How to Create a Postpartum Recovery Plan That Actually Supports You
Most women spend months preparing for labour and birth. We count down the weeks, wash baby clothes, decorate the nursery, and lean into every class and checklist we can find. We are so ready for baby’s arrival.
And then the baby arrives, and everything changes. The focus shifts entirely to the baby, and the mother, the one who did the growing, the birthing, the sleepless nights to come, often becomes the afterthought. Yet this is exactly when she needs care the most.
Creating a postpartum recovery plan that actually supports you is one of the best gifts you can give yourself (and your baby). It allows you to step into this new chapter feeling grounded, prepared, and cared for — not just surviving, but truly healing and adjusting.
Why You Need a Postpartum Recovery Plan
After birth, your body is healing from an incredible amount of change. Your uterus is shrinking, hormones are shifting, your breasts are adjusting to milk production, and your entire nervous system is recalibrating to life with a newborn.
It’s not just physical. The emotional and mental transitions of new motherhood are real and deserve care too.
Without a plan, it’s easy to fall into exhaustion, frustration, and overwhelm. Trying to do everything yourself while running on very little rest. A postpartum plan ensures that you are cared for, so you can better care for your baby.
Step 1: Build Your Support Team
Think about who will help you during those first few weeks.
Who will bring meals or groceries?
Who can watch the baby while you shower or nap?
Who can you call for emotional support or breastfeeding questions?
It’s okay to ask for help and to be specific about what you need. Friends and family often want to help, but they just need to know how.
You can also consider professional postpartum support such as a nurse, doula, or postpartum massage provider. Having someone knowledgeable about physical recovery, lactation, and newborn care can make a world of difference.
Step 2: Nourish Your Body (and Stock the Freezer)
Your body needs gentle, nourishing foods to heal. Think warm, easy-to-digest meals like soups, stews, bone broth, and oatmeal. Keep snacks nearby for those long feeding sessions; things like nuts, fruit, yogurt, or energy bites. Hydration is also key. Keep a water bottle by your bedside and refill it often.
Stocking the freezer ahead of time can be a game changer.
Choose times in your third trimester to prep and freeze meals. Check out Pinch of Yum’s Food Blog for some delicious freezer meal recipes
Another blog that has tons of easy freezer meal recipes is The Family Freezer.
Here’s a tip on how easily incorporate this without getting overwhelmed: pick one or two dinners each week and double them. Freeze half. Label with name, date, instructions. I also recommend creating a simple inventory on your phone or google sheets to keep track so nothing gets lost in the freezer.
Why this matters:
You’ll likely have far less time and mental energy for cooking once baby arrives. Having meals ready reduces one major stressor.
Your body is working hard; healing from birth, producing milk (if breastfeeding), adjusting hormonally. Nutrient-dense meals give your body what it needs. Budget Bytes has tons of hearty and delicious options that are freezer friendly.
It also supports your emotional state, and knowing meals are ready frees your mind from constant “what’s for dinner?” decisions. Not to mention that while breastfeeding you will be hungry all the time! So I highly recommend also making and freezing some snacks that can be eaten easily with one hand. Check out The Lean Green Bean for ideas and recipes.
If friends or family ask what they can bring, give them meal ideas that truly support healing instead of leaving it up to chance. And if you can, leave space in your freezer so that gifted meals can also be accommodated.
Step 3: Prioritize Rest (and Let Others Handle the House)
Rest is not lazy, it’s essential. Try to rest when your baby rests, and let go of the pressure to have a spotless house or perfect routine. The early postpartum period is temporary. The laundry and dishes can wait; your recovery cannot.
Planning ahead for household help makes a big difference.
If you can, plan at least for the first 40 days if possible, to have others step in. This period is sacred in many traditions because it reflects intense healing and transition.
Ask friends or family who’ve offered or whom you’re comfortable with to take on specific tasks: doing a load of laundry, cleaning the kitchen, vacuuming, or grocery runs.
If you are able, consider hiring help. Even “every other week” housekeeping can relieve a huge burden. A cleaner coming in while you rest can be a huge support.
If finances allow, budgeting ahead for this support (even if it’s minimal) is a wise investment in your recovery and mental health.
By letting others handle household tasks, you’re not “resting selfishly”, you’re honouring your body’s healing work. Your brain, your nervous system, your body are doing major things. Your home can be the safe harbour that allows you to recover, rather than an additional source of stress.
Step 4: Care for Your Body
Postpartum care goes beyond rest. Gentle movement and bodywork can help your body recover faster and more comfortably.
Services like lymphatic drainage massage help reduce swelling and inflammation, support circulation, and aid in recovery from birth, especially if you received IV fluids or experienced edema (swelling).
Core support taping can provide gentle abdominal and back support as your core and pelvic floor begin to strengthen again.
Small acts of body care; like a warm bath, a few deep breaths, or a short walk, remind your body that it’s safe to relax and heal.
Step 5: Protect Your Mental and Emotional Well-Being
Your mind deserves just as much care as your body. It’s normal to experience emotional ups and downs after birth, but you don’t have to navigate them alone. Surround yourself with people who lift you up. Limit stressful visits or conversations.
Try journaling, meditating, or simply talking to someone who listens without judgment.
And remember: asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness.
When you care for your emotional health, you create a calmer environment for both you and your baby.
Step 6: Plan for Follow-Up Support
You deserve continued care well beyond the first few days at home. Scheduling in-home services allows you to focus on recovery without the stress of leaving the house or disrupting your baby’s rhythm. It’s a way to keep prioritizing yourself while still being fully present for your newborn.
An in-home postpartum check-in with a registered nurse is a beautiful way to ensure your recovery is progressing well, your baby is feeding and gaining appropriately, and that you feel truly supported.
You might also consider an in-home postpartum massage to help your body unwind after the physical intensity of birth. Labour can feel like a marathon, and the long hours spent in feeding positions can leave your neck, shoulders, and back needing some gentle care and attention.
Think of these supports as a continuation of care that centres you, not just the baby, because your healing and comfort matter, too.
You Deserve Support Too
The postpartum period is not meant to be done alone. Creating a recovery plan is about honouring the incredible work your body and mind have done, and giving yourself permission to slow down and receive care.
💛 If you'd like to prepare for your own postpartum recovery or gift a new mom with real support, you can purchase a Nurse Yaz Gift Card.
Gift cards can be used toward in-home postpartum services such as lymphatic drainage massage, core support taping, postpartum check-ins, and more.
Because when a mother is cared for, everyone benefits.
