Megan Stander, Founder of Raising Mama Shares Important Advice on Planning for Postpartum

Motherhood is extraordinary. Motherhood is transformative. Motherhood is glorified and globally celebrated. But that's it. The celebration ends postnatal, when the new mother brings home her bundle of joy expecting to feel all those positive things she had been told over and over from the time she had started expecting. It hits her soon enough that the reality of postpartum is quite different. And the sad truth is no one had prepared her for it. 

There are no postpartum warning bells because the romance of a burgeoning belly, the bravery of going through a pregnancy and childbirth, the excitement of a baby shower, and the outpouring of love and gifts is so hyped up in our lives both offline and online, that talking about lochia, sleepless nights, cracked and bleeding nipples, bad back, swollen feet, lack of help, and a tumult of raw overwhelming emotions doesn't make for an appetizing conversation. 

Like many young women, it wasn't until she went through the grueling challenges of postpartum that Megan realized she had to do something about it and help the women around her. Diagnosed with Dysphoric Milk Ejection Reflex (D-MER) and experiencing first-hand how structured gender inequalities in our society can hamper a woman's recovery both mentally and physically compelled her to create a roadmap for expecting mothers to guide them through the challenges of life postpartum.

All new moms find themselves facing a myriad of fears, questions, and concerns. Amidst these understandable worries, planning can play a crucial role in mitigating risks and empowering moms to navigate the journey to motherhood with greater confidence and readiness. A well-thought-out postpartum plan can help a new mom embrace this transformative period and foster her physical and emotional well-being. 

Knowledge is power. Megan's mission with Raising Mama is to draw attention to the challenges of postpartum life and offer advice on how to best tackle these issues. Her plan focuses on educating and motivating expecting moms to think about creating a support network that they can lean on for help, think about health and nutrition, sleep management, breastfeeding, bonding with baby, deal with body image concerns, postpartum depression, as well as cope with the changing relationship dynamics with their partner that often cause new moms a lot of anxiety and frustration.

Megan is cultivating a community of strong modern mamas who are there to lift each other up during a phase that no one likes to talk about. More information can be found on our website.