Nancy’s Postpartum Journey
Postpartum can be a great experience. Before I share my postpartum update, I wanted to share something I truly believe. Postpartum doesn't have to be all hardship if you are intentional. Take some time while preparing during pregnancy to read about the fourth trimester.
Postnatal depletion is real, and there is a lot we women have to do to heal our bodies. Educate yourself on how to have a successful transition with your baby and body. Take supplements, stay hydrated, do your research, and surround yourself with a community of women you can ask for advice on things you may not even know you'll have questions about.
Postpartum does not have to be a challenging season in life, but you have to go into it with a continuous learning mindset. I share this because it makes a huge difference. Each of my postpartum journeys has been so different, and what I've learned is that each time I am more and more prepared. This season has been beautiful and healing in so many ways.
The days have gone by so fast, although the nights have felt a little long. I thought I'd share a few postpartum updates as we navigate through this special time together.
Zion is such a joy. I feel lucky to be his mama. There were many emotions throughout the first few days, from feelings of joy and thankfulness to feeling anxious and overwhelmed. I'm in love with Zion's smell, coos, and how he stares at me. Some of the most intimate and precious moments with Zion have been while nursing and me crying because I was feeling overwhelmed and unequipped, and he'd look at me with these big blue eyes, almost saying, "mama, you're my everything. I love you." Only a month or so in, and I feel stretched in ways I didn't know I needed to be. Learn, unlearn, and relearn are the words I'm living by these days.
Let's start back to the first week of postpartum. We spent the week laying low in the house, adjusting to our new littlest family member. Our girls are so taken away by how cute and sweet Zion is. They are continually touching his tiny fingers, ears and giving him endless snuggles. On day four, we visited my midwife for my first postpartum appointment. I asked so many questions at that visit. Even though this is baby number four, there was so much I needed to learn about nursing.
If you've read my articles in the past, you know I exclusively pumped for my girls and never actually nursed a baby. I know, strange, why now? That's a whole other story that I'll share soon. But, in short, I wanted to have this experience and felt this was the time.
In the first week, Zion visited our holistic pediatrician, where we confirmed he was right on track with body weight. The news of his good health was a massive relief for me since one of my biggest fears was Zion not nursing well and not getting enough milk. I felt so happy and accomplished that he was at a good weight. I am incredibly fortunate to have a baby who latched correctly right away. I remember asking my midwife a bunch of times the evening he was born if she could make sure he was on correctly. I just needed to be sure.
I was very anxious about nursing. It almost felt like this was my first baby. There is so much security in pumping that I never realized. For example, when you pump, you serve your baby a bottle where you know how many ounces they are taking in per feeding. With nursing, this does not exist. It made me anxious because it was something I was not used to.
Nursing the first week was beautiful. He also slept great and only woke up twice throughout the night. However, this has changed, and we have currently started giving Zion one bottle a day, which is the 2 AM feeding, and it's been helping me get a bit more sleep. I plan to pump a few times a week, but I only started two weeks ago, and I haven't pumped much at all. I purchased these bra insert milk collectors that have been catching up to 2-3 oz per day, which allows me to feed Zion in the middle of the night. I'll share more about the milk inserts later.
At the end of the first week, we visited our local chiropractor to get adjusted and had a great experience. Zion was a little colicky, and we used ****(A blend of catnip, fennel, and peppermint.) Zion is the first baby who struggled with colic. This supplement worked incredibly and incredibly fast! Zion would be fussy, and we'd give him a dropper full or two, and in minutes he'd quiet down and start burping. It's incredible. I'm so thankful we had it in our postpartum kit.
After our chiro adjustments, his colic went away almost immediately. If you haven't tried a chiropractor for your newborn, I would encourage you to do so. A baby goes through a lot of movement to birth. It can be so beneficial for them and us postpartum mamas.
Postpartum is such a delicate time where taking care of yourself is crucial and needed. I’ve had to remind myself continuously. I just birthed a baby and needed to take it slow. I am such a fast-paced mover that taking things slow is hard for me. But I knew I had to care for my body to serve my baby well.
I made sure I was taking all my supplements daily. I took some of the things—a prenatal, a lactation support supplement, omega-3s, vitamin D, placenta capsules, greens, and a superfood supplement, as well as other herbal supplements to help with energy levels and my lymphatic system.
The hardest thing about postpartum this time around with Zion was taking a little different approach than I did with my girls. I knew nursing would be a new experience and may bring up the difficulty. But nursing's difficulty has mainly been not having a set schedule. I am such a planner, an organizer, to-do lister—having a nursing baby put a pause to that. Nursing a baby on-demand and nighttime, cluster feeding definitely can be overwhelming and what I'm finding is that there's so much beauty in these moments. Postpartum is just for a season, and my newborn won't be a newborn forever.
Postpartum life has been smooth. There is hardship, but I love problem-solving, which has led this season to be a learning and growing experience. Understanding when to lean in and when to pull back is something I am still working on—and will be for months to come.
This is my fourth trimester.