There is a prevalent misconception that postpartum recovery concludes neatly at the six-week checkup. Six weeks has been the standard for decades for medical care, based on tradition and opinion instead of evidence. The reasons for this include that the six week postpartum check-up has been largely agreed up by providers as the point where they give medical clearance to return to normal activity. And of course health insurance typically limits covered postpartum care to six weeks.
However, current evidence clearly demonstrates that recovery after childbirth is often underestimated and extends well beyond this traditional six-week expectation.
Postpartum recovery should be viewed as more than just physical recovery, it should include mental and functional as well. When assessing recovery in this way, research indicates that recovery is significantly longer than six weeks. A cross-sectional study found that the average time to full recovery across all areas was approximately 15.0 weeks.. Notably, 42.5% of participants reported not feeling fully recovered in all areas by the 3- to 6-month postpartum period, which means a large number of participants needed longer than 6 months for recovery.
Recovering from childbirth is very individualized. There are many factors that can influence recovery such as maternal age, how healthy Mom was going into birth, nutrition, sleep and rest after birth, if there were complications such as high blood loss, or cesarean delivery just to list a few. There is no set timeline for recovery, but the evidence shows it’s much longer than 6 weeks. So give yourself time, and ignore anyone who tells you when you should be recovered.
Sources:
https://www.ejog.org/action/showPdf?pii=S0301-2115%2825%2900952-2
https://www.health.harvard.edu/womens-health/pregnancys-lasting-toll
https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S2214-109X%2823%2900454-0
https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S2589-5370%2823%2900441-8
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9528725/
However, current evidence clearly demonstrates that recovery after childbirth is often underestimated and extends well beyond this traditional six-week expectation.
Postpartum recovery should be viewed as more than just physical recovery, it should include mental and functional as well. When assessing recovery in this way, research indicates that recovery is significantly longer than six weeks. A cross-sectional study found that the average time to full recovery across all areas was approximately 15.0 weeks.. Notably, 42.5% of participants reported not feeling fully recovered in all areas by the 3- to 6-month postpartum period, which means a large number of participants needed longer than 6 months for recovery.
Recovering from childbirth is very individualized. There are many factors that can influence recovery such as maternal age, how healthy Mom was going into birth, nutrition, sleep and rest after birth, if there were complications such as high blood loss, or cesarean delivery just to list a few. There is no set timeline for recovery, but the evidence shows it’s much longer than 6 weeks. So give yourself time, and ignore anyone who tells you when you should be recovered.
Sources:
https://www.ejog.org/action/showPdf?pii=S0301-2115%2825%2900952-2
https://www.health.harvard.edu/womens-health/pregnancys-lasting-toll
https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S2214-109X%2823%2900454-0
https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S2589-5370%2823%2900441-8
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9528725/
RSS Feed