Postpartum Archives

Stress and Success in Postpartum

Written by Anne Marie Williams. Originally published in Family Foundations The postpartum period is uniquely full of the emotional highs of welcoming new life into the world as well as certain stresses like sleeplessness, round-the-clock caregiving, and adjustment of expectations between husband and wife. Couples practicing natural family planning and seeking to avoid pregnancy encounter…

Overcoming Postpartum Challenges

Written by By Melissa Gorley. Adapted from a Family Foundations article by Melissa Gorley. The postpartum season is one of joys and challenges. The joy of holding that precious baby makes all the hard work worth it, but there are also challenges including charting the return to normal menstrual cycles. Coupled with a renewed respect…

Three Generations of Postpartum Perspective

Written by Mike Manhart. Originally published in Family Foundations in 2022. Our home currently shelters three generations and is providing an interesting “grandparent” perspective on postpartum. Our youngest daughter had her first child in September and her husband was deployed 10 days later. Since then, she’s been staying with us, and it has provided a…

The Hardest Job You’ll Ever Love

Written by Katie Zulanas. Originally published in Family Foundations in 2022. Oh, how true that is! Whether it refers to parenthood, or marriage, or another vocation, our life’s work, sincerely pursued, inevitably runs into suffering and sacrifice. Your true vocation will be the hardest job you’ll ever love—and despite that–it is worth it! Postpartum is…

Preparing for Postpartum

Written by Monica Mattuissi. Originally published in Family Foundations in 2022. Recently, when praying the Rosary, I was meditating on the second joyful mystery of the Visitation, when Mary makes a journey to visit her cousin Elizabeth. I was struck by Mary’s eagerness to visit her pregnant cousin Elizabeth, as any woman who has been…

CCL in Postpartum?

It is quiet in the garden these days outside our office window at the Holy Spirit Center. Seemingly little happening there; however, just like at CCL, the “groundwork” for growth is being established. It is, in fact, a very busy time for us! I had our team laughing when I remarked that CCL was in…

Rising Above the Baby Blues

I have been failing so often to choose joy during this fourth trimester because I was relying on my vocation to fulfill me. How very foolish. I know rationally that my vocation is not my end-all — my life with Christ is.

Try These Shops for Cute Nursing Clothes

A recent cultural movement to embrace public breastfeeding — with or without a cover — has been gaining momentum. While we welcome a more accepting attitude toward public breastfeeding, we certainly don’t want anyone baring their chests in front of strangers. Nursing moms, keep your shirts on. We scoured the internet for nursing clothes that…

Unofficial Patron Saint of C-sections

Anyone who’s had one could tell you that c-sections are far from easy. Beyond the standard post-partum challenges of balancing regular duties with keeping a fragile human alive, there’s also the added inconvenience of an abdominal incision. Healing from a major surgery like that isn’t a joke. Things can be made even harder if there…

Motherhood: Strongest Antidote to Selfishness

Pope Francis is the newest pope of the people. For the first time in decades, media reports on the Holy See are trending positive, non-Catholics find him endearing and his own flock reveal a certain admiration for him, lovingly calling him “Papa Frankie.” While we may have a special place in our hearts for the…