6 Truths Every Postpartum Mom Needs to Know

Postpartum is a place of paradox. We live in awe and fear, sadness and joy, love and frustration, memory-making and fogginess—all at the same time. Those first few days and following couple of weeks are especially intense. Lack of sleep, hormonal changes, wounds and injuries that need to heal, new responsibilities suddenly (and literally) thrust into your lap, and the seemingly continual cry of your baby swirl together into a household hurricane.

My first baby was a terrifying experience. I couldn’t differentiate between false labor and true labor. I had little knowledge about motherhood. I experienced postpartum depression (though I didn’t have that label until months later). My baby wasn’t a good sleeper, and we both floundered with breastfeeding.

When my second healthy pregnancy began, I felt I had a bit of an upper hand. I knew what true labor was like. I knew how to breastfeed and the tricks necessary to help a baby who struggles to latch. I knew what to do to help my baby sleep better and what support I needed if he didn’t. I knew how to recognize postpartum depression before becoming suffocated by it. 

Then the doctor told me I was having twins. At thirty weeks gestation I went into what appeared as false labor but was actually preterm labor. Thankfully my labor was stopped until thirty-seven weeks when I had a c-section. I was only able to breastfeed for a short time and had to switch to formula. I battled more postpartum anxiety than depression. Everything I thought I had the upper hand on quickly dissipated and was replaced by circumstances that knocked me back down again to the beginner level. 

Every baby, every mother, every family is different to some degree. What works for one mom or one baby might not work for another; but in both my pregnancies and postpartum experiences I’ve found these six things to be true each time.

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