The first 30 days: what to expect
Your body does a great deal of quiet healing in the first month. Knowing what's normal makes it easier to rest through it, and easier to notice when something isn't.
Bleeding is heaviest now, bright red like a heavy period, and you may pass a few small clots. Afterpains, the cramps of your womb shrinking back down, are often strongest while you nurse. Your baby lives on colostrum. Sleep whenever your baby sleeps.
Your milk comes in, and your breasts may feel full, warm and heavy. Hormones drop sharply, and tears that come out of nowhere are common. These are the baby blues, and they usually lift within about two weeks.
Bleeding turns lighter, pink or brown. Soreness and stitches begin to ease. You may feel well enough to do more. This is exactly the week to stay put.
For most mothers, bleeding fades to a creamy or yellowish discharge. If it turns bright red again after a busy day, your body is asking you to slow down.
The healing you can't see
Where your placenta grew, there is a wound inside your womb, roughly the size of a dinner plate. It heals quietly from the inside while you rest. Because you can't see it, it's easy to forget, and it's the biggest reason rest matters so much this month.
In the bed, on the bed, near the bed
All over the world, new mothers are kept warm, fed and resting for about a month. In China it's called sitting the month; in Latin America, la cuarentena lasts forty days. I ask my clients to make their bed home base: week one in the bed, week two on the bed, weeks three and four near the bed. Rest isn't stillness, though. Get up to use the bathroom, circle your ankles, stretch your legs often and drink plenty of water to keep your blood flowing.