Exhausted after giving birth? Postnatal Depletion & How Traditional Chinese Medicine May Help

Are you a new mum suffering from postnatal depletion? Do you feel intense fatigue, anxiety, have difficulty concentrating, or have a loss of libido? Or are you find yourself acting like a meerkat, always on the alert for danger? Know you’re not alone. Postnatal depletion is common and can make an already difficult time in a new mother’s life all the more challenging.

Our body goes through a lot of stress during pregnancy and birth yet, after delivery, our entire focus is providing vital nutrients to our baby. But what about our own body? It’s trying to recover, and we’re not helping ourselves. We don’t give our own body the same level of nurture we provide our newborn. By not taking care of our own health from conception, during pregnancy and after giving birth we are leaving ourselves vulnerable to exhaustion and postnatal depletion.

If you’re suffering from postnatal depletion, then Traditional Chinese Medicine may offer the nourishment your body is craving. Traditional Chinese Medicine can assist in nourishing you as a new mother and supporting your overall health while you nourish your baby.

What is Postnatal Depletion?

Postnatal depletion is essentially, the toll that pregnancy, birth, and post-delivery care takes on new mothers. New mums often put it down to simply being exhausted or having “baby brain”, but it can often be more than that. It can be postnatal depletion.

Postnatal depletion can be caused by many mother-related duties, including nutrition depletion, the physical act of labour, maternal brain changes, breastfeeding, blood loss, sleep deprivation, social isolation, stress, toxins, inflammation, lack of support in our daily life and constant worry.

According to Dr Oscar Serrallach, the author of The Postnatal Depletion Cure, symptoms that can be related to postnatal depletion can last as long as ten years after childbirth. Symptoms may include poor memory, low self-esteem, exhaustion, poor sleep habits, anxiety and loss of libido.

Postnatal depletion can also lead to postnatal depression and can have severe consequences if mother’s do not receive the support they need, which is where Traditional Chinese Medicine may help.

Treating Postnatal Depletion with Traditional Chinese Medicine

In many so-called primitive cultures supporting a pregnant mothers health, especially after the baby was born, was considered very important. Traditionally, in Eastern cultures, after childbirth, mothers were supported with Chinese Herbal Medicine. The mother would not have to leave the house for 30 days; they didn’t have any visitors and their only duty was to take care of their baby. They were nourished with the right foods, herbs, and treatments to recover and provide the best care for their baby.

Traditional Chinese Medicine aims to continue this culture. It may assist in nourishing new mothers and providing the support needed to recover and be the best mother they can be for their families. It does this by diagnosing where roadblocks occur and assists in bringing the body back into balance to restore health.

Traditional Chinese Medicine offers many therapies and treatments that may support new mothers, including cupping, herbal medicine, rest, warmth, acupuncture, and moxibustion.

• Cupping – may assist in tightening the loose skin and bringing blood flow back to the surface of the skin (Learn more about cupping by reading our previous post, ‘Cupping – the Natural Tummy Tuck’.
• Herbal Medicine – may assist in providing proper nutrients to replenish the body. Omega 3’s, warm spices such as ginger, cinnamon, black pepper, fennel, garlic.
• Acupuncture and moxibustion – may assist in clarifying and warming areas where blockages might be stuck.
• Rest – is vital for the body to repair.
• Keeping warm – by drinking warm drinks such as herbal tea.

If you are experiencing one or more of the many symptoms of postnatal depletion and think one of the therapies and treatments mentioned above may benefit your condition, book an appointment with our Traditional Chinese medicine practitioner.

Maria Catarina is a Gold Coast Chinese Medicine Therapist / Acupuncturist at Ultra Health Therapies, who may be able to help recover from postnatal depletion.