Nurtured Postpartum

Heads up! Updated availability incoming!!

It is never too early to book your postpartum support. Whether you're busy making birth plans, planning your baby's room, or you've just peed on the stick, don't forget about the postpartum time. A postpartum doula can be the support you need to make it a little bit easier. Whether you need someone to answer your questions so you don't head down the Google rabbit hole, someone to share your confusing feelings with, or someone to help you figure out how the heck to actually do all the things you need to do, a postpartum doula is your ticket to a more supported postpartum. Oh, and spoiler alert: you can't actually do all the things because you're only one human. But adding a postpartum doula to your support team adds you an extra human (who is also pretty damn skilled at doing all the baby and postpartum stuff).

August 1-7 is World Lactation/Breastfeeding/Bodyfeeding Week. And before I say or share anything else, I need to say a few things.

There can be a lot of stress around feeding your baby. But know this: however you feed your baby is right for you and your baby. We all know the biological benefits of human milk, and truly, they're incredible. Sometimes I want to shout from the rooftops about them! But they're not all we have to think about when deciding what's best for our families, and lactation is not necessarily the best choice (or a choice at all) for everyone.

So, for those parents who work so hard to make breastfeeding/chestfeeding work for them - you're doing a good job.

For those parents who pump and bottle feed, whether it's truly a choice or not - you're doing a good job.

For those parents who breastfeed/chestfeed for one day/one feed/one week/one month and switch to formula milk - you're doing a good job.

For those parents who feed donated human milk - you're doing a good job.

For those parents who feed formula milk right from birth (for any reason) - you're doing a good job.

For those who feed both human milk and formula milk - you're doing a good job.

For those who cannot or do not want to breastfeed/chestfeed (for whatever reason) - you're doing a good job.

No matter how you feed your baby, you are doing a good job.

(This photo is me nursing my youngest, 3 months shy of her 5th birthday.)

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We need your help! Please share Will’s camp, he needs a couple more for these dates. The first two went amazing and the boys are hoping to be able to run all the dates, ages 9-14 🏀 Thanks so much for sharing!

Going through my photos from my recent trip to Newfoundland, I keep coming back to this one. It reminds me of how I felt going into birth and postpartum.

Now, you may be asking yourself, "Sarah, what does a ship on the ocean have to do with birth or postpartum? Have you lost your ever loving mind?" And while you'd be correct (not being self-deprecating, but perimenopause is something else, folks), stay with me.

Even for my fourth time around, the way through birth and postpartum felt like something I couldn't quite grasp. I knew where I was headed, but I couldn't always see what was right in front of me. There were moments of excitement, of joy, of uncertainty, of confusion, of feeling utterly lost, and more moments than I can count when I wondered if I was doing any of it "right."

Just like this ship needs its captain to guide it safely through the fog, I needed someone to help guide me through birth and postpartum. To hold space for me when things felt overwhelming. To show me the way when I couldn't see through the fog. Someone to remind me that I wasn't lost, even I forgot who I was.

That's what support can be. It's not someone taking over or coming in to "fix" everything. I mean, most of the hard stuff isn't something that can be "fixed" the way we imagine. There's no magic snap of the fingers that can make things "right" again. Instead, postpartum support can help you navigate when the path ahead feels a little foggy. It can be a steady presence, holding space for the hard parts and celebrating the good parts with you.

If you follow me over on , you may have seen this photo already. Sorry, not sorry. Feel free to hop over there for others from the trip (and a lot of basketball recently, but also postpartum and birth photos).

Love these bands that Woodland Hillside created for Elias and Will's basketball camp. The first day was yesterday, and while I may be in Newfoundland, I loved hearing about it all went. There's still time to register for any (or all) of the remaining days! Check out trailrecreation.ca/register/ or call the City of Trail!

I'll be there!

Nobody talks about how exhausting it is to be needed for every little thing as a new parent. To be responsible for keeping an entire human alive while also keeping yourself alive and having zero idea what you're doing.

But I promise, one day your kids will no longer need you for every little thing. And you may actually find yourself missing when they did. But here's the secret:

Even when they're teens, they still need you (for more than just money and a ride). They need you to know when to step back and when to step in. They need to know you're there when they need you. They need to know that your love is unconditional, that you accept and love them for who they are.

I'm away for the week in Newfoundland with my mom and siblings. And my teens are the ones who have wanted to talk most often. Not the 10 year old who cried when I was leaving because what if she needed a mom hug. The teens. Especially the quieter teen who keeps more to themself usually. In fact, I haven't even talked to that 10 year old despite calling several times.

Anyway, all I'm saying is that this phase of being needed for everylittlething is not forever. I know it's exhausting and feels like it might break you at times. But it isn't forever and one day you may miss parts of that (no, you won't miss it all, that's okay).

See you in a week - I'm gonna be here at the ocean, laughing with my mom and siblings!