The Fourth Trimester: Why Mom Needs Care, More Than Ever
This is such an exciting time, as the baby is now, physically, here. Everyone is asking if the baby is sleeping, eating, gaining weight, hitting their milestones, etc. However somewhere in the middle of all those questions, there is one that deserves just as much attention, and that is “How is Mom doing”?
The postpartum period is a tremendous season of physical, hormonal, emotional, and nervous system change. While the focus naturally shifts toward caring for your newborn, Mom’s recovery deserves just as much care and attention, too. Because birth isn’t the end of the perinatal journey, in fact, it’s really the beginning of a whole new chapter of you.
Your Body Doesn’t “Snap Back” to “Normal”
Pregnancy took months of adaptation, and postpartum recovery takes about that amount of time, too. After birth your body is adjusting to the following changes:
- Significant hormonal changes
- Recovery from birth
- Changes to the abdominal and pelvic tissues
- Feeding/Lactation demands
- Changes in sleep patterns
- Carrying and caring for your baby
- Changes in posture/ movements
- A completely new daily routine
When you’re doing all of this while learning how to care for a tiny human who depends on you for nearly everything, that is a lot.
The Six Week Checkup Isn’t the Finish Line
There tends to be a “traditional” six week postpartum visit, which is an important opportunity to check in with your healthcare providers and assess recovery. However, being medically cleared typically doesn’t mean you feel completely recovered as you may still be experiencing body aches/ discomfort, tension, headaches, fatigue, difficulty sleeping, feeling physically depleted, mood or energy changes, and just an overall disconnection from your body. These are not “it it was it is” or “it just takes time” scenarios. Postpartum recovery doesn’t happen on a universal timeline. Your body, your birth, and your baby are your own overall circumstances that are uniquely you.
The Effects on Your Nervous System
Postpartum isn’t only a physical recovery; it is a nervous system transition. Suddenly, your brain is processing a constant stream of new information between not only your hormones and regulation but also a strong fight or flight response to “was that the baby”? Your nervous system is constantly responding to your baby’s needs while you also are navigating your own recovery, and this is where co-regulation comes into play.
Mom and Baby: Two Nervous Systems Learning Together
Newborns don’t have the capacity to independently regulate all of their emotions and physiological states. They rely heavily on caregivers for support and regulation, and that can look differently depending on the baby. But often, the important part, that often gets missed, is that mom is a human being, too. You can’t pour endlessly from an empty cup. Supporting Mom’s nervous system is not selfish; it’s part of supporting the family system.
What Does Postpartum Support Actually Look Like?
Sometimes support looks like professional care. Sometimes it looks like asking your partner to hold the baby so you can take a shower. Sometimes it means accepting the meal your friend dropped off instead of insisting you can handle dinner. This can look different for everyone, so knowing who your support system is, is important. These are just some of the connections you may want to include:
- An OBGYN, Midwife, and/or Doula
- Pediatrician
- Lactation consultant
- Pelvic floor PT
- Chiropractor
- Mental Health Professional
- Nutrition professional
- Family and friends
The important thing to note here is that you do not need one person to do everything; you need a team. This is often an expectation that once the baby arrives, mom should quickly “bounce back”. However, there is nothing to bounce back from; your nervous system needs time to recover, rebuild, and adapt. You are allowed to move slowly, need help, miss your old routine, and love motherhood while finding it incredibly challenging. You have to also give yourself permission to recover.
Where Neurologically Focused Chiropractic Care Fits In
The postpartum body is constantly adapting to new physical demands. Feeding positions, carrying your baby, lifting a car seat, bending over a crib, interrupted sleep, the list goes on! At Transform Chiropractic we are trained in perinatal care to provide individualized care with consideration of your postpartum stage, birth experience, physical needs, and goals. We view postpartum care as part of the larger perinatal experience and not as something that simply ends once the baby arrives. Our goal is to support Mom as she navigates this new season, to ensure that her nervous system has the adaptability and capacity to keep moving forward with confidence and consistent changes.
Motherhood is a New Season of Adaptation
Your baby isn’t the only one growing and changing, you are too, Mom! Postpartum care isn’t about getting back to who you were before pregnancy and is instead about supporting the next women you are becoming. Give yourself time, build a team, and let people help because not only does your baby deserve a supported mom, but you also deserve to be THAT supported mom. The fourth trimester may be a season of enormous change, but you don’t have to navigate it alone.