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Traditional Women's Wisdom

Secrets to Post Birth Recovery

For thousands of years, women in traditional cultures around the world have recovered from birth using special techniques and practices. They understand the period immediately following birth is crucial for a new mum’s healthy and confident transition into motherhood. It is surprising to realise that in western cultures, with all our advanced lifestyles and quality of living, we do not acknowledge the recovery time that’s needed post childbirth and or the honoring of a woman’s transition into motherhood.

It's important to point out here, that it's not just a question of making you feel special as a new mum, it's ensuring that you receive the physical and emotional support REQUIRED to recover from birth (which, let's not pretend, can be a physically and emotionally taxing experience!), so that you are able to care for a newborn baby, whose wellbeing is entirely dependant upon you. It's not just you anymore - you simply cannot afford to put yourself at the bottom of the list, because your health is vitally important and significantly impacts upon your child.

There is support available. By embracing traditional women’s wisdom and the best that western and complementary medicines offer, we have developed a unique natural approach that ensures your best possible recovery in the shortest possible time. Following are 10 essential steps to guide you on your path to recovery. For a more detailed version with great tips included, download a FREE copy of the 10 Steps to a Healthy Recovery.

1. Planning is the key
2. Resting helps you recover faster
3. Nourishing foods are the cornerstone to recovery
4. Support products make a difference
5. Allow yourself to be supported
6. Massages really help your recovery
7. Wrap to regain your body
8. Gentle exercise makes you feel better
9. Breastfeeding for Health
10. Celebrating Motherhood

Planning is the key

We often find, as first time mums, we are so focused on the birth, we are unaware of the upheaval and huge time of change we are about to undergo. Often, we seem to expect our immediate family and partners to be our only support, which is not only a big ask, it often takes away from the precious time and opportunity to bond together as a new family.

Thinking about the postnatal period while you are still pregnant enables you to plan what support you and your family will need when you are settling in to motherhood. Mums need time to themselves too and planning ahead enables you to enjoy your early days as a new mum, whilst ensuring your health and your family’s wellbeing is being cared for.

Resting helps you recover faster

Across all cultures with positive postnatal traditions, adequate rest is a consistent factor. Many cultures have rituals that have a set period they recommend for rest from anywhere between the first month to several months. The whole community supports this; therefore new mums in these cultures feel supported and accept that this time is important to their health and recovery.

Your postnatal time is a recuperative time — as with any other type of recuperation, the more rest you have the faster you recover! In saying this, the concept of rest can be an alien one for women in today’s society. We are busy, we manage important careers, we have busy social lives, organise households (often single-handedly) and take an active role in the care of others.

Yet without adequate rest, fatigue can set in. Up to 76% of women report ongoing fatigue in the postnatal period which significantly impacts on family life, relationships and libido, making seeking support to get some rest a priority, not only for your own sanity, but for the benefit of your health and your family!

Nourishing foods are the cornerstone to recovery

I know, you've been told to eat healthy many times before, but did you know specific postnatal foods help your body recover, increase your energy, encourages normal bowel function, supports healthy hormones and supports breastfeeding!

Few of us realise that lactation places greater demands on the body and requires more nutritional support than pregnancy. It takes approximately the same nutritional requirements to support breastfeeding than it does to actually grow your baby inutero! Another interesting fact that is not commonly known is that when a mother is nutritionally deficient, her body will still use all available nutrients for lactation. Therefore the baby will continue to get reasonable quality breast milk but the mother will suffer from lack of nutrients, sapping her energy levels and leaving her depleted.

Our Eating Guide with Recipes is full of advice on what to eat and what to avoid to help you recover quickly and get the nutrients you need. You may also like to book in some time to speak with a Nutritionist, who can look at your diet and recommend an easy to implement eating plan with tips and advice on healthy snacks. CONTACT US and we'd be delighted to arrange a copy of our Eating Guide with Recipes eBook and support you to make an appointment.

Support products make a difference

Herbs have traditionally been used to prepare the uterus for labour, to decrease blood loss after delivery, to help the uterus contract back to its pre-pregnancy size and to support the production of breast milk. Herbal medicine is still used today in traditional cultures as it is in the west, to gently support new mums in postnatal recovery.

Embracing Motherhood has developed three signature organic herbal teas specially formulated to help mums recover in the postnatal period:

Breastfeeding Tea – this tea combines herbs that have been used traditionally by breastfeeding women. Fennel, nettle and fenugreek have been used for centuries to promote the flow of breast milk and support lactation, combined with herbs high in nutrients, such as oats and alfalfa. Herbal tea is the ideal way to support lactation and ensure adequate fluid levels.

New Mum’s Tea – this tea has been specifically formulated using only the finest organic soothing herbs and warming spices that have been traditionally used by new mums post birth. The organic herbs used in this blend have many properties; withania and schisandra help the body recover from the stress of delivery, melissa and chamomile have a soothing effect on the nervous system; raspberry helps to tone the uterus and nettle encourages milk flow.

Toning Tea – this tea is for women’s bodies recovering in the postnatal period. Ladies mantle and motherwort are the key herbs used for toning the uterus and easing uterine spasms post birth. Both have long been associated with postnatal recovery and easing anxiety without causing sedation.

Our research team have also developed some organic results oriented products designed to help regain your pre-baby body and health:

New Mum’s Body Oil – our signature body oil contains the purest organic jojoba, rosehip and avocado oils to provide deep nourishment and repair for your skin. Add to this a postnatal blend of pure essential oils, including rose, frankinscence and neroli to further nourish your skin and uplift your spirit.

Postnatal Tummy Cream – firm and repair your post pregnancy tummy. Our specific postnatal cream will repair and revitalise your abdomen leaving you with the feeling of firmer skin and reducing the appearance of stretch marks. The cream contains organic essential oils of jasmine, clary sage and roman chamomile carefully selected for use during postnatal recovery and infused herbal oils of arnica and calendula.

Allow yourself to be supported

In traditional cultures it is common to have a female family member stay with you to help with all aspects of running a home while the new mum recovers. They also play another important role by offering emotional support and care. By supporting the new mum during their transition into motherhood, women gain confidence in their ability to mother and learn new skills as their female family members encourage and support them. Our research indicates lack of adequate support can encourage postnatal depression.

We often live away from family and it’s not always possible to have them close once baby is born, or if they come it may only be for a short period of time. Enlisting some support from friends or family close by can ease the risk of ongoing fatigue and can support you and your family to spend some quality bonding time together.

Signature Recovery Programmes help provide the support and valuable contacts that you will need to feel supported and recuperate well.

Massages really help your recovery

Massage is one of the consistent factors involved in post-birth recovery across many different cultures. Each culture has its own specific form of massage, generally applied to the entire body, including the abdomen and breasts. Many different cultures use their own special blend of massage oils—often mixed with traditional herbs and essential oils to increase the benefit.

Some of the benefits of massage for recovering new mums are:

• renews strength and energy
• helps tone and regain your pre-baby tummy
• encourages healing of abdominal muscles
• improves skin tone and nourishes your skin
• relieves muscular tension, abdominal and back pain
• supports healthy weight loss
• helps eliminate pregnancy fluid retention
• encourages normal bowel function
• supports lactation and helps prevent lymphatic stagnation and mastitis
• provides relief and comfort to breasts
• helps you sleep better
• relaxes your mind and body
• supports healthy moods

If you would like to experience the benefits of postnatal massage, please CONTACT US and we'd be delighted to help you with your booking.

Wrap to regain your body

Many different cultures the world over have practiced the ancient ritual of tummy wrapping after childbirth. It is still practiced today in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Japan, Cambodia, Mexico, China, Guatemala, Java, the South Pacific, India and the Philippines and in different cultures including Muslim, Mayan and Hmong.

The abdominal wrap is worn from anywhere between a few days or up to several months. In some cultures, the wrap itself may take on a special significance, as wearing such a belt around the belly was in itself a symbol of motherhood. In traditional cultures it is generally believed that the wrap helps to return the uterus to its pre-pregnancy position, warm the reproductive organs, support the stomach muscles and close the birth canal, while helping the tummy to return to its pre-pregnancy shape.

Western women are now discovering the many benefits to adopting this ancient practice. New mums report that it is supportive and comforting to wear on the lower back and abdomen and many mums have reported back on how it has helped to flatten their post pregnancy tummies.

If you would like to benefit from our Signature Recovery Programme, please CONTACT US. Our Traditional Tummy Wraps can also be purchased online - BUY NOW.

Gentle exercise makes you feel better

Gentle exercise is so important to introduce in the first few weeks to help you strengthen your pelvic floor muscles, stimulate circulation and help you regain your body and vitality.

Yoga and pelvic floor exercises are a great and very gentle way to begin exercising again and the benefits are numerous:

• Stimulate circulation
• Stimulate lymphatic drainage
• Gradually strengthen muscles
• Help you regain muscle tone
• Improves oxygen intake
• Increases energy levels
• Lifts your mood
• Gets you back out in the world again after birth

Certain exercises are not recommended in the postnatal period; therefore, please ensure you only perform gentle, specifically designed exercises during this time. For a copy of our specific Yoga and Exercise E-books please CONTACT US.

Breastfeeding for Health

Breastfeeding is a hot topic among mums and those in the women's health industry. There's no denying the benefits are numerous and we recommend spending some time researching into whether breastfeeding is the best thing for you and your baby, or not. Each woman is different, there is no right or wrong, however ensure you are making the best decision based on having all the facts. If you choose to breastfeed you may want to do some reading and research beforehand. Breastfeeding is a new skill that requires practice; you may choose to have some personal breastfeeding instruction before your baby is born. This will help you learn the basics in a relaxed environment.

Research shows breastfeeding supports the best possible start to a baby’s health, growth and development and provides valuable short-term and long-term health benefits for babies and mothers. The World Health Organization recommends that all babies are breastfed exclusively up until a minimum of 6 months of age. While in Australian 83% of all women initiate breastfeeding, more than 40% of women have ceased breastfeeding before their baby is 1 year.

Benefits of breastfeeding for babies
• Provides the perfect food for your growing baby
• Protects your baby against illness and infection, particularly gastrointestinal tract illness, respiratory tract infection and middle ear infection
• Helps to protect against allergies and asthma
• Helps to decrease the chance of childhood obesity
• Evidence suggests that breastfeeding protects against a range of chronic illnesses which can develop in adulthood, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, atherosclerosis, and high blood pressure
• Aids in the development of babies eyesight, speech and intelligence
• Promotes a special loving bond between mother and baby

There are also significant benefits for mums
• Significantly reduces the risk of pre-menopausal cancer
• Beneficial in promoting the mothers recovery from childbirth
• Helps to minimize the risk of hemorrhage post birth
• May assist in accelerating weight loss and return to pre-pregnancy weight
• May reduce the risk of ovarian and endometrial cancers
• May decrease the risk of osteoporosis
• May be protective against type 2 diabetes
• Hormones released during breastfeeding help to reduce maternal stress and facilitate bonding.

If you have challenges with your milk supply or want to encourage ongoing good milk supply our Breastfeeding Tea is the answer – this tea combines herbs that have been used traditionally by breastfeeding women. Fennel, nettle and fenugreek have been used for centuries to promote the flow of breast milk and support lactation, combined with herbs high in nutrients, such as oats and alfalfa.

Celebrating Motherhood

In traditional cultures it is the mother who is celebrated, especially in the early postnatal period — for her bravery and strength and her contribution to the community, her transition into motherhood is revered and celebrated across many cultures.

One of our aims at Embracing Motherhood is to rekindle the celebration of women’s transition into motherhood - we cherish our new mums.