The Fourth Trimester

The day has arrived that will change your life forever. The arrival of your baby begins with much excitement, there are a lot of new adjustments coming your way. You bring your precious bundle home and wonder why no one ever told you that you will experience so many new emotions and that it would take two full grown adults to care for one tiny little human.

Let's talk about some of the things you will experience those first few weeks...

It is normal to experience many hormone shifts in the first 3 weeks that may have you on an emotional roller coaster. As the milk comes in around the third day after birth you will have a big hormone shift that can cause you to feel sad, irritated or even cause you to cry for no reason at all. This usually lasts for 24 to 48 hours.

It is normal for you will feel like you are unable to get anything done except for feeding and caring for your baby. This is true... it takes about 12 weeks after birth to get back into a normal routine and have some sort of order to your life again. Be patient, it gets a little easier each day. Do not be afraid to ask for help or accept help that has been offered. It does not make you a bad mom, it makes you a great mom because you will get more rest and be able to concentrate on caring for your baby.

It is normal for you to constantly feel tired. Your baby may have his days and nights mixed up and you probably started with a sleep deficit from laboring through the night.

Try to sleep when your baby sleeps, even if you feel you need to get things done. Have someone you trust stay with you for the first night or two so that you can get some quality sleep. Most babies will fall into a good eating, sleeping pattern on their own around 4 weeks but can take up to 12 weeks.

It is normal for your baby to want to eat every 2-3 hours. And they may take 20-40 minutes each feeding to get the job done. Use this time to rest and relax. Don't be hard on yourself, you are doing a great job and life will settle into a normal rhythm soon. You've got this!

More About Birth Podcast Episode Five: The Fourth Trimester:

Click on this link to hear the podcast: http://bit.ly/39C1ZD2