How Can Babies Be Okay If Mothers Are Not Okay?

In today’s day and age, prenatal and postnatal care focuses on ensuring that the baby is okay, but how can our babies be okay if our mothers are not okay? Many new moms are struggling in their transition to motherhood.

The statistics show the story of this struggle. Approximately 10 to 15% of women suffer from postpartum mood disorders.  Approximately 1 in 4 women will experience a pelvic floor disorder such as prolapse or urinary incontinence in their lifetime. Approximately 6 to 18% of women who have had a C-section will experience chronic pain from scar tissue. New mothers are experiencing complications from high blood pressure and inflammatory conditions are on the rise. Our mothers are not doing okay, and we need to shift the focus of care to encompass new mothers as well as babies.

According to the Secretary of the Department of Human Resources in Pennsylvania, “From the moment the baby is born, we cannot lose sight of the mom. That is the most critically important thing..[as] the mother’s experience is a ‘defining moment and can affect outcomes into the future’.”

I chose certification in INNATE Postpartum Care because it was one of the few programs that focuses on preventative care to support the health and wellbeing of new moms as opposed to diagnostic treatment of symptoms and disease. INNATE Postpartum Care provides women with information on how to prepare for the postpartum, after birth, and set up resources and care they need to feel good. INNATE teachings incorporate worldwide traditional care practices and modern science based on biology, physiology and psychology, “the sacred and scientific”, to support postpartum wellness. INNATE Postpartum Care focuses on the 5 pillars of postpartum health and helps mothers create plans that include their own care and wellbeing, so they are better able to care for their babies. The goal of INNATE Postpartum Care teachings is to provide care so that both babies AND mothers thrive.

Danielle Hughes is the Founder of Mothering Life and a mother of two. She is an INNATE Postpartum Care practitioner and provides information and resources to expectant and new mothers, so motherhood can be the celebration that it is meant to be.