Postpartum University® Podcast

EP 169 How to Prepare for Holistic Postpartum Recovery

June 18, 2024 • Maranda Bower, Postpartum Nutrition Specialist

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What if postpartum recovery wasn't just about bouncing back, but about embracing a profound transformation?
Join me on a journey that redefines this crucial period.

I'm sharing my personal experiences to uncover the hidden emotional and mental challenges that often accompany childbirth.

Together, we break the silence on how societal pressures can overshadow the true healing process and explore strategies for preparing out of love and care, not fear and trauma.

Imagine a world where new mothers are encouraged to rest, nourish their bodies, and lean on a supportive community.

This episode illuminates the significance of traditional postpartum practices from cultures around the globe.

From the warmth-focused "mother roasting" methods in Asia to the communal care systems in Africa, we delve into how these age-old traditions hold valuable lessons for modern times.

By embracing these practices, we can foster an environment where new mothers find strength in vulnerability and honor the profound changes that follow childbirth.

Preparation is key, and this episode offers actionable insights to help you navigate the postpartum period with ease.

We'll cover everything from planning nutrient-dense meals to assembling a robust support team and prioritizing self-care routines.

Tune in and discover how to transform your postpartum experience into a journey of holistic healing and profound personal growth.

If you found today’s episode insightful and helpful, we would love to hear from you! Please take a moment to leave us a review on your favorite podcast platform.

Your feedback not only helps us improve but also allows us to reach more listeners who could benefit from this valuable information.

Thank you for your support!

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Depression, anxiety, and autoimmune symptoms after birth is not how it’s supposed to be. There is a much better way, and I’m here to show you how to do just that. Hey, my friend, I’m Maranda Bower, a mother to four kids and a biology student turned scientist obsessed with changing the world through postpartum care. Join us as we talk to mothers and the providers who serve them and getting evidence-based information that actually supports the mind, body, and soul in the years after birth.

Hey, everyone, I’m just going to say this right out of the gate.

Ignoring the emotional and mental toll of childbirth is a real postpartum crisis, and we’ve all heard the term bouncing back, quote unquote.

But also, let’s be real. Postpartum recovery is not about returning to this pre-baby body or resuming life as if nothing has changed.

It’s about honoring this incredible transformation your body and mind have undergone and giving yourself the time and space to heal fully and holistically. How do you honor this period? How can you fully prepare for postpartum? Can you even prepare for it? That is what we are going to cover in today’s episode. So, hello everyone, I’m Miranda Bauer, and many of you have heard of the story of how I got really involved into postpartum, and that started almost 15 years ago, which is absolutely crazy to believe, but I had my son Julian during that time 15, almost 15 years ago and I was so involved in my pregnancy and my labor and birth experience, meaning that I did all of the research. My background is in biology. I love research. I wanted to know everything humanly possible about having the best experience and how to care for myself and my baby during pregnancy, during labor and during birth, and I remember reading everything y’all like it was. It was a whole thing.

I will tell you like I was legit studying, like my life depended on it, and not because I was scared or afraid, because I did have a little fear, like we all do. No matter how many times you have a baby, there’s always that fear of the unknown when you’re going to go give birth and about the pregnancy experience and all the things right, and I think it was a healthy level. But I really just loved the information. I loved the science behind it. It was a whole thing.

Maranda Bower: 2:56

I actually changed my career around that. I became a childbirth educator. I was teaching in the hospital and the local birth center and then I started teaching independently. So like it was a thing y’all, I loved it and I had my son and the first couple of weeks after having him was a complete nightmare, and that nightmare extended well beyond the first couple of weeks.

Maranda Bower: 3:23

But I remember specifically thinking what in the world have I done here? Like I have this baby and I don’t know what the frick to do. I didn’t plan for this. I didn’t study this. I have no idea how to heal my body in postpartum, like beyond here’s the best car seat and the best stroller, and how many outfits I should have for my son, and like what I should expect for diaper changing for boys, and yada, yada. Like all of those things were things that I was like interested in and wanted to know, but never once did it cross my mind how do I heal my body? What am I going to do? And this is mind boggling to me, looking back at everything that I had done and all the research and like I really wanted to know all the things and it breaks my heart to hear that my experience is echoing so many other women’s experiences during this time.

Maranda Bower: 4:24

Like we, many women will spend a great deal of time preparing for a pregnancy and preparing for labor and birth, but there’s like zero conversation about how do I prepare for healing my body postpartum. Yeah, we got all the baby things, but how do we do this in postpartum? How do I heal and recover? And often we’re thrown into postpartum without having any tools or support. And then here’s the kicker when you’re in the throes of postpartum, especially in those early weeks and in the early months, there is no time to prep. It’s just survival, living. You’re putting out fires as they come and if you’re in a position to prepare, I’m telling you now prepare.

Maranda Bower: 5:09

I see this so often with first-time moms. It’s like, hey, nobody talks about this right? Totally not anyone’s fault. It wasn’t my fault. He didn’t prepare for postpartum. This is not mainstream information. We’re not talking about this. We’re not telling people about this. This is a societal issue. So if you didn’t prepare for postpartum, it is not your fault.

Maranda Bower: 5:32

But what I often see is that those second time moms, third time moms, fourth time moms they are preparing everything right, like they’re doing all of the research, and it’s often because not not because they want to have an incredible experience is because they’re really wanting to avoid the negative experience that they’ve had. They’re doing so out of fear, like I really want to avoid depression, or I really want to prevent anxiety, or I had such a difficult time that first go around and I felt so lonely and I was losing my hair and giant clumps and it scared me and I just don’t want to experience that level of survival and that level of pain, that level of frustration and fear, and that’s really sad that we are preparing out of that level of fear and trauma. Let’s talk about postpartum trauma for a second. We are not talking about that and I want to bring it up here ever so gently and ever so quickly, because it plays such a huge role in how we experience subsequent postpartum times and how we experience subsequent postpartum times and so prepare, but prepare out of love and care for your body and for what it’s done. Today I constantly see things about postpartum prep which is amazing, but it’s all about padsicles and painkillers and breast pumps and that, my friend, is not the kind of prep that I’m talking about. Actually, I don’t even recommend pad sickles. I do believe they’re kind of like, you know, the initial postpartum prep practices. But I have a whole thing. We’ll link the podcast to that particular podcast episode so that you can learn a little bit more about those, but those can actually be really harmful in the long run, so not not helpful, okay.

Maranda Bower: 7:31

But I really want to say something important here. Postpartum isn’t about bouncing back. It’s about embracing transformation and healing. The journey through postpartum is one of the most profound transformations, immense healing physically, emotionally, spiritually. So instead of surviving and striving to bounce back to this pre-body, pre-baby body or lifestyle, it’s essential to recognize and honor the incredible changes that have taken place. And embracing this period means acknowledging the strength and resilience your body has shown and given you right, and we deserve the grace to heal at our own pace.

Maranda Bower: 8:21

So really prioritizing rest and recovery. Your body has just preformed like this miraculous feat of growing a human being right, and it needs time to restore and rebuild. And that might mean taking naps whenever possible. I know if you’ve got multiple kids, that feels often impossible. But it also means asking for help, especially around household chores, about taking naps. Right, you deserve those naps, you need those naps. Those are non-negotiables. I know they’re hard, but there are ways in which we can get them. That feels really good for our bodies and for our children and for our families Often takes a lot of creativity. There’s also nourishing your body with wholesome, nutrient-rich foods that are easy to digest and support healing and energy. Your body is not going to heal and you will never have any sort of energy, even if you get all the sleep in the world, if your body is not getting the nutrients it needs to repair itself. Your whole body is built upon nourishment.

Maranda Bower: 9:32

So incorporating these practices that promote this mental, emotional and spiritual well-being mindfulness, meditation, spending time in nature, like outside of your back door a couple of weeks after pregnancy is massive it’s huge. Connecting in with a supportive community can also be incredibly beneficial, whether it’s a local mom’s group, a trusted friend, an online support network. Although those I think are amazing and so necessary in today’s age, so is the in-person ones Just a space where you can not feel lonely and understand that there’s so many others who are sharing your experiences and hearing other stories and that can provide comfort and validation for you. This true strength of a mother is often revealed in her vulnerability and her willingness to seek help. We have to do this for ourselves, and also for our daughters, and for our sons and for our grandchildren.

Maranda Bower: 10:40

One of the most best practices I used with my clients was having them write down on a paper like legit. Grab a paper and pen and write down some things. If your great grandma were taking care of you after you’ve been extremely sick, what would she do? How would she take care of you? And here’s another question that I love that goes along with it If you were recovering from a major surgery or accident, what would you do? What would you do to recover? How would you step it up a notch and recover like a freaking queen? Like a freaking queen. Notice that I’m asking you about how you feel, how we can step it up to this beautiful experience, because I’m going to tell you, after giving birth every single woman in the world, I don’t care how you’ve given birth, I don’t even care what you birthed into the world a business, a baby, whatever, a meal you need to be treated like a freaking queen. Okay, it’s okay to receive that and be honored by that, especially after childbirth, especially after creating a human being. And here’s the other thing Notice how I’m also asking about your great-grandma, because your great-grandma still has access to cultural wisdoms that so much of our modern culture has lost over the last few generations.

Maranda Bower: 12:13

Traditional postpartum practices hold secrets to healing that modern medicine is still catching up to and for centuries, and still this is true in so many cultures around the world that they’ve developed and refined postpartum practices that support physical, emotional and spiritual recovery. And these traditions are passed down through generations which we have many of us, I should say have lost, and they encompass a wealth of wisdom that modern medicine is not only beginning to recognize, that modern medicine is not only beginning to recognize, and that’s great, but there’s so much, so much to learn, from dietary recommendations to specific forms of physical care. These practices are designed to nurture the mother as she transitions into this new role of being a mother, whether it’s for the first time or the 10th time. So a couple of amazing examples for you the postpartum practice of mother roasting it’s often found in many Asian cultures and it involves the mother warming and encouraging the consumption of warming foods and herbal teas and, like these warming practices and that warmth is believed to help restore the body’s energy balance and promote healing. And modern research now supports the idea that with warmth they can increase blood flow and aid in recovery and re-oxygenation of our body’s cells, which helps speed up recovery and eliminate the likelihood of getting infections. And so many other things, really validating these age-old traditions right, and of course, we’ve been practicing these for thousands of years in so many cultures and science is just now figuring it out these for thousands of years in so many cultures and science is just now figuring it out. And similarly, in African cultures, postpartum is marked by this significant focus of rest and seclusion, so new mothers are relieved from household duties and they’re cared for by the community of women, allowing them to focus on bonding with their newborn and recovering from childbirth. And it’s not only just about this physical rest phase, but also this deep emotional support, which is crucial and preventing postpartum depression and anxiety. And finally, now we’re having studies that talk about the importance of social support and postpartum mental health and how they all blend together. But another really great illustration of how traditional practices have been doing this forever In the West there is this growing interest in reintegrating these traditional practices into modern postpartum care, mainly because we recognize significantly that what we’re doing is failing.

Maranda Bower: 15:20

What we’re doing is not working. And it’s not that we are failing. It’s not that we’re not working, it’s not that our bodies are broken, it’s that we just have never been given the opportunity to heal in ways in which we need to. We’ve never been given the tools, we’ve never been given the knowledge. It just was lost through the generations through our societal push to bounce back. Get your body back, act like nothing has happened. Get back to work. Your level of productivity is far more beneficial, right? If you’re resting you’re failing, like we tell people that all the time. That’s how our system and our society functions, and when it comes to childbirth, it’s downright dangerous. It literally takes lives. It’s not how we can live, and so we’re getting back to these traditional practices and bringing them back into modern postpartum care, not because we necessarily want to, but out of necessity, from recognizing that what we’re doing is not working.

Maranda Bower: 16:31

So, for example, a couple of things that I’m seeing is the use of herbal remedies like finagique for lactation support, turmeric for its anti-inflammatory properties just lots of herbs, and I’m loving the herbal use and natural remedies have been staples in many cultures for centuries. That is medicine, that is earth medicine, and it is incredibly powerful, and we’re just now starting to validate that with science and research and I’ve talked about this so often that science is never going to completely understand many of these components, nor will they want to, especially when it comes to herbs, mainly because there’s no money in that, because you can grow herbs in your own backyard, you can grow herbs in your window seal. It is something that there’s no money in it for companies to be studying and researching those things. They can’t make money off of a pill like that or whatever. I mean. That’s, as far as it goes, is like they’ll try and put an herb in a pill and give it to you. But we all know the most beneficial thing you can do is grow it or buy the herb from your local space and support your local farmer or your local herbalist, or just go get it in your backyard and, like you know, there’s no need for money crossing hands.

Maranda Bower: 17:57

Anyway, anyway, I’m getting on a tangent here, these traditional postpartum practices. They also emphasize the importance of nutrition and the healing process. Actually, nutrition is often the thing that they build their entire care practice around Foods that are rich in nutrients and easy to digest, like bone broths and stews and fermented foods. They have all been recommended in various cultures to support postpartum recovery, and modern nutritional science supports this approach and it recognizes this critical role that nutrient-dense foods play in replenishing the body’s stores and promoting healing. But it’s got a long way to catch up until it recognizes the way the body functions significantly changes during that initial postpartum period. Oh my gosh, I feel like this was so much, and I can seriously keep going here. We’ve talked about self-care and how it’s this radical act of survival for new mothers it’s not a luxury and holistic postpartum care that addresses the needs of the whole person the mind, the body, the spirit. That is so significant. And before I wrap this up, I really wanna give you some of my top recommendations and kind of summarize everything that we’ve kind of talked about today. I’m gonna do my best here.

Maranda Bower: 19:23

If you are preparing for a holistic postpartum, here are the four key things that I recommend. One making sure you are planning your meals in advance nutrient, dense, rich, easy to digest foods. We have tons and tons and tons of resources for you, both free and paid. Get on that bandwagon the postpartum nutrition plan. You don’t even have to think about what meals to get. You don’t even have to make shopping lists. We have it all for you Snacks, everything, herbs, all of that. Make sure herbs are included in your meal prep. You need to know exactly what kind of teas and blends that you’re going to be using. Do your research, or just get the postpartum nutrition plan and make your life easier.

Maranda Bower: 20:07

Two get your support team together. Who’s going to come help you with housework or animal care or caring for your other children, getting extended time off work? I know a lot of those things are not as easy as they. You know as saying them is right. Sometimes those things are not an option, but if they are, take full advantage of it. You will never regret it. You will never regret it. You can only regret not getting it right, not getting house care, not getting someone to come into your home to take care of your other children for a little bit, or sending your kids, your other kids, your older kids, to a summer camp or whatever. Get creative, or with friends. Let them go camping for a week with friends, I don’t care, get creative. It doesn’t necessarily have to cost money, but find people who can help you. Find people who can help you. This includes and I highly recommend making a list of people counselors, mom groups, lactation support, postpartum doulas, and then friends, people you can count on without judgment, so that you can say hey, I really need some help.

Maranda Bower: 21:25

Right now, like my, I’m not getting enough sleep, I need a nap. I’m confused, I don’t know what to do. I feel like I’m falling apart and somebody can say not a problem, I’m gonna show up, I’m gonna be there in just a second. They show up, they bring you a meal, they bring you a latte, they let you take a shower and take a nap and hold your baby. If that’s what you want, right, like, whatever it is you need, they’re gonna show up and be there for you. Or maybe it’s showing up and doing your dishes and folding three loads of laundry and that’s perfect. That is so perfect. Please have people in your life that do that for you.

Maranda Bower: 22:05

Okay, here’s the other one. Plan your entire life around sleeping, eating and pooping. I’m not talking about your baby, I’m legit talking about you as a mother. Like we are going back to basics. Follow your baby’s lead here. Your entire life revolves around sleeping, eating and pooping, right, like those are the back to basics things. And once you feel like you’ve nailed those, like you are getting a significant amount of sleep, right. I know you’re going to be waking up often. We all know you’re going to be waking up often. That doesn’t matter, as long as you’re getting enough sleep periods within a 24 hour period right, and that you’re doing that consistently over a couple of weeks. That is key. And, yeah, there’s going to be nights where that doesn’t feel possible. But plan your entire life Like that becomes your number one priority getting making sure you’re getting enough sleep, that you’re eating well and that you’re pooping.

Maranda Bower: 23:08

And pooping is okay, right, the first poop is always like the most terrifying poop ever, right, and sometimes the second one as well. But if we can just move through that and that we’re taking care of it like we’re, we’re making sure that our our bodies are in a good rhythm, that we’re not feeling like bloated and gassy and that we’re actually pooping, and regularly. That’s going to help with the detoxification process that happens in the postpartum period. It’s also going to bring so much more comfort to your body and your healing process. If you’re not pooping well, you’re not healing your healing process. If you’re not pooping well, you’re not healing. Anyway, okay, enough about poop, because you’re going to spend your whole life. I still talk about poop. My oldest is five, or my youngest is five, my oldest is 15. And we still have to have conversations about poop. Y’all Like I think this is a lifetime thing.

Maranda Bower: 24:04

Anyway, here’s number four practice nervous system care. This one is a tough one because I see so often we are in this really go, go, go, go, go kind of society and then the moment that we have an opportunity to rest, we panic. We’re like, oh my God, what do I do? How do I rest? I just. This makes me feel uncomfortable. I wanna get up, I wanna move, I wanna do stuff, and it’s because your nervous system is so used to being constantly on the go that it doesn’t know how to rest. And the moment that you give it that, it signals to the body like wait a second, I’m not doing what I normally do, what is going on here, and you don’t know how to shut off your brain. I’m telling you, my friend, this takes practice.

Maranda Bower: 24:53

So start that practice in pregnancy where you start looking at maybe a meditation, right, maybe it’s a guided meditation, maybe it’s listening to music and headphones that can help you clear your mind. I don’t care what it is. Maybe it’s listening to music and headphones that can help you clear your mind. I don’t care what it is. Maybe it’s painting, like legit, finding a creative outlet that’s going to support you immensely and making your mind blank and resting your mind so that you can make space for healing your body and your nervous system. That is so, so key Nervous system tools getting out in nature, meditation, even like very, very gentle yoga. I recommend TRE therapy, which I talk about a lot in my book Reclaiming Postpartum Wellness.

Maranda Bower: 25:46

There’s so many different avenues for practicing nervous system support and care, and that begins really quickly. That begins in pregnancy, that begins way before. And the thing is, is so many of our generation and we were not taught how to take care of our nervous system. Like no one in our generation, I swear I’ve yet to meet a person who’s been taught how to take care of their nervous system. And so we often, you know, are coming into this and we’re like I can’t meditate, I can’t close my mind down, I can’t sit on the couch or my bed and do nothing for a straight hour, like that feels absolutely impossible, like you don’t know how to truly rest and recover. And that’s because it’s a learned skill and that learning takes place. Now I just wanna say that every postpartum journey is unique. There’s no right way to navigate this time. There’s so many beautiful ways to experience postpartum. Postpartum healing is raw, messy and real, and it’s time we acknowledge that and acknowledge that there is a beautiful, sacred journey into motherhood that exists too. It’s just that our current society doesn’t really know how to do that and it’s up to us to make the shift so that our daughters and our granddaughters experience a better postpartum too.

Maranda Bower: 27:20

I hope this podcast has been so helpful for you. Let me know on social. Leave a review here on the podcast with your questions too. I love, love to answer those on the podcast.

Maranda Bower: 27:31

I would actually be so thrilled to have some episodes where I just spend some time answering your questions. I get so many and I think it would just be an absolute amazing blessing for so many people because I will tell you if you’re thinking it, I can guarantee you other people are thinking it too. So send me those questions, let me know, and I will absolutely answer those, whether on social media or on this podcast.