The Postpartum Years
The fourth trimester + the long arc after
Postpartum is not 6 weeks. It is a season + then a long arc after that nobody warns you about.
Your body just did the biggest thing it will ever do + the plan most women get is one appointment. Here is the real plan: Rest, warmth, nourishing food, help + grace with a long runway. This is for you, + anybody who loves you + wants to know how to show up.
Start here
Before the baby comes or this week if the baby is already here, make the help list:
- Name three people.
- Give each one a job: Food, laundry, or holding the baby while you shower, nap etc.
- Text it to them.
You do three things: Feed the baby, rest, heal. Everything else gets handed off.
If what you are feeling is much heavier than a list. You can’t sleep, even when the baby sleeps or have some thoughts of hurting yourself or your baby, call or text the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline at 1-833-852-6262 or call/text 988. Tell someone today.
Go deeper
- The 6 week Postpartum Appointment is a Lie
- Mothering Is a Practice, Not a Person
- Matrescence
- Coming Feb 3: What is Closing of the Bones
- Coming Feb 17: Postpartum Doula VS. Night Nanny, Said Plain
- Coming Mar 3: How to Do a Sitz Bath After Birth
- Coming Mar 17: Set Up Your Postpartum Recovery Corner Before Baby Comes
- Coming Mar 24: Baby Blues VS Postpartum Depression
Is postpartum really longer than six weeks?
Yes. The checkup is the checkpoint, not the finish line. ACOG’s own guidelines say postpartum care should be an ongoing process, not just a single visit.
Your next chapter
Perimenopause + beyond Perimenopause Guide.
Previous chapter Pregnancy Birth Guide . The whole arc -> The Four Transitions
Soft Rituals : Postpartum Herbal Soak ->
Questions
I am the support person, not the mom. Is this for me? Yes. Start with the help list. It works best when you are the one who builds it with her.
Is this only for first babies? No. Every postpartum is its own. Second, third or even fourth babies still need a help list.
Want more? Every birth + postpartum post on the Journal