Planning for our Babymoon

[zipworth]

Hi all,

After a rough go on my last PP experience, I am determined to take extra good care of myself this time around, for myself and my family. Here are some strategies I am hoping to employ:

Have my freezer stocked with lots of good, iron rich foods

Stay in bed for at least 2 weeks!!Prepare my husband ahead of time, get lots of family help. Give family members clear duties to help us when offered instead of being vague.

Have my house thoroughly cleaned while I am in the hospital. Last time, it was a disaster.

If my mom offers to do my laundry, take her up on it instead of feeling hurt and insulted.

Take supplements; multivitamins, omega 3s, and maybe floradix?

No visitors until I feel like it!

A decluttered house (I have started with the kitchen)

A new haircut and eyebrows before baby comes.

Any other pg mammas out there preparing for PPD? What will you do?

[dirtgirl]

Have you considered hiring a postpartum doula? A postpartum doula can help lighten the load - literally, by doing laundry, light housework, maybe some meal prep. But also, she can provide you with emotional support and be a general advocate for you during the pp transition. Also, some insurance companies are providing 3rd party reimbursement for pp doula services.

[Surfacing]

I've had the baby now (5 wks ago) but I did lots to prepare for the postpartum. Helpful things included:

- group cooking with girlfriends to stock my freezer with dinners for a month
- hiring a doula for the birth (she was EXCELLENT) to give me the support I needed (fearful after a traumatic birth with dd1, she kept me focused, in the present and reassured for dd2's birth, also was able to talk with her after)
- cleaning lady 1x after the birth
- lots of emotional support from midwives, doula
- being on meds
- asking for help as needed

Those things worked really well for the most part. There have been some bumps in the road since the heavy support has faded, moving further away from the immediate postpartum. But it was definitely worth it for my whole family to have those supports. Good luck!

[zipworth]

I like the cleaning lady idea....