GLOSSARYPostpartum care,
Postpartum care,
in plain language.
The terms families actually search — night nurse, 月嫂, IBCLC, lochia — defined in a sentence or two, with the deeper guide one click away. Condensed from our published, clinician-reviewed guides.
Postpartum doula
- A trained, non-medical professional who supports a family after birth: newborn care, feeding help, recovery support, and household rhythm. Doulas complement your medical team rather than replace it, and may be certified through bodies like DONA, CAPPA, ICEA, or ADA. Daytime postpartum care →
Birth doula
- A doula who supports a family before and during delivery — prenatal visits, continuous labor support, and advocacy. California now requires most state-regulated commercial health plans to cover doula services as a maternity benefit. Birth doula support →
Night doula · overnight postpartum doula
- A postpartum doula working the overnight shift: feeds, diapering, soothing, and safe-sleep practice while parents sleep. Typically booked per night ($600–800 at Cooings, based on an $85/hour rate) across the first six to twelve weeks. Overnight care →
Night nurse
- Colloquially, any overnight newborn professional — but literally, a licensed nurse (RN/LVN) for babies with medical needs such as NICU follow-up care, feeding tubes, or monitors. Most families searching "night nurse" actually need a night doula or newborn care specialist, at a fraction of agency nursing rates. Night nurse vs night doula →
Newborn care specialist (NCS)
- A non-medical professional focused specifically on newborn care, often overnight. Training and certification vary by program — there is no single national license — so an individual’s experience matters more than the title. In practice, NCS work overlaps heavily with overnight postpartum doula work. How the roles compare →
月嫂 (yuè sǎo)
- The traditional Chinese term for a live-in caregiver who covers the baby around the clock and the parent’s confinement-month recovery — meals, warmth, rest. In the U.S. market, the professionalized version of this role is a live-in postpartum doula; Cooings’ 26-day program is built on that model. 26-day live-in program →
Golden month · 坐月子 (zuò yuè zi), confinement month
- The traditional Asian postpartum period of roughly 26–40 days of protected rest, warm nourishing food, limited visitors, and live-in help — 坐月子 in Chinese, sanhujori in Korean, ở cữ in Vietnamese. Its protective intent matches what modern obstetrics calls fourth-trimester care. The golden month guide →
IBCLC · International Board Certified Lactation Consultant
- The most rigorous lactation credential: a clinician-level consultant for latch problems, milk transfer, supply concerns, and feeding plans. Other lactation helpers (peer counselors, CLCs, educators) support early feeding; when pain persists or weight gain concerns appear, ask specifically for an IBCLC. IBCLC consulting →
Fourth trimester
- The first roughly twelve weeks after birth, treated by ACOG as an ongoing period of care rather than a single six-week checkup — contact within three weeks postpartum and a full visit by twelve weeks, with mental-health screening along the way. Recovery week by week →
Lactogenesis II · “milk coming in”
- The onset of copious milk production, usually between 48 and 96 hours after delivery — often day three. Rarely one dramatic moment: breasts feel heavier and warmer as volume rises and feeds shift from teaspoons of colostrum toward larger volumes. The first 72 hours →
Lochia
- Postpartum bleeding and discharge as the uterus heals: bright red in the first week, pink-brown by weeks two to three, and pale yellow-white by weeks four to six. A return to bright red after tapering, or clots larger than a golf ball after week one, is a call-your-provider signal. When to call →
Baby blues vs. postpartum depression
- The baby blues affect roughly 70–80% of postpartum parents, peak around day five, and settle by about day fourteen with rest and support. Postpartum depression affects about 1 in 7, persists past two weeks, and interferes with daily functioning — it is a treatable medical condition that a clinician should evaluate. Signs and when to seek help →
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