Just when you thought you’d reached the finish line of pregnancy, you discover there’s one more “trimester” to get through.
We’re talking about the so-called “4th trimester” — that hazy period where you’re recovering from pregnancy and delivery while simultaneously learning how to be a mom as your baby adjusts to life outside the womb.
Here’s a look at what you and your little one may be going through during the 4th trimester, how to feel your best and when life will start to look a little more normal again.
What is the 4th trimester?
The fourth trimester (more commonly written as the “4th trimester”) describes the postpartum period starting from your baby’s birthday until he turns 3 months old.
The term is believed to have been coined by Dr. Harvey Karp, a pediatrician who theorized that human babies are born about three months too early.
After those nine months of pregnancy have passed, the thinking goes, fetuses’ brains are so big that babies may not fit through the birth canal if they stuck around in the womb much longer. Even so, they’re still not quite mature enough to leave their cozy, cushy space — and it takes about 12 weeks for them to adjust to life on the outside.
That accounts for the major change your little one goes through in a relatively short time — from sleepy, sometimes fussy, scrunched-up newborn to (hopefully) calmer, happier, more alert 3-month-old baby. By 12 weeks, your little one can likely hold his head up to some degree and is becoming more interested in and aware of the world around him. The 4th trimester is a period of significant physical, mental and emotional development for your baby.
But it’s a time of change for new moms too. As your body readjusts to no longer being pregnant, you’re learning how to care for a new baby — and navigating the major life changes that come along with it.
