When Chrissy Teigen tweeted Wednesday that she was buying herself a “push present,” most people probably thought she was treating herself to something luxurious, sparkly perhaps — a “Go, me!” gift after bringing baby Luna safely into the world.
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But no. She was buying a perineal irrigation bottle.
Most moms are familiar with this handy little device. It’s similar in shape and size to a condiment bottle, but you definitely aren’t going to use it to jazz up your sandwiches.
The “peri bottle” (Teigen is right, perineal irrigation bottle sounds totally gross) is a handheld squeezy bottle, which is filled with warm water to be squirted over the perineum while urinating. Because, as any mom who has had tearing after a vaginal birth will only too readily confirm, postnatal peeing can hurt like hell. As well as providing pain relief, using the peri bottle while peeing helps keep the area clean and reduces the risk of infection.
After using the bottle (and it’s a good idea to keep squirting after you’ve finished urinating… in fact, you may never want to stop squirting) you pat the area dry with a clean towel, toilet paper or cotton pads, or let it air dry.
If you’ve just given birth and don’t have a peri bottle, don’t panic! Other moms swear by using a showerhead or even peeing while sitting in a bath of warm water.
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The response from some of Teigen’s Twitter followers proved how much of a lifesaver the peri bottle can be.
And some of them took the chance to share their own post-birth advice with the new celebrity mom.
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Ah, motherhood. How sacred. How wonderful. How friggin’ painful.
Before you go, check out our slideshow below:
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