Essential Postpartum Underwear: What You Need to Know

This post is transcribed from a YouTube video for easy reading and shopping. You can watch the full video here or below. :)

Postpartum underwear is a must-have in your hospital bag and dresser when you get home. These are things that you need after birth.

Now, I've talked to countless moms who were like, I don't understand when I start wearing postpartum underwear, why I should wear postpartum underwear, and what different types there are on the market.

If you do a quick Google search of postpartum underwear, you'll be inundated with hundreds of the best options. Let me break it down for you and share exactly what you need and what you want to consider when purchasing your postpartum underwear.

If you didn't know, I'm Carley Schweet. I'm the founder and owner of Hello Postpartum, a postpartum shop that provides quality, holistic, and comfortable products to support your life after birth.

• Designed for this unique time

• Higher-waisted for C-section incisions

• Many provide gentle compression

• Stretchy, comfortable materials

• Generous fit designed for your changing body

For one, they are designed specifically for this unique time. If you had a C-section, for example, you need to make sure your underwear goes high enough on your waist to not interfere with your delicate incision. Trust me, as a two-time C-section mom, I've been there.

You want the right undies at home and in your hospital bag. Even if you have a vaginal birth, you need to make sure that the gusset in the underwear is wide enough to support that heavy-duty hospital pad.

Side note: even if you had a C-section, you will still experience vaginal bleeding as the placenta detaches from the uterus and leaves a plate-size wound behind.

Again, you want undies that are supportive enough to hold those big pads and keep you feeling secure and comfortable during your recovery journey. Postpartum underwear, aside from being comfortable, have many benefits. 

Many of them have lovely stretch support built into them, which is so helpful for knitting those delicate abdominal muscles back together.

During your recovery, we'll take all the core support we can after birth with some postpartum underwear.

When it comes to finding the right size and fit for postpartum underwear, remember that many postpartum companies making these underwear are considering that you're still postpartum, right? You've newly given birth. Your belly will still be swollen, and abdominal muscles loose.

You're going to need some extra room and support. So when in doubt, size up.

If you want to make sure you purchase the right size, closely read the product description on the website. If you're buying from us, we'll have everything laid out for you, exactly as you should know, to find the best size for your body now.

If you are considering buying mesh underwear, which we highly recommend, remember that these are one size fits most. These are like your standard postpartum mesh underwear. Your hospital will provide these, or we also sell them in our shop. 

So again, it's essential to read the product description of the product you're interested in to get a sense of the best fit for your body. When in doubt, I like to size up, which is a personal preference.

Let's start with the most classic mesh underwear. I often get asked, “When do I wear these?!” The answer is right after birth. These are going to be the very first things that you slip into.

You step very gently in line with the big hospital pad we mentioned. It's going to go right here in this channel and you're going to shimmy these babies up. They are going to provide a lot of stretch and give for those early postpartum days. 

The ones I share in the video are great because they are reusable and washable on a delicate cycle and can be hung to air dry.

On our website, these Mother Mother postpartum undies come in a pack of five, so you can have yourself covered when you give birth in the hospital or have a home birth, and then you'll have enough to get you through your first few weeks of postpartum.

I love that they're black and hide stains from lochia or discharge, unlike the hospital ones that are often white (and see-through!).

I want to give you another alternative to those. These are really cool boxer shorts in a postpartum-friendly style. They're by Davin and Adley. And they're sized. 

They're not one size fits all, but they are made of super stretchy but very supportive material to give you that gentle compression.

If you want something more supportive, these can be worn immediately after birth instead of the traditional mesh undies. As I said, they are sized. 

They have a generous gusset big enough to fit your postpartum pads. They also have lovely anti-roll legs that are comfortable and high enough.

If you have a C-section, they're high enough to cover that incision, so you get the comfort and support you need. These are great. 

You can wear them right in the hospital all the way through your postpartum recovery. Some even love to wear them as biker shorts later on in their recovery. It's totally a personal preference.

Okay, moving on to some more, let's say, three-week postpartum undies. These are the High-Waisted Recovery Undies from Kindred Bravely. They're super soft. 

These are more like your standard underwear, which many of us wear. I love that the lace is very elastic and stretchy. They're also high-waisted, with full coverage in the back and a wide gusset to accommodate those postpartum pads. And these are just like a solid go-to. 

These provide minimal support, so don't expect any gentle compression with these. They're more of a comfortable option when you're ready for that.

Last but not least, this product is fantastic and innovative. When we were at Prego Expo earlier this year, people were obsessed. We cannot keep these in stock. It is called the Soothing Fourth-Trimester Panty, also by Kindred Bravely.

It's very high-waisted and provides so much abdominal and core support, which is important after our muscles have been stretched out during pregnancy. This will give that gentle compression, like a nice hug. We don't want anything too tight.

What's unique about these is they come with two different gel packs that can be used either hot or cold. So, if you had a C-section, these would be so, so, so important.

You'll slide it into this front pocket. Once you've heated or cooled it, you can cool it in the freezer or heat it in the microwave. It's totally reusable. And this will sit right here on your incision.

These undies with gel packs are great, too, if you're experiencing uterine cramping after birth. 

One of the most uncomfortable things no one talks about is when your uterus cramps itself to get back down to its regular size to assist with bleeding control. So, these undies can be a huge help.

It also comes with this gel pack that can go in the gusset area. This is for if you had a vaginal birth or you experienced a lot of pushing. This is so helpful to provide some soothing relief to that area. It helps with swelling and encourages healing.

Again, this can also be used hot or cold and can just slide in. And these are totally reusable. So now you can have your gel packs here at the bottom and add the one back to the front, too. You can use both at once. And these are totally reusable, like I said.

For $40, you get both gel packs and underwear, which is an excellent gift for yourself. You can also begin using them immediately after birth to give some targeted relief.

Hopefully, that covers everything you need to know about postpartum underwear, from the mesh underwear that these are like your standard go-to to this really well-designed, supportive, targeted option to the more innovative products like the Davin and Adley Mia postpartum boxer shorts.

There are so many options on the market, and I really believe that between the four postpartum underwear options I outlined today, you can find the undies that help you feel supported, feel in control of your recovery, and realize that this is such an important part of caring for yourself after birth.

Postpartum underwear is just the beginning of your postpartum recovery journey.

It is such a delicate time, and hygiene practices are super important right now, so I hope this video has been helpful. 

Make sure you comment, subscribe, and follow along with us as we continue to share more about postpartum products you'll need in your home after birth.