Women-how long after birth till you were able to play?

nsmar4211 · #1 06-22-2010, 08:45 PM

Ok ladies..... having never had a kid myself, I'm hoping some of you have. If you have.....or know someone, here's the question:

How long did it take after the delivery to recover enough to do a gig?

I know jobs give 8-12 weeks of maternity leave, and that includes the time before delivery you can't work anymore. But realistically how long is it? A month later one gig won't be that horrible, or is it four-five months? I'm not talking "gotta-find-babysitter-so-gotta-wait-till-kid-old-enough" timeline

And I know heavy lifting is out...but you can usually get someone else to do that anyhow if you ask nice.... Anyone?

Dr_Funkdamental · #2 06-22-2010, 10:51 PM

Well I know someone who ran a marathon 3 weeks after giving birth. She was an oboe player in the army though *kanyeshrugs*.

tycobb73 · #3 06-23-2010, 06:49 AM

My wife went shopping within 12 hours of leaving the hospital.

jmac · #4 06-23-2010, 06:52 AM

Our first baby came out sideways; my wife didn't scream or nothin.

Bob C · #5 06-23-2010, 07:14 AM

Ha! I thought you meant how long after I was born, as in "playing bass before I could crawl".

**Staccato** · #6 06-23-2010, 07:33 AM

No women bassists/runners on TB?

There's no rule of thumb. So here's a conservative outlook:
Post-natal checkup first, and Doctor's okay to strap on bass for a gig.
(A minimum of 2-4 weeks after normal delivery, or 4 weeks-3 mos. following C section.

crusie · #7 06-23-2010, 07:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nsmar4211

Ok ladies..... having never had a kid myself, I'm hoping some of you have. If you have.....or know someone, here's the question:

How long did it take after the delivery to recover enough to do a gig?

I know jobs give 8-12 weeks of maternity leave, and that includes the time before delivery you can't work anymore. But realistically how long is it? A month later one gig won't be that horrible, or is it four-five months? I'm not talking "gotta-find-babysitter-so-gotta-wait-till-kid-old-enough" timeline

And I know heavy lifting is out...but you can usually get someone else to do that anyhow if you ask nice.... Anyone?

8-12 weeks ?!?! holy mackeral! - here in Denmark you get 1 year! which you can split with the husband if you like, like you get 6 months and so does he... well nonetheless, my GF hosted a karaoke show 2 weeks after she gave birth. I had to sit backstage with the baby so she could come out and breastfeed in the breaks