Postpartum

Having a child is an exciting, emotional, and overwhelming time for a family. It is complex and may be filled with difficulties and uncertainties, including but not limited to changes in routines, physical recovery, breastfeeding challenges, hormonal changes, sleep disturbances, increased levels of stress, as well as other psychosocial and emotional struggles. Parents may be functioning on very few hours of interrupted sleep and have difficulty with health management such as intake of appropriate nutrition and a lack of a physical activity regiment. Not to mention, this is a time of intense physical healing for the mother who just gave birth. There are many resources needed and problems to solve while navigating through the worries of providing the best care for a new baby. In this part of the course, you will learn about the various occupations that encompass the mothering role, some of the barriers to participation and performance that she may experience during her transition to motherhood, and the ways in which occupational therapy could address those barriers.