Everyday behavioral and physical changes in women during the postpartum period – a qualitative approach

Abstract

This article seeks to add to the understanding of changes women in the puerperium experience after giving birth for the first time. This is a qualitative study in which six women whose children were born by natural birth, without untoward events in a maternity hospital accredited to the Brazilian Public Health System (Sistema Único de Saúde – SUS in Portuguese). The results show that the women experienced changes of a bodily and hormonal nature present in the post-partum period both at a physical and a psycho-social level. The women emphasized their discontentment with their self-image and their concern about perineal recovery. Thus, by learning of these women’s experiences it is essential for interventions in the promotion of health to be performed in a coherent way, in view of the demands, not yet fully addressed, that women in the postpartum period make.