What it is
Postpartum traditions. Cultural postpartum. Belly binding. Closing of the bones. Almost every culture has, or had, a set period of care after birth. The number is often forty days. The elements repeat: the mother stays in, stays warm, eats special foods, is cared for by women, and the period ends with a ritual or a bath.
What's typical
Malaysia and Indonesia: pantang, 44 days, with bengkung binding and herbal baths. Japan: satogaeri, a month at the mother's own mother's home. Nigeria: omugwo, where the mother's mother moves in, with warm baths and pepper soup. Mexico: la cuarentena, closed with a cerrada, the closing of the hips with a rebozo. Pakistan and North India: chilla, forty days, with panjiri.
What's known
Anthropologists noted in the 1980s that cultures with a defined postpartum period report less postpartum depression, though the studies are small. ACOG and the WHO describe the same needs these traditions meet: rest, food, support, and follow-up.
What helps
- Ask the oldest woman in your family what she did, and what she wishes she had done.
- Borrow the shape even if you have no tradition: a set number of days, one person who feeds you, one who guards the door.
- Mark the end. A bath, a meal, a walk.
When to call someone
- Nowfever of 100.4 or higher with chills, heavy bleeding, or a burn from a hot compress. Call your provider.
- Todayany herbal preparation or practice that leaves you dizzy, with a racing heart, or unwell.
- At your next visittell your provider what you are practicing so advice fits.
Who helps
Tools: Postpartum Prep Checklist
Related
- The first 40 daysSupport, Home, and Village
- Zuo yuezi: sitting the monthNourishment and Traditions
- La cuarentenaNourishment and Traditions
- Ayurvedic postpartum careNourishment and Traditions
- Korean samchilil and miyeok-gukNourishment and Traditions
- Belly bindingNourishment and Traditions
What mothers here say
No one has posted under this topic yet. The first experience here will help the next mother who searches for it at 2 a.m.
Experiences and questions are their authors' own, not reviewed advice. The topic's steward lists the ones that help most in a credited digest once there is one. Unusual experiences stay, with a note.
Sources
- Gwen Stern and Laurence Kruckman (anthropologists) — Multi-disciplinary perspectives on post-partum depression: an anthropological critique, Social Science & Medicine, 1983
- Heng Ou (author) — The First Forty Days: The Essential Art of Nourishing the New Mother
- World Health Organization — Recommendations on maternal and newborn care for a positive postnatal experience
Sources are named, not yet linked. The steward verifies each one and adds the link.
Steward this topic
Birthworkers listed in our directory can claim a topic, verify its sources, and curate what mothers share here. Your name and credential go at the top of the page. Takes about an hour the first time.
Find your directory page