Postpartum Planning Checklist: What to Prepare Before Baby Arrives
We spend so much time preparing for the baby.
We research car seats, make registries, wash tiny clothes, pack hospital bags, and think about where the baby will sleep. But somewhere in all of that planning, it's surprisingly easy to forget that someone else is coming home from the hospital too: you.
I'm an acupuncturist who has worked with women through pregnancy and postpartum, and I'm also a mom of three. Clinical knowledge absolutely helped me prepare for parts of postpartum. But actually living through the exhaustion, the physical recovery, the endless feeding sessions, and the Groundhog Day feeling of those early weeks taught me something different:
We need to prepare moms for postpartum, not just prepare homes for babies.
Preparing for postpartum?
I created a free Postpartum Prep Checklist to help you think through recovery, feeding, meals, visitors, support, and those first days at home—before you're in the thick of it.
Prepare for the emotional change, too
One of the things I was least prepared for after my first baby wasn't something I could put on a registry.
It was the enormous loss of autonomy.
Suddenly, something as simple as taking a shower, eating lunch, or going to the bathroom required figuring out what to do with this tiny person who needed me constantly. My entire life seemed to change overnight.
There were moments of frustration, rage, resentment, overwhelm—and then guilt for feeling those things at all.
At the same time, you're learning a person you've never met before. What does this cry mean? Is she hungry? Tired? Uncomfortable? Why won't she sleep? Will I ever sleep again?
And you're trying to figure out who you are as a mother while you're doing it.
I wish we talked more about preparing for that transition. You can know intellectually that having a baby will change your life and still be completely surprised by what it feels like when it actually does.
Learn the baby basics before you're exhausted
You don't need to become a newborn expert before giving birth. Your baby will teach you plenty.
But learning a few basics ahead of time can make those first weeks feel less bewildering.
Read about early hunger cues. Learn what sleepy cues can look like. Understand that crying is often a later cue. Learn some basic soothing techniques. Talk to your pediatrician and other trusted providers about what is normal and when to ask for help.
Clinical knowledge helped me here. I had tools from Chinese medicine and acupressure that I could use for things like digestive discomfort, and by my third baby I also had something equally valuable: experience.
You start realizing that you don't have to perfectly control everything. You can watch your baby, follow your instincts, and respond to the little person in front of you.
Make a plan for YOUR recovery
This is the part I really want expecting moms to think about before delivery.
Your postpartum plan shouldn't only say who is going to wash bottles and change diapers.
What is the plan for your body?
Pregnancy and birth ask an enormous amount of it. Your pelvic floor, abdominal wall, breathing mechanics, rib mobility, strength, sleep, and overall recovery deserve attention too.
Think ahead about who will support your recovery. That might include your OB/GYN or midwife, a pelvic floor physical therapist, lactation support, an acupuncturist, a mental-health professional, or other appropriate providers depending on your needs.
It's incredibly easy for Mom's needs to get pushed to the bottom of the list once the baby arrives. Making your recovery part of the plan before birth makes it much harder to forget about yourself afterward.
Plan food that you'll actually want to eat
I love soup, which works out beautifully because warm, nourishing, easy-to-digest foods are a big part of the traditional Chinese medicine approach to postpartum recovery.
But sometimes you want to chew something.
You do not need six straight weeks of soup to earn your postpartum recovery badge.
Have some comforting meals in the freezer. Set up a meal train if people offer. Keep easy snacks where you'll actually be feeding the baby. Think about hydration, especially if you're breastfeeding. I personally love electrolyte stick powders because they're easy to keep nearby and actually use.
And if an occasional greasy burger makes all the nourishing soups a little easier to get through, I'm not judging you.
One of the sweetest things our homeschool co-op did after my third baby was bring a snack basket for my older kids. It wasn't technically for my postpartum recovery, but it absolutely supported it. The kids had easy snacks, they were thrilled, and it was one less thing I had to think about.
Sometimes the most helpful postpartum support is simply removing one more decision from Mom's day.
You probably don't need the perfect nursery
I'm going to potentially save you some nesting energy here:
None of my babies cared about their nursery.
You certainly can create a beautiful nursery if it brings you joy. But don't mistake decorating a baby's room for preparing for postpartum.
Think practically about where you'll actually spend those first weeks.
For us, having diapers, wipes, burp cloths, and extra baby clothes easily accessible where we were actually living was far more useful than having everything perfectly organized in another room.
Put some of that preparation energy toward Mom's environment, too. Where will you feed the baby? Is there water nearby? Snacks? A charger? Burp cloths? Somewhere comfortable to sit? What do you want within arm's reach at 3 a.m.?
Prepare for the life you're actually going to be living—not just the nursery photos.
Accept the season you're in
By baby number three, my perspective had changed tremendously.
Sitting down to breastfeed a baby for what feels like the zillionth time doesn't feel quite as much like another task anymore. Sometimes it's simply an excuse to sit down, rest, and feed my baby.
Meanwhile, the older kids might be running amok.
They might watch too much TV that day.
They're going to be okay.
The house might be messier. Dinner might be simpler. Your normal routines may disappear for a while.
Let people help you. Rest without feeling like you need to earn it. Lower the expectations that don't matter right now.
Because by the third baby, you know something that is very hard to understand with the first:
This part really is short.
That doesn't mean every moment feels precious. Some days are exhausting. Some are monotonous. Some are overwhelming.
But this particular version of your family won't exist for very long.
Prepare for postpartum before you're in it
If I could tell a first-time mom one thing about preparing for postpartum, it would be this:
Focus on your own healing, too—and make a plan for it before the baby arrives.
Prepare the meals. Talk about visitors. Figure out who can help. Learn some basic newborn cues. Think about feeding support. Make your recovery spaces comfortable. Identify the professionals you might want in your corner.
You don't need to predict exactly what postpartum will look like.
You just want enough support in place that when you're exhausted, emotional, healing, and learning your new baby, you don't have to figure absolutely everything out from scratch.
And then give yourself permission to change the plan.
Want a little help planning it all out?
I created a free Postpartum Prep Checklist to help you think through recovery, feeding, meals, visitors, support, and those first days at home—before you're in the thick of it.
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