We all get it: postpartum and the years after having a baby is no walk in the park. But you know what? It isn't just about depression or anxiety either.
Hey, my friend, I'm Maranda Bower, a homesteading mama with four wild kids whose life passion and education is all about supporting mothers and providers in understanding the science, the art, and the sacredness of healing after birth. What we know as common sense in the postpartum years has many women feeling just plain awful. It's time to bring back the truth, get you the tools you need to heal, and thrive in motherhood and beyond.
Hey friends, welcome to the Postpartum Circle podcast. I'm Maranda Bower, and I'm really, really excited about today's episode. I am going to share with you lots of things about postpartum nutrition. Of course, I'm here to break some rules and some stigmas around postpartum nutrition, but it's also my favorite topic because there's so much to know about this and so much healing that could happen through postpartum nutrition. And I'm not talking about just the weeks after having a baby. I'm talking about the years after having a baby, and it's such a deep topic that I've created an entire certification program for this. So, this is something that is near and dear to my heart because of the amount of support and the amount of healing that women experience through nutrition alone.
Okay, so I am just over the moon about this. If you are here and you are experiencing mood swings, weight issues, hormone imbalances, gut health issues, depression, anxiety, and it's lingered on for four to five years, you are so in the right place right now. Even if you are in the first couple of months postpartum, you absolutely want to listen into this. You need to know that what happens within your body during these critical years will impact your life on a very deep level; it will affect your menopause. So this isn't something to take lightly. The first part of taking back control of your body, of balancing your hormones again, of feeling good again, is through nutrition.
So why nutrition? Postpartum is not just the birth of a baby; it's also the birth of a mother. This period of time is raw and vulnerable. And it's an invitation to go back to the very basics of life and survival. Just like your baby, our basic needs of sleep, nourishment, and simply using the bathroom again are like hot priorities, right? And there's a key piece to this because immediately after birth, your entire body changes. Everything shifts. And there's a period of getting to know these shifts, of understanding these shifts, of supporting these changes. I teach in my postpartum nutrition certification about how your nervous system changes completely and how your digestive system slows down as a result of this. You literally stop producing a lot of enzymes, gastric acids, and juices to break down your food into nutrition that your body can use. This is one of the reasons why so many women experience gassiness, bloating, and indigestion after birth, especially if they're not able or not knowing that they should eat in a way that is very different than what we're teaching. That is, eating in a way that's going to benefit their body and these changes. This is why cultures around the world have very specific meals for postpartum: things that are easy to digest, they're warming, and they're nutrient-dense. The body doesn't have a lot of energy or ability to break down a lot of food. But in today's world, like many modern societies, they're not supportive or knowledgeable of this. We teach women to eat salads, smoothies, and the dense casseroles full of foods known for their inflammatory properties.
As I share in-depth in my postpartum nutrition plan, which of course is where you get all of this information in a deep dive, when our body gives off these warning signs of tummy troubles, hormone fluctuations that feel out of control, and major hair loss, we hear that these are normal parts of postpartum. But that's because we don't address the root cause of our discomfort, so it's become labeled a normal part of child-rearing.
When it's not normal, it's simply common. Now with that, I'm speaking of the initial postpartum period, right? So let's take this a step further and get into the years after this beginning of motherhood.
How does this apply to a mama who's three years, four years postpartum? Here's what happens for most of you. You spend nine months growing a human being with your body, right? This is so powerful and significant. What the female body can do is astounding, and I think we just need to spend so much more time in awe over the power of the female body.
Then there is this birth experience, right? For many, you continue to give, you know, after the birth experience, nurture your baby outside of your body through your breast milk. I won't get into how many women enter postpartum completely depleted. That's a whole episode in and of itself. But here is an early postpartum to have this digestive shift to help accommodate our healing and to help us bond with our baby and help stop bleeding, right? All of these components also mean that we're not able to digest our food as we once were. And that means not being able to absorb the nutrients well.
And when we eat things that cause inflammation on top of it, on top of the fact that we are having a very raw and sensitive experience in our body, we add to the malabsorption. We add to our body's depleted state. So what happens is, your body just doesn't function well. The gears grind, you run on fumes, you have nothing left to give. You can't sleep, not just because you have a baby, but also because you need nutrients to help you sleep. You can't balance your hormones and not feel depressed or anxious because you don't have the nutrients needed to create that chemical balance. You can't even deal with birth trauma or relationship issues or life pressures because it feels too hard and complicated because your body is not even functioning at the level it needs to.
You simply don't have the energy or capacity in which to do that. Nutrition runs every single function in your body. And without it, you don't feel like you. And let's take this one step further. When it carries on for so long, when you don't get the nourishment your body is begging you for and it's been begging you for that for a very long time, and showing you with your hair falling out, with giving you acne, with making your emotions feel out of control and your brain foggy and your weight gain, all of these symptoms are not the symptoms itself. They're stemming from the root problem, and the root problem is the lack of nourishment and malabsorption issues.
And when this goes on for a long time, your body begins to tell you in other ways: immune system dysfunction, food sensitivities, allergies, autoimmune disorders. The silent epidemic of postpartum autoimmune disease is frightening. And I can speak personally to this after I was diagnosed with one after the birth of my second child, and I later healed it completely which medical science says is absolutely impossible. But I'm here to claim that's not true, not true in the least bit.
But I want you to see the significance here, to see a glimpse of how this is all influencing and changing your life, and how you can use this to your advantage in healing your body. You are here because we need to end this cycle. We need to heal your body deeply, to show your children what it means to be healthy, to show our daughters how to care for themselves, to show the world what it means to care for postpartum women. We are literally ending generational trauma and getting back to our roots of caring for mothers as she needs.
So now that you have this information under your belt, and I will tell you I go into a lot greater detail in my postpartum nutrition plan, which I'll link in the show notes. Half of that book comes with everything that I shared with you here, plus recipes and tips and all of the things that I'm not able to get into here. But I want you to take this information and apply it so that you can start feeling better immediately, with or without the postpartum nutrition plan. One of the things that you can do to really start this process is to start thinking of foods that your great grandmother would make you if you were sick.
Think of something that you absolutely love because food is also very emotional here, right? It should get your mouth watering just thinking about it. Think about what your grandmother would make, and it would be great if you can add that cultural piece in there, right? I'm willing to bet that whatever comes to your mind are going to have three major components here.
It's probably a soup, for one. Soups are rich in nutrients, and they are so warming to the body, and this is why they make us feel so good. Because they are literally getting nutrients that are easy to digest in a broth and soup form, and it's like it warms the soul. Okay? So, eat lots of soups. Secondly, most of you will probably have thought of a meal that your great-grandmother would make you that was full of spices and herbs. Spices and herbs are powerfully packed with nutrients that help us heal.
And the third component of this, and this is not for everyone, but for many people, our great-grandmothers would have cooked us a soup packed with not only herbs but also with animal protein and fat. There is a stigma in our world that fat is bad. And fat is one of the very components that supports hormone balance. Without it, we will be very imbalanced. Without it, our body will cling to whatever fat it can get, and it will store it on our bones as much as possible. I actually see many people who are deficient in fat, as well as other key nutrients, having excessive weight gain because their body is literally starving. And so whatever it is that they're putting in, their body is holding onto it very deeply.
So, think of these things that your great-grandmother would do, and look at these recipes. If you can also get the postpartum nutrition plan, which is like six weeks' worth of recipes and menu and shopping lists and all of the things, but really look into how you can support yourself in getting the key nutrients that your body needs. If anything at all, start with bone broth. It's one of the most dense, nutrient-dense, easy-to-digest meals that you could possibly put into your body.
Herbal tea is another absolute favorite. Every client, when you work with me, every single client gets sent their own personal blend of herbal tea that will pack such a nutritional punch that you walk away feeling so energized in your day. I care for my clients all the time. That was absolutely amazing. It's like coffee without the crash. I feel so energized. I use this every single day; I drink this tea. It's absolutely amazing because it's so nutrient-packed. It's giving our body what it needs to heal.
The key component from this episode that I want you to take away is that eating in postpartum is counterintuitive to everything that you're probably being told right now. And we want to eat in a way that is supportive of our digestive needs. Supportive of these physiological shifts that occur in postpartum because we've had a baby and to support that in the long term and getting the help and the nutrients that our body needs to recover, to get into a state of balance, to replete our nutrient stores from growing a human being. That is key here. That's essential.
So today, I want you to go think of a meal that you can create that feels simple, that feels wholesome. Maybe it's even bone broth. Whatever the case may be, it should be simple, fulfilling, and packed with nutrients. Take it, enjoy it, consume it, and see how that feels for your body. Pay attention to how that feels in your body. And then let me know. Feel free to reach out and share with me how you feel about that and if you have any questions whatsoever.
I am here for you, mamas. I'm so glad that you are here listening to this podcast and getting this information. Thank you so much, and we'll see you next time. Thanks for tuning in and taking the time to learn about how to support your body in deep healing. We don't do this work just for us or for you. Your healing impacts your children, your relationships, and your community. We do this work because the health and vibrancy of our world begin with its mothers.
I hope you have taken some valuable information today and applied it to your own life. If you aren't sure where to begin, reach out about working together one-on-one or at minimum learning about my postpartum nutrition plan, which is where I start every single one of my clients. And you can do that by going to MarandaBower.com.
Hope you enjoyed this episode. Let us know by leaving a review, and we will see you next time.