The Fourth Trimester Tips

***THE 4TH TRIMESTER!!!!! The 12 weeks AFTER birth. What was supposed to be “4th trimester nurse practitioner tips post,” turned into a story…

Exhausted from decorating the tree, I snuck into the living room and plopped on the couch. Clicked my prayer app and closed my eyes. Mind wandering to intentions, my stomach won. I wish I had some chocolate. I wish I had a bag full of crunchy snacks. Hail Mary…

MINUTES later, phone ding from a neighbor. “Hi Dear! Can I send my son down with a bag of snacks for a new mama? It’s not dinner, but hopefully helpful.” At my door arrives a large brown bag full of chocolate brownies, chocolate chips, and crunchy snacks. Chills and tears.

Of all my 4th trimester tips – here’s the most important – ASK. Ask for the little things your mama heart craves. Ask in a Hail Mary, ask in a friend text, ask crying on a husband’s shoulder, ask on an Instagram post. Ask if you don’t know what or how to ask. God hears every detail.

Pregnant hormones, post-partum hormones, mama hormones are REAL. (ps. my episode on @hormonegeniusreleased today! Please go listen & share with every woman you know!)

Gone are the red-tent days of lying in bed for the first year after childbirth! In are the American days of returning to work in the 4th trimester. We’re resilient, and we’ll adapt, but we need to ASK for help. Ask & watch God perform the small miracles in your life 🙌🏻

Now the 4th trimester tips:

1. DRINK more water. More than you think. Keep water bottles in every room.

2. Learn the 5 newborn S’s – swaddle, side-stomach position, shush, swing and suck.

3. Shower every day.

4. Recognize stress & rest more.

5. ASK. Identify what you need, don’t play the victim, and ask for everything.

We got this! ❤️ Lastly, the love for our birth video has been OVERWHELMING!!!! Thank you! Clearly, it’s the beauty we need to see as mothers. Send it to a pregnant or post-partum friend & remind her of the most important job in the entire world! The hormones, breakdowns, exhaustion – all worth it.

1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th trimester, there’s room for joy in it all ❤️

In Joy,

Alex