The process of preparing for the arrival of a child spans about forty weeks. Throughout the entire pregnancy, we are counting down the days, documenting every ounce of growth that our little one has made, and obsessively checking things off our list of nursery “must-haves.” We pick the softest organic cotton onesies and do all the research for car seat safety, and we weigh the benefits of different types of strollers. But have you ever taken a moment to ask yourself who is planning for the woman who is actually having the baby? We definitely need a Fourth Trimester Postpartum Plan!

While the focus of society is primarily on the ‘bundle of joy’, this time after the delivery of your little one (known as the Fourth Trimester) is one of a great deal of physical, emotional, and spiritual recalibration for the birthing parent. In our modern-day, “hustle-hard” culture we are told to ‘bounce back’ or ‘get our bodies back’ within a matter of weeks. What if we stopped fighting against the clock? What if during this time of preparation for your little one, we took the same care with your preparation for your personal recovery as you are doing with your nursery?

This Fourth Trimester Postpartum Plan is not about some type of obstacle that you have to overcome, it is about building a bridge from where you are now to your new life.

1. Rest Logistics – Have You Established Your “Recovery Stations”?

In the first week or two after delivery, your body is busy repairing itself. You are knitting new tissue together, as your blood volume is redistributed and some of your organs are literally moving back to their original positions. Each time you go upstairs or search for your clean nursing pad, it is like making a withdrawal from your personal “energy bank”. So why not plan ahead and have your resources provided right at your “recovery” location.

Perineal Care Basket: Do you have a basket of perineal care supplies, high-waisted support undies and soft, breathable sheets in your designated area? If you had a C-section, do you have a small pillow at your area to help protect your incision site when you sneeze or laugh?

Hydration Station: Recovering from childbirth can leave you feeling dehydrated so do you have a 1-litre container to drink out of as well as an electrolyte-filled snack in each place within your house that you spend time?

The “Vertical Rest” Rule: Are you able to stay on one level in your residence for a period of 14 days? This restriction on stair usage is not based on laziness; it limits the amount of intra-abdominal pressure placed on your pelvic floor while it is at its weakest.

After giving birth, a woman is going to be drained and terribly depleted, having given much of her mineral reserves, vitamins and energy to grow a human being. Too often, new parents have survived the first several weeks on a diet comprised primarily of cold leftovers from the last week, caffeine and whatever they can remember to grab with one hand.

2. Nutritional Alchemy: Is Your Diet Feeding Your Recovery?

What if we looked at how we eat as having healing properties, just as you might treat your food as medicine?

According to many traditional systems of health such as Ayurveda, post-partum is defined by being very “cold” and “airy,” so we will need to eat an opposite type of food (i.e., warm, grounding and oily) in order to balance out those conditions.

Are you consuming “warm” foods? Specifically, are you consuming soft, warm foods (eg, lentil or vegetable soups; rice; porridge) so that your digestive system does not have to work too hard to process the food? This will give your digestive system more energy for the repair of damaged cells.

Are you including repair nutrients (eg, iron, collagen) into your daily diet? These are nutrients your body requires to repair itself from conception; therefore, you should include sources of these nutrients in your daily diet (ie, bone or seaweed broths, rich in nutrients, lentils, dark leafy green vegetables).

Do you have nutritious snacks ready to eat that require only one hand? For example, nutritious, portable, one-handed snacks include nut butter filled dates, oat & flaxseed energy balls, hard boiled eggs. If you need two hands to eat a food, you should not be eating it at this time.

3. The Social Filter: Who Is Guarding Your Gate?

A new parent can experience the worst of the nervous system with the number of kind, but well-meaning, visitors to their home after the birth. Most visitors are coming to see the baby but are not trained to respect the parent’s need for rest and recovery. Are you hosting company or receiving support?

The Fourth Trimester Postpartum Plan is about being selfcare rather than interacting with people. Your nervous system has heightened, and your hormones are changing significantly. It’s your right and responsibility to protect your peace of mind and to do so is not being rude – it’s simply what your body has to do to heal.

The “Support” Entrance Fee: You may want to create a rule that anyone who visits your home must assist you in one small way. Whether it be folding laundry, taking out the trash or bringing a warm meal, an actual visitor should leave your home in better condition than when they arrived.

Who is your Gatekeeper? You may want to find someone (partner, sibling or close friend) to manage all of the mass texts and photo requests for you. You are not a guest information centre; you are a human being trying to heal.

The 30-Minute Rule: Are you comfortable creating boundaries? A simple “I have loved having you here, but now I need to lie down to rest” is a complete and valid statement. Your real friends will understand.

4. Somatic Awareness: Do You Hear the “Whispers”?

 Your body just pulled off a miraculous feat when it changed both internally and externally! At times, we become disconnected with our new body. Do you routinely stop to be aware of your breath?

5 Minute Reset: Will you set aside just 5 minutes each day to do some gentle low breathing with your diaphragm?

Remember; This isn’t about getting a six-pack. The goal is to use your diaphragm as a gentle pump to massage your internal organs and alert your nervous system that you are in a “safe” place.

Pain Language: Are you able to differentiate between “healing pain” and “caution”; for example, are you really listening to what your body is saying? Sharp pain, excessive fatigue and heavy bleeding are all signals that you need to seek out professional help for your “slow recovery” from an injury.

Mental Health as Physical Health: Do you know the difference between “baby blues” and Postpartum Depression (PPD)? Many hormonal changes will take place after childbirth but when continuous moodiness occurs after two weeks and/or feelings of disconnection arise, finding help from a support system can produce your greatest strength.

5. What is the ecological footprint of your sanctuary?

 As new parents, it’s natural to be concerned about your baby growing up in the type of world we live in now. This should be a part of your Fourth Trimester Postpartum Plan. There can be an enormous amount of stress involved with having a baby and many new parents tend to make many impulse buys such as plastic toys or disposable items, etc., as part of this stress. Many new parents wonder if they can plan a little less and use a minimalist method of preparing for a baby and decrease their impact on the environment.

Quality over Quantity — Do you really need 18 different types of sw addles, or do you just need three high-quality organic swaddles?

Non-Toxic Healing — Is what you are using on your skin, and what is close to your baby, free of any harmful chemicals and endocrine disruptors? Selecting only natural salves and cotton pads makes for not only an environmentally “green” choice, but also a healthier choice for you and your hormonal health.

6. Redefining the term “Bounce Back”

To “bounce back” means to go back to where you were before you had a baby. Birth is a transformative experience so you cannot bounce back to who you were before giving birth. Instead of referring to it as bouncing back, try thinking of your journey as a way of “growing forward.”

This change requires a complete shift in your perspective. You need to accept that your living space is probably a mess that your career may be on hold for the foreseeable future; that your primary job right now is just to be present for yourself, and to heal.

Final Question for You

The Fourth Trimester is not a challenge but a way to transition into your new life. Our Fourth Trimester Postpartum Plan is ready to serve.

Review your calendar for the next several weeks to find one thing to remove from your “to-do” list and add to your “to-be” list. (Don’t forget to enroll in our postnatal yoga classes!) An example is cutting something out of your schedule that is not critical to your daily life (like cancelling a casual lunch with a friend) or hiring someone to thoroughly clean your home (e.g., a professional cleaner) to help relieve some of that stress. If you take some time for yourself, your energy level will go up, and that will ultimately create more time for you to be with your family and your new baby.

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