Sleep and Help with Meals and Housework After Giving Birth

Sleep and Help with Meals and Housework after Giving Birth This week alone we've heard, "We should've hired a doula to get sleep and help with meals and housework after giving birth," at least ten times. Ten times this week alone! That means there is a general consensus that families do want and very much need help after giving birth.

Who more deserving of sleep and help than new parents raising the future generation? They want to get a healthy amount of sleep, not even an abundance of it. Shoot, most new parents can't even imagine what an abundance of sleep feels like. For the majority a short 30-60 minute nap along with a minimum of 4-6 hours of uninterrupted sleep each day is enough to maintain mental, emotional, and physical health. Many aren't getting that though. On average the majority of new parents are only getting three-and-a-quarter hours sleep each night for the first two years of their children's lives. Sleep-deprivation can lead to unhealthy habits and unsafe conditions for both parents and their children. Someone's grandchildren!

Food! I think we all speak that love language, amiright? New parents are praying that someone, anyone will hear their stomach's cry for a decent meal and that during their night the snack fairy will arrive and save them! After all how will they keep up with their wakeful newborns and maintain a sense of normalcy without nourishing their bodies?

The other universal love language is L-A-U-N-D-R-Y and D-I-S-H-E-S! New parents may wear boogies as an accessory and the newest eau de spit-up fragrance, but it doesn't mean they have to start their day that way. To see the mile high pile of laundry and dishes disappear would be like the magic of childhood again! When the subject comes up organically I tell people there are three things you need to know when visiting a home with a newborn.

1. Bring food for the new family!

2. Wash your hands upon arrival!

3. A load of dishes, laundry, or both are required if you're going to hang out for longer than 5 minutes.

A great postpartum and infant doula speaks the universal new parent language fluently! We anticipate the needs of new parents without being asked or without asking a million questions. Many are trained to recognize early signs of baby blues, postpartum depression, anxiety, and psychosis. We help with the most important things: sleep, food, laundry, dishes, siblings, and hello, companionship! Ask a mom what she needed in the first three months after giving birth and you can bet your first born that we help with it. I'm serious! From sleep to sex, and everything in between we help parents find their groove and do so with less stress and more options!

I absolutely won't sell our agency short here folks! You want First Coast Doulas on your home team! Hiring a postpartum doula doesn't mean you can't hold down the fort, you totally can! It means your fort can become an impenetrable fortress with hands on, accurate advice, support, encouragement, and help! It doesn't make you any less of a parent or spouse to bring in a mom and baby professional. You know what it does make you? In the know, a smarty Mc Smarty Pants!

The only down side to postpartum and infant doula support is finding out too late! However, finding out too late that postpartum doulas help with sleep and help with meals and housework after giving birth doesn't mean you have to be sad. Okay, maybe a little wallow in the metaphorical mud is okay; after all you could have had a daily shower, food, and sleep! After that though, pick yourself up, clean yourself off and get out there and tell other expecting and new parents that they don't have to go through this alone! Often times the most important lessons in life are learned through our own experiences. The fact that we missed out on amazing support shouldn't be the focus, but rather that we learned from the experience and want to share it with others!

First Coast Doulas is currently offering a few special holiday packages and our gift certificates make thoughtful and extravagant gifts!