Giving birth is physically taxing and, chances are, you?ll notice a few post-delivery aches and pains?including an all-over muscle ache to rival anything you?ve ever experienced at the gym. And some birth afterpains are actually worse for second-time moms or for women having their third, fourth or fifth (!) kid than they are for first-time moms.
Involution (AKA afterpains)

Ah, the cramps. You spent nine months expanding and now, remarkably, your uterus is shrinking back to its normal size. This six-week process, called ?involution,? can sometimes be a painful one. Also referred to as afterpains?short, sharp, cramps that you may feel in your abdomen a couple of days after giving birth, often while nursing?are the sensation of your uterus contracting, which helps expel blood clots. Some first-time moms may not notice these contractions at all (regardless of whether you had an epidural or not). But many moms of multiple kids report that afterpains can get worse with each baby you deliver.
“With my first I felt absolutely nothing?beyond the god-awful nipple pain of learning how to nurse,” says Christen Brownlee, a mom of two. “But I definitely noticed the afterpains in the hospital when I had my second child. I told the nurse about it, and she shared that she had four children, and she said the afterpains by the fourth baby were worse than the labour!”
The contractions caused by involution are triggered by the hormone oxytocin, which is released by ...