Usually lots of time and thought goes into planning for the birth of your baby.
But usually not near as much thought goes into planning for the postpartum period.
Instead, you may find yourself coming home from the hospital with a tiny human thinking, “What the heck?” Sometimes you can’t believe they let you take him home, and you may have many times when you ask yourself, “Am I doing this right? When should I feed, bath, change the diaper, etc.? When will I sleep, take a shower, ever go out of the house again, etc.?”
Spending a little time thinking about what the postpartum period will look like can help to take away some of the fear of the unknown.
Make Meals
Have a meal making party – have your friends bring over recipes and ingredients and spend the day cooking. Check out crock pot and freezer recipes online – making them ahead of time means that you won’t have to wonder what you’re going to eat.
Enlist Help
Think about who is going to be on your Postpartum Team. Line up friends to come and help you cook, clean or just talk to. Think about hiring someone to cut the grass or shovel the snow. Consider a cleaning service or meal delivery company. Hiring a postpartum doula can give you the day and night support you need during the transition.
Change Your Expectations
Start now reminding yourself that your life is going to change. This is not a bad thing, but will be a different thing. Realize that what you consider a clean house now, will look different when you are spending considerable time feeding, that you are adding items (toys, furniture, clothes, etc.) that will take up space. Time for a shower might not come at the usual time, and your work schedule will have to be adjusted. Grace will be your new favorite word!
Read – But Not Too Much
It’s a good idea to have some trusted resources. Know where you can find good information, but remember that “average” and “normal” are guidelines, while your child is a unique being. Trust your instincts and reach out to your provider with any questions.
Enjoy Your Baby
Start now, but definitely spend time during those first few weeks simply enjoying your baby. You’ve been waiting at least nine months to meet her, so take time to hold her, talk to her, sing songs to her, and even just look at her. The postpartum period is an important bonding time in both of your lives, and it will go by very fast. Stop and take it in.
Your baby will only have one first day, one first week and one first month.
Spend some time preparing, thinking about some of the needs you’ll have, and put some of those in place now so that you can truly enjoy the postpartum period.
Contact me today to learn more!
journeyforwardbirthandparenting.com 