I used the kotex, and will use them again. Yep they are nice and soft on the stitched bits. If you have stitched bits, switching to ultra thins isn't a very good idea, they are not soft enough.

I have to say I was pleasantly surprised that after a normal VB my flow was no where near what I had expected. It did last for 5 weeks though.

My midwife got me a cloth nappy to fold and put under the pads for the first night as this catches any leakage. It meas there is a lot of stuff in your undies but it meant I didn't have to worry.

FYI, I was also told that if you have to change your pad more than once every 1-2 hours, you are bleeding too much. And if the midwife tells you not to worry and you know there is something wrong, demand to speak to someone else.