A new mother followed “postpartum confinement” – she was fed and cared for by her mother-in-law and was not bathed for a month so she could “rest”.
Samantha Lee, 28, was told about the family tradition by her husband, Aloysius Lee, 27, and after becoming pregnant she decided she wanted to follow it.
Postpartum confinement is a traditional practice where the mother spends 30 days resting and recovering after giving birth to a child.
After Samantha welcomed her one-month-old son Xandre, her mother-in-law, Alicia Lee, 58, cooked fresh meals every day and nursed the baby so he could sleep.
Samantha also followed the tradition of not bathing for the entire month – as she believes water can lower the body temperature.
The new mom says the 30 days allowed her to “relax” and “focus” on herself.
Samantha, a chiropractor from Auckland, New Zealand, said: “It’s all focused on eating, sleeping and rest.”
“This is definitely what I needed.
“I’m not one of those people who likes to relax too much.
“She’ll do it whenever she gets a chance.” [her mother in law] Take care of the child.
“I don’t need to take much stress and I can just focus on myself.
“Going through the confinement forced me to rest.”
When Samantha, originally from South Africa, married into the Aloysius’ Chinese Malay family, she was taught about their traditions and treated like a daughter.
After finding out they were due in December 2023, Samantha decided that confinement was something she wanted to pursue.
Alicia prepared for confinement by ordering food packs from Malaysia with all the herbs, teas and traditional food a new mother would be given during 30 days.
Samantha gave birth to their son, Xandre, via C-section on September 7, 2024, who weighed 7 pounds 2 ounces.
She spent two nights in the hospital but before coming home, Alicia brought her food.
For the remaining 30 days, Alicia would wake up every day at 7 a.m. to make Samantha’s tea – an herbal blend with red dates – which took two hours to brew.
Then she makes soup for lunch that simmers for five hours – and helps clear the uterus and boost digestion.
Then she served Samantha breakfast – ginger fried egg rice or chicken liver noodle soup.
Samantha said: “Once I’m fully settled she comes and grabs the baby, changes him and looks after him while I eat.
“It’s all aimed at warming the body.
“Chinese food has wet food and dry food.
“Hot food removes wetness or moisture.
“They believe that if the body remains wet you will have many health problems.”
Alicia then goes to pick out fresh produce for the day before coming back to give Samantha lunch and then she helps put the baby to bed so they can both take a nap.
Samantha said: “She puts the baby down and I go and take a nap too.
“Then she takes a break or does some cleaning.”
Alicia then focuses on making Samantha’s dinner – like Chicken and Ginger, Sheng Hua Soup or Blackened Chicken.
For the first few days he bathed Xandre in Guinness.
Samantha said: “It’s supposed to stop him from getting any rashes.”
Mother also followed the tradition of not taking bath for 30 days.
She said: “You must not touch any water.
“It is not meant to be absorbed into your body.
“You are not meant to take a bath. I decided to follow its entire tradition.
“I have to wipe with ginger water which actually promotes milk secretion.”
Samantha’s mother, Linda Cuzette, 53, also helped as much as she could with cleaning and cooking preparation.
Aloysius also took a month off from work so he could spend time with his son.
Samantha said she was “really weak” after the C-section and having her mum and Alicia on hand meant she was able to relax and said her wound had already healed so well. That you “can’t even see it.”
She said: “This is not the narrative we are usually told.
“We’re usually told ‘you can come back’, ‘go back to work.’
“They forget about mother. Mother also needs motherhood.
“I can’t imagine not having people around me.
“Eating a nutrient-dense, high-protein diet really helped me heal.
“I’m getting more sleep and rest and my body is thanking me for it.”
When Samantha ends her imprisonment on October 6, 2024, she will celebrate ‘Poornima Utsav’.
She said: “It’s celebrating that you’ve had a baby, you’ve gone through confinement and now you feel more relaxed.
“I will present my child to the rest of the family.
“They all bring money for the child.”
After her 30 days are up, Samantha will try to drink red date tea as long as possible and not return to work anytime soon.
She said: “My main focus for the next six months will be on myself.”
Samantha hopes that by sharing her experience she can help promote the need for rest after birth.
She said: “A lot of women feel completely isolated – you’re told to have a baby and you should be happy.
“You are a shell of yourself.
“Your body is going through all these hormonal changes.
“If a woman has someone to take care of her or her child, they can look a little more inward.
“I believe this reduces the chance of postpartum depression.”
Example menu:
Saffron tea, date tea, lots of ginger chicken, sheng hua soup, and Chinese yam si-shen soup.
