The Birth Lounge Blog

What is the Fourth Trimester? It's just as it sounds. Each trimester of your pregnancy was three months. The fourth trimester is the first 90 days after your baby is born. This can be a lovely and exciting time, but it can also be a time of overwhelming emotion and one of a fine balancing act.  Between the sleep deprivation, having a tiny human depend on you for everything, the emotional whirlwinds, and the constant flow of visitors, the fourth trimester can seem very intense. Having a game plan in place, or at least knowing what to expect, can be helpful.  1. Ask for Help  Society expects too much from new parents, especially birthing parents. There, I said it. It's too much. It's overwhelming. And it affects the way parents think about themselves as caregivers.  Let go of this societal idea that a new mom has to do it all from day one. It is a slow ramp up. First and foremost, your body is healing and this requires you to rest, so let the laundry p...

Doesn't the hospital have everything? Yes and no. The hospital has everything that you will need medically to have your baby. This is true. But think about the environment of a hospital--bright lights, sterile environment, potential for loud noises, unfamiliar faces, that distinct hospital smell, and incessant beeps from medical equipment. Neel Shah recently did a podcast interview with the Harvard School of Public Health and he said, "It's not a ventilator that defines an ICU. It's the ability to have one nurse take care of one patient. So if you go to the cardiac ICU of my hospital at Beth Israel, you'll see one nurse per patient. You go to my labor floor, you'll see the same thing. You know they can track vital signs in real time in the cardiac ICU. So can we. The only difference between the ICU and the labor floor is that our operating rooms are attached." For the entire interview, check it out  here .  So what can you do to ease the feel...

Am I planning a wedding or a birth? Whether your'e planning a wedding specifically or any large event, you know how much work goes into the preparation. First, a venue--finding a place to hold this event is crucial. Next, nailing down a menu that is most satisfying to your pallet (and others in attendance). Finally, creating an invite list and sending out invitations. The venue and guest have everything to do with the style or environment, so choose carefully. You can only prepare so much, but whatever is going to happen that day will happen. You can only control so much. At the end of the day, a lot of factors go into whether or not this event goes off without a hitch. Prepare for what you can and trust the process to take care of the rest. Are you confused yet? Wedding or birth? Plan vs. Prepare Like a wedding, it can be helpful to hire someone that has been to many births and can help you know what options you hav...