I'm An Obstetrician. The Six-Week Recovery Time Is A Lie And It’s Failing New Mothers

"Medically speaking, it can take up to two years for a woman’s body, mind and hormones to fully recover after birth."

When a woman gives birth, the conversation around her care shifts almost immediately to the baby. How is the baby feeding? How is the baby sleeping? How much does the baby weigh?

These are important questions, but they often come at the expense of asking how the mother is doing.

One of the most persistent misconceptions I see is the idea that postpartum recovery is quick. There is almost an expectation that by six weeks, a woman should somehow transform overnight, as if turning from a pumpkin into a princess.

The reality is very different.

What recovery after birth actually looks like

Recovery tends to follow a loose sequence, though every woman’s experience will differ depending on her birth, her baseline health and the support around her.

The earliest improvements are typically visible within the first........

© HuffPost