Mazz from The Bond Wellbeing is a Postpartum Doula, Infant Massage Instructor and Mum to Frankie and Dylan who lives in Sydney.

She founded The Bond Wellbeing to help mums and their families to prepare for and experience a time of rest, recovery and bonding during their postpartum and beyond.

"Mazz talks about 6 very simple, and effective ways to give your body some TLC to aid recovery those first few days and weeks of giving birth."

So, what exactly are the six pillars of warmth for postpartum recovery?

Warmth is a key postpartum pillar and is central to postpartum healing from both a Traditional Chinese medicine and an Ayurvedic perspective. ⁠
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Why? Well, after 9 months of building warmth through your blood, placenta, amniotic fluid and baby the balance is thrown off after birth and the body can be left with excess cold.⁠
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Promoting warmth helps with blood circulation for healing, energy levels, digestion, boosting oxytocin, bonding, breastfeeding and overall wellbeing.⁠
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There are many ways to build warmth in your postpartum, here are some of my favourite:⁠
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#1 Food⁠
Warm and cooked foods bring a sense of comfort from the inside out. After birth, your digestion is often compromised so these foods will be gently on your tummy. Thinks soups, broths, stews, slow-cooked meats, dhals and porridge.⁠

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# 2 Tea⁠
Not only is warm tea the best way to stay hydrated you can select teas with therapeutic benefits like nettle, fennel or fenugreek for supporting milk supply, raspberry leaf for toning your uterus back down, dandelion for swelling or camomile to calm your nervous system. ⁠

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#3 Heat packs⁠
Pop it in the microwave or fill that hot water bottle to ease aches and pains associated with feeding, carrying and post-birth recovery.⁠
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#4 Foot baths⁠
We all know I love a foot bath! Add some epsom salts to calm your nervous system and support your sleep.⁠

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#5 Cosy socks⁠
We can loose a lot of heat through our feet and warm feet are key to uterine health. So, after your footbath pop your cosiest socks on!⁠

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#6 Massage⁠
A warm oil massage has so many benefits from nourishing and warming the skin, pacifying the nervous system, reducing swelling and promoting a sense of calm through nurturing touch.⁠

Mazz's Extra Tips!
Radically prioritise resting and bonding/feeding in those early days and drop your expectations around everything else.

I always talk about the resting rule of thumb being
‘5 days in bed, 5 days on bed and 5 days around the bed.

You don’t have to follow this to a tee but it helps to illustrate that  bed is a central theme of those early days!

Get horizontal, let others bring you food and tea and be skin to skin with your baby. If you can ease into the recovery in this way it will make for a much smoother
onward journey.

When I say this, I’m always conscious of mums who might feel like they missed this precious time if their babies’ arrival started with a stay in the NICU for example.
I think it’s never too late to give yourself this period of rest, recovery and
bonding even if it comes a little later than you’d hoped for.

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Image by: Imogen Freenland
"Birth of a Mother" is a series by Imogen Freeland which features intimate photographs of pregnant women and new mothers at home