post partum support

happy 9 month birthday to the bear!!! already?

yesterday, my hubby cut my hair shorter. i was starting to regularly get tangles in the nape of my neck. it was just too long for weeks now but i was tired of the combing, combing, combing and the knots! it had to go. the left side is a bit longer in the front and i like it. it's still long enough to pull it back. it's the same otherwise. does that make sense? you need to see a picture, don't you?

my november clients have given birth as well as my december clients. what will i do with my time now? so far, i have been doing lots of post partum support, especially helping with breastfeeding. it's very enjoyable for me to help people but i am not at all glad that it is hard for them. it further concinves me that 6 weeks is way too long to go between birth and that first doctor visit. another care provider skilled in helping with all the challenges of breastfeeding, healing from labor and birth, juggling life, bonding, diaper changing, nutrition, sleeping, building attachment, and even grocery shopping or housekeeping is CRUCIAL. why do we even attempt to do all of it on our own? families deserve more help than they are getting...in everything from a skilled post partum attendant to a community of friends that will drop off meals or wash their dishes.

if you have a friend or relative who just gave birth, try to do more than ask for picutres of the babe. try to help them out. even if all seems well, they could benefit from doing less running around and more sitting still at this point in their lives. you bringing a meal is a simple act that means the family has much less to think about each day. if the mom is well nourished, her newborn babe can benefit, too. if you live in another town or state, just have food delivered to them on your dime by googling local restaraunts. and, from a doula and a mama to two, trust me when i tell you that it helps!