Benefits of a Confinement Nanny

The first 30 to 42 days after you have given birth is the period where you are confined to a certain regimen comprised of a nutritious diet, to-do's and not-to-do's, and lots of rest. The confinement period, known as 坐月子 "zuo yue zi” in Chinese, allows you to better recuperate after birth and ensures that you will be able to supply good quality breast milk for your baby.

This restoring period has three stages:  the first one week, where mothers can start to walk around; intermediate puerperium, four to six weeks after delivery, the time it takes for the sore genitalia to recover; and remote puerperium, between six and 12 months, when your body returns to its original condition.

Normally, a confinement nanny will be hired during this recuperating confinement period to ensure proper care and rest for the mother, provide her with specialised diet which is nutritious and care for the newborn baby. A proper confinement would build a solid foundation for your future health, whereas the lack of them could lead to postpartum conditions such as headaches, arthritis, immune deficiency, chronic fatigue, depression and insomnia.

New mothers would feel "gassy" because their digestive system is returning to normal. To help get rid of this wind in the stomach, the confinement nanny may prepare drinks and dishes infused with ginger such as red dates tea or ginger tea, fish, chicken, beef or pork cooked with ginger. They may even prepare herbal water for the mother to bathe in. After 12 days, the confinement nanny may cook pig trotters in vinegar and ginger. This is one of the traditional dishes for mothers which helps to promote blood circulation and is high in gelatin and collagen to help fight hair loss among other benefits.

Another special confinement dish is Black Fungus chicken wine soup. This dish is rich in iron and helps to regulate and improve blood circulation after birth. (Wine used for cooking confinement food must be limited to 20 per cent alcohol content or below, and properly boiled.)

It is important to have a confinement nanny who is responsible, attends to the baby regularly 24 hours throughout the day and helps in simple household duties such as doing the laundry. This is to ensure that mothers who have just given birth especially after Caesarean section will have more time to rest, recuperate well and prepare themselves to be able to produce adequate milk supply. The nutritious diet prepared by the confinement nannies will also aid in the milk production process for the breastfeeding mothers.

Source: Benefits of a Confinement Nanny