My Top 10 Postpartum Must-Haves
Postpartum as sacred
Postpartum is a precious and vulnerable time. After growing and birthing your baby, you have finally met a beautiful new soul. The first days and weeks postpartum can feel like such a whirlwind—healing from birth, feeding your baby, sleep deprivation, and everything in between. Ultimately, those first few weeks should be devoted to bonding and recovery. It is crucial to prioritize rest, nourishment, and support. I have put together a list of my top 10 postpartum must-haves. As a mother and postpartum doula, these are a few things I have seen be very useful in those first few weeks postpartum.
Above all else, be sure to take things slowly postpartum. You need more rest than you think you do. I advise my clients to follow a rule of 5 days in the bed, 5 days on the bed, and then 5 days around the bed. This means during the first two weeks or so, you should not be leaving the house unless absolutely necessary. Stay in bed and rest as much as possible! Lean on friends, family, and neighbors to run errands for you if needed and utilize services such as Instacart and DoorDash if they are within your means. Staying home and prioritizing rest will help your long-term recovery, both physically and emotionally.
I look back at the first two weeks of my own postpartum experience fondly. I made sure to set myself up for a lot of rest, nourishment, and support. Beforehand, I put together a recipe book of easy and delicious meals and snacks my husband could make for me. We also made some freezer-meals, and my mother-in-law also came to town for almost 2 weeks, which was so helpful in keeping us fed and supported. Beyond the support of family and friends, these are the top 10 things I recommend for the first few weeks postpartum.
POSTPARTUM MUST-HAVES
my daughter in an herbal bath
Freezer meals and snacks
For me, these are a postpartum non-negotiable. Putting meals and snacks in your freezer ahead of time ensures you always have something to eat in those first few weeks postpartum. If you are nursing, you need an extra 500-700 calories! Freezer-friendly foods include soups, bone broth, muffins, breakfast burritos, and curries. You can devote an entire day to making freezer meals in the final weeks of pregnancy or you can just make extras of your dinners in the weeks leading up to birth and freeze those leftovers. And don’t forget the snacks! When breastfeeding hunger strikes, it is nice to have more than just soups on hand.
Upside down peri bottle
A peri bottle is a bottle with a nozzle that you fill with water that is used to cleanser yourself down there after birth. If you deliver at a hospital, they will send you home with a peri bottle. And if you have a home birth, a peri bottle is often included in your birth kit. The hospital bottle will work just fine, but the upside down peri bottle is ergonomically easier to use. I liked to fill mine with warm water each time I used the bathroom and it was honestly so soothing. You can also add soothing herbs to your peri for extra healing power. Whether you experience a perineal tear or not, you should not be wiping. It will likely be incredible uncomfortable and increases your chances of possible infection.
Herbs for herbal bath
Postpartum herbal baths are a tradition used to promote circulation and warmth in the body after childbirth. There are various different herbs and herbal blends that can be used to sooth tender and swollen perineal tissue, support the healing of tears, and shrink hemorrhoids after a vaginal birth (as long as there are no sign of infection). Herbs commonly used include dried comfrey leaf, lavender flowers, calendula flowers, dried sage leaf, yarrow blossoms, fresh garlic, and more! You can find herbal bath mixtures online or at your local apothecary.
You can take an herbal bath if you have had stitches, but unfortunately not after Cesarean birth as the incision site is still healing. The bath can be take as soon as an hour after birth and, as long as there are no signs of infection, a fresh bath can be taken daily. You can also put these cooling herbs in your per bottle! Baby can also join mama in the herbal bath as it promotes drying and healing of the umbilical cord. I did this with my daughter and she absolutely loved it!
Comfortable pajamas
Since you’ll be resting a lot at home, it is nice to have some fresh and comfy pajamas to lounge in! If you are breastfeeding, I love the pajamas that button up the front because it makes for easy breast access. I suggest pajamas made with breathable fabrics such as cotton or linen because you might experience an increase in sweating postpartum as your body detoxes fluids and your hormones shift. Also make sure the pajamas are loose-fitting—in my opinion, compressive materials are very uncomfortable postpartum.
Postpartum Underwear
This kind of goes hand-in-hand with the pajamas. But I recommend getting some really comfortable panties for postpartum. Just know, they might get ruined if you leak. The first few days postpartum, I wore adult diapers and then I switched to the FridaMom disposable underwear and then regular undies with a pad. My favorite postpartum undies are these from Bodily.
Baby carrier (soft and structured)
After the initial two weeks, and when you fell ready to move around a bit more, baby wearing is a great way to keep baby close while also getting to get some things done. Babies like to be close to mom and keeping them skin to skin promotes a stronger bond and helps with your milk supply! And if your baby is anything like mine, they will only nap if they are being held so putting them in a carrier makes it easier to get things done and move around while they are napping. I suggest getting a soft carrier like the solly wrap or Moby wrap, and a more structured one like the Ergo.
Ice Pack
An ice pack has so many uses postpartum. Some people find ice packs soothing on their perineum, as the tissue might be swollen. ice packs can also be used if you experience engorgement or clogged milk ducts as your milk transitions to mature milk. For so many reasons, an ice pack is a great tool to have on hand to soothe potential discomforts!
Home visit from an IBCLC
I firmly believe everyone can benefit from an appointment with an IBCLC postpartum. They can analyze baby’s latch and offer so many helpful tips even if you are not experiencing discomfort. Breastfeeding is a natural act but that does not mean it comes naturally or easily. Research shows that parents who have support are more likely to have successful breastfeeding journeys. Many insurance companies cover either home visits or office visits with IBCLCs. To see if your insurance covers it, check out The Lactation Network.
Kindle or books
As you are spending time in bed and around the house postpartum and baby is sleeping, there can be some downtime. It can be easy to hop on your phone and scroll social media, but that can sometime be detrimental to your mental health. I encourage people to get a book or a Kindle, it a much more soothing use of that down time.
Journal
Finally, I encourage new parents to get a journal for the postpartum period. This could be a postpartum journal, a motherhood journal, or a journal you use to write to your baby. The transition to parenthood comes with many identity shifts and it can be helpful to slow down and reflect. I particularly love this Postpartum Grace Guide which has journal prompts for the first two weeks postpartum. Once of my doula clients actually gifted one to me for my own postpartum journey and I loved it.
Each of the things I have listed are things that helped me postpartum. Most importantly, prioritize rest, nourishment, and support above any material things or products!