The Sitting Month: Post-Partum Care for the Mama Bear

In Chinese Medicine, the Sitting Month is referred to as the first 3 months of your life after giving birth. During this time, the woman is meant to be resting in a space created to cradle her and her new child, making their transition into the world smooth, safe and unencumbered. It is a time to reorient the woman back into her new reality as a mother. It is also a great time of bonding. Post-partum is not pathology, it is natural. Sure, it comes with difficult challenges, but all which are natural. Empowering the post-natal life through protection and nourishment brings optimism to the new mother and to the new child. Knowing where to turn for this protection and nourishment is key in cultivating a new life centered around new roles and new routines.

The Initial Bond

As an Oriental Medicine practitioner, acupuncture and herbs has played a vital role in my own recovery as a new mom. I also found a lot of peace in the philosophy of the Sitting Month. I came to learn that the ending of your maternity leave does not mark the end of your recovery. Allow yourself to dismiss timelines of recovery. In fact, many medical professional today are recognizing the post-partum recovery period as a full year, versus the briefer period marked by maternity leave policies. A teacher of mine once mentioned that after you have a child, you are post-partum for the rest of your life. I love this notion because it gives permission to erase any expectation we may have unconsciously put on ourselves. It also acknowledges the fact that you have gone through an enormous physical, emotional and spiritual transformation; one that offers an opportunity of complete renewal. So, take whatever time your life’s circumstances allow, but know that whenever you return to your prior obligations, you are still turning over a new leaf as your new life as a mother unfolds for years to come. Gift yourself permission to ease into your new role, your new mindset, and your new body at your own pace so you can prioritize your time and energy back to the bonding period. I also recommend some specific therapies that are very beneficial during this time. I often incorporate these comforting therapies into a more comprehensive treatment for my post-partum patients.

Here they are:

Mother Roasting- Mother Roasting is the act of receiving Moxa over the sacrum and lower belly. Along with a specific acupuncture treatment, Mother Roasting is meant to both clear the remnants of pregnancy and “close the gate.” Moxa, or Moxabustion, is a widely used therapy in Chinese Medicine. The most common type of Moxa is Mugwort, or Ai Ye. The herb is tightly compressed to form a pole. The practitioner lights one end so the herb smolders and holds it over the area of the body being treated, delivering a wonderfully warm and comforting sensation. In the case of postpartum care, Moxa is said to move Qi (energy) and blood, dissolve lumps and nodules, and tonify yin and yang.

Scar treatments- Scars not only heal faster when properly cared for, but are also less likely to give you trouble years down the road if they are adequately released and cleared shortly after their creation. Acupuncture is a spectacular way to address scar adhesions; especially those due to a C-section. It is relatively non-invasive and delivers lasting effects as the scar heals. I always couple acupuncture and Moxa when addressing scars because the warming effects of Moxa are enormous here. Think about a surgery room; cold and sterile. In Chinese Medicine, cold can easily invade the body, especially when the body is in a vulnerable state, like in surgery. That cold can linger in the tissues, contracting and stiffening areas of our bodies that are meant to be warm, soft and flexible (like our bellies!). Imagine how beneficial it would be post C-section to break up the cold lodged into the scar. I also like to send patients home with a topical herbal liniment to apply while the scar heals. I have formulated by own Scar Oil with specific herbs to regenerate skin tissue. Stay tuned to learn more about my Scar Oil and how to get some in an up-coming blog post.

Herbal formulas- When you are postpartum, suddenly having the time to do things like shower and eat is nonexistent, let alone get to an acupuncture treatment. So, in cases where the mom can’t come in very often for treatments, I will send her home with an herbal formula. Post-partum formulas are modified based on what is going on specifically for each mom. Again, the idea here is to clear the remnants of pregnancy and to nourish the mom, revitalizing her energy and resources so she can do things like breastfeed and still have the energy to give that new baby all the attention he or she deserves.

While being postpartum is a different journey for everyone, I often begin with these basic strategies during a post-partum visit with my patients. I share them here to give you some ideas about how Chinese Medicine can get you started in the right direction as you begin to find your new normal, post-partum. I truly believe in the power Chinese Medicine has to offer when it comes to this precious period in life. Caring for the mother is the first step in caring for the baby. Love only grows from there!