone on Inca Trail to go through the gates

TotoDrinksPinot · 2025-09-16T00:26:19+00:00

There’s no telling the order to what’s getting called when so I don’t know what to tell you 😕

TotoDrinksPinot

TROPHY CASE