According to traditions all over the world, it is typical for the postpartum period to be a time of reclusion. Postpartum should begin with an extended rest period involving 20-60 days of intensive nurturance. It is normal to expect/accept only those visitors who are directly participating in the mother's recuperation in some way, whether through cooking, cleaning, massaging, or comforting. In those keen and delicate early days of motherhood, all visitors and caregivers must promote a sattvic environment for the new mother and baby. Within that cocoon, the sacred window happens in its own time. It can have what Kimberly Ann Johnson calls a "golden languorous quality" (The Fourth Trimester, p. 31). It is indeed a time to go slowly, to unplug, to rest. You need a container in which that transformative rest and nourishment can take place, and that is the care concept of sanctuary. A big part of preparing for postpartum is building your nest, which is so gratifying to do during pregnancy and can make a big difference in how you experience the early days of motherhood. Sanctuary is the protected dwelling place in which new mothers can savor their own transformation and appreciate the fleeting newborn phase. Therefore, the moonflower vision of postpartum care consciously attends to the tranquility and thoughtful permeability of the postpartum home.

Postpartum entails some of the most dramatic physical and neurological transitions we will make in our lifetime. By describing and interpreting our experiences in language, narrative helps us make sense and meaning. It allows us to create and deepen the unique perspective we bring to the world. Crafting narratives about our experiences of birth and matrescence help us step into our new role with strength and authority. We are witnessed when our narratives are heard and engaged by supportive companions. That experience of witness is a social process that engenders the mother's personhood. It provides social recognition and emotional support as she takes on a new position of authority. Listeners may be called upon to tolerate a significant amount of distress and friction. In social ethics, the the elder bears the responsibility of that toleration, for some moments are stubborn and abrasive before they are alchemized into maturity. This is why “mothering the mother” is traditionally done by older, more experienced women—wise women. At difficult moments in life, or during their crystallization into wisdom through narrative, it takes a lot of courage to withstand the heat of transformation. The telling of a birth story is a profound, sacred exchange between teller and listener. This is so whether a mother is verbally recounting her experiences in the days and weeks immediately following the birth, or she is crafting some written account that journals her birth and/or postpartum experiences. moonflower supports the essential function of narrative in the lives of new mothers, and recognizes this as a core concept of care.

Nourishment is essential to a healthy experience of the postpartum period, in which a mother's body rebuilds after pregnancy. Nutritive and mineral-rich foods must be selected that are appropriate to the mother's dietary habits and digestive tendencies. She requires ample hydration, especially if breastfeeding. Herbal supports in the form of teas, chewing herbs, tinctures, steams, and/or herbal foods are also important additions to a new mother's nourishment. Also imperative is that a new mother is as little responsible for cooking, serving, and cleaning as possible. Oleation (oil therapy) through daily massage is a form of nourishment that reduces and redirects aggravated or vitiated vata (the air sign in Ayurveda). Nourishment on all these levels supports the development of rasa-sara (highest quality replenishment) and ojas (immunity and vigor) for the new mother; it is therefore identified as one of the moonflower concepts of care.

This concept of care emphasizes the Ayurvedic use of sensory medicine to promote sattva. Sattva is one of the universal qualities (mahagunas) that may be understood as a state of purity, luminosity, serenity, harmony, balance, goodness, peace, clarity, insight, joy and intelligence. During the postpartum phase of matrescence, caregivers can ensure that new mothers are supported in their transformations with sattvic sense impressions. The sense organs (pancha jñānendriyas) feed information up into the thinking mind (manas) and it effects our sense of self (ahaṁkāra). Keeping the ahaṁkāra in a sattvic state enables connection to a higher state of consciousness and goodness (buddhi). Thus, postpartum caregivers should see to it that mothers hear pleasant sounds, receive nourishing touch, are surrounded by beauty, delicious food, and pleasing aromas. These are all environmental efforts that tie into the first moonflower concept of care, sanctuary. It is important to note that the insightful, salubrious cravings and yearnings of the body are considered sattvic. This means that following our sensory pleasure is actually integral to our capacity for clear cognition (sadhaka pitta). As a teacher of mine, Dr. Scott Blossom, explained in a lecture at the Kripalu School of Ayurveda, "Sattva is justly celebrated because it gives you access to your ability to evolve." Postpartum is a period of non-optional evolution. Ayurveda teaches us that the path of transformation passes through the flames; but by integrating healthy sense impressions into the lives of new mothers, the postpartum evolution can be more positive and empowering. The pleasure concept of moonflower care celebrates our senses as a guide to healthy evolution.

Since you're looking into postpartum caregiving services, it's likely that you are already aware that a cultural revolution of sorts is taking place regarding our recognition of and respect for the postpartum period as a distinctive phase of female life. Throughout human cultures, we see ritual practice as an essential process of fabricating meaning. Postpartum is a liminal space. It is the phase gate into motherhood, entailing one of the most significant changes in identity and status that humans can experience. It is necessary that postpartum be acknowledged through rites of passage. Rites of passage are ceremonies or rituals that marks an individual's leaving one social group and entering another. The honor a person who undergoes dramatic transformation and assist in their integration of a new identity. By facilitating and designing individual and collective rituals to honor new mothers, this fundamental human practice is incorporated as a core concept of moonflower care.