Creating a Postpartum Resource List
As a birth doula, I obviously think that birth preparation is important; but I often see first-time parents get hung up on preparing for the birth and forget that postpartum is a much longer, and sometimes more complex, period of parenthood. As I am not a postpartum doula, I try to remind my clients of the education and resources in our community that can support them during the exhausting newborn days, and often recommend them researching and writing down these resources on a postpartum resource sheet during their pregnancy so they can be prepared.
An important part of actually having a sheet or virtual share note with these resources, and how to access them, is that often times parents who are struggling postpartum don’t have the bandwidth to research these resources. If you are suffering from a postpartum mood disorder, like postpartum depression or anxiety, it is often times too difficult to think about calling for an appointment, let alone leaving the house, without support or encouragement. Even if you aren’t, often times postpartum can put people too deep in the trenches to feel like they have the capacity to access outside resources that could help them.
I highly recommend adding phone numbers, websites, etc. to this resource list and making your partner, or other postpartum support person, aware of the list and give them the responsibility of booking the appointments and figuring out insurance and scheduling. This will take one major thing of the plate of the person going through the fourth trimester and remove that barrier to accessing support.
What to add to a Postpartum Resource List:
Pediatrician (Name, Phone Number, Website, Office hours, and other resources like walk-in hours, etc.)
Urgent Care (hours of operation and phone number) and Pediatric Emergency Room near you
Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) or Breastfeeding Support Group (Provider name, phone number, website, pricing/insurance coverage, location)
Most people do not know that after the Affordable Care Act was passed, insurances were required to provide breastfeeding support in some capacity to new parents. Often times I find parents have access to up to six visits with a private IBCLC free of charge, and they have no idea! If your insurance does not provide this, they will often provide group support, online classes, or a list of community resources for you to access. The best place to find this information is checking directly with your insurance provider during pregnancy to see what type of support they cover. You can also check out The Lactation Network, which is a third-party website where you can plug in your insurance, and it tells you which providers in the area accept your insurance and takes care of payment between your insurance company and lactation consultant. Please note, that if The Lactation Network says your insurance does not provide benefits, it simply means your insurance does not work with The Lactation Network for breastfeeding support. Your insurance likely still has breastfeeding benefits, but you will need to reach out directly to your insurance to see what they are.
A few notes: If your insurance covers visits with a private, IBCLC, it is good to know that most IBCLCs do home visits, especially when newly postpartum. Please take advantage of this. Find a provider during your pregnancy, and make sure to set up an in-home appointment shortly after birth to get an assessment, fitted for pump flange sizes, and ask all your questions.
If you live in an area where there aren’t any private IBCLCs, please know many provide virtual services. You can still gain a lot from a virtual latch assessment and discussion with a lactation consultant. Look up providers in whatever city you live closest to as they will likely be licensed in your state and ask about virtual support.
OBGYN or Midwife (Name, Phone number, Office hours, and After-hours line)
If suffering from a physical or mental health issue postpartum, your OBGYN is usually the first line of defense to contact for support. If you are dealing with any postpartum symptoms like headaches, blurry vision, odd smells or discharge from a healing site, fevers, redness or swelling of the breasts accompanied by flu-like symptoms, or mental health concerns; PLEASE contact your doctor or midwife before the six-week postpartum check-up and advocate for yourself to be seen.
Postpartum Support International Hotline (Number for Suicide and Crisis Line as well as the National Maternal Health Hotline)
I have had clients use this hotline during mental health crisis’s and have had nothing but good things to say about their experience, you do not need to be nervous to reach out if you need to talk to someone.
Pelvic Floor Physical Therapist (Name, Number, Insurance Coverage/Price)
Lots of people like to schedule an assessment with a pelvic floor specialist for after the six-week postpartum visit. If you have the resources to do so, I suggest getting an assessment of how pregnancy and birth affected your pelvic floor and abdominal wall before returning to exercise, so you can return in a safe way that doesn’t exasperate any postpartum issues.
Postpartum Doula Services (Name, number, pricing)
While some people book postpartum doula care or night nannies during their pregnancy, often times people who need postpartum doula support or night-time support decide after birth to access this based on having a rough birth, recovery, or newborn issues. Having the information figured out beforehand can make it easier to figure out if you can access that support if you need it.
Any other physical support you would be interested in helping with recovery, like a chiropractor (for you and baby), massage therapist, acupuncturist, meal delivery service, etc.
Most likely you will only be needing a few of these resources, but any research you did during your pregnancy will be worth its weight in gold when overwhelmed postpartum! Putting together a resource list with your partner also helps involve them in the postpartum process and gives them a way they can practically help you during the difficulties of transitioning in parenthood.
