“How’s the pressure?” the massage therapist asked as she gently worked the knots in my back, pushing me toward a state of pure relaxation. “Amazing,” I managed to whisper, which was, in fact, amazing, considering I had given birth less than a month before, and up until this weekend had been utterly exhausted and overwhelmed. But a day earlier I had checked myself and my new son into a postpartum retreat, Ahma & Co, at the Waldorf Astoria Monarch Beach Resort & Club in Dana Point, California. I had come to rest and be revived, to ease into second-time motherhood and not feel so alone. Here, the emphasis would be on me, not as much on my baby, though he’d obviously be well taken care of.

While I didn’t have any complications after the birth of my first son in 2022, I was stressed, anxious, and felt unsupported. I hired two night nurses for two weeks each, but they were inexperienced and unenthusiastic and didn’t end up helping much at all. Afterward I began hearing more and more about postpartum retreats and care centers focused on the mother’s wellbeing, often located within luxury hotels. There was one in New York, another in Santa Monica, one that just opened in San Francisco. The more I read, the more I knew that I would book one when I had my next child.

While it’s not common in the U.S., postpartum care is a prevalent practice all over the world. In Korea, sanhujori dates back thousands of years. Generally the new mother’s family would come and take care of her and her new baby—cooking, cleaning, helping with the newborn—for 40 days. The belief is rooted in the notion that it takes 40 days for a woman to regain strength and recover from childbirth. But as the traditional extended family system dissolved over the years, paid postpartum centers, or sanhujoriwon, became popular. Now, eight in 10 women in Korea go to a sanhujoriwon after giving birth. Many stay for 21 days, or two to three weeks, though they may continue to rest for the remainder of the full 40 days at home.

In China, a similar tradition is observed, zuò yuèzi, which literally translates to "sitting the month." The centuries-old practice emphasizes rest and recovery for the new mother—she’s expected to stay indoors, eat special warming foods, and avoid physical exertion. In Japan, the afterbirth care of a new mother is known as ansei (quiet rest) or satogaeri bunben, which translates to “returning home to give birth.” Many first-time mothers return to their parents' home for familial support for the first one to two months.

In Latin America, this time is known as la cuarentena (the quarantine), where the attention is on healing and bonding with the baby. Middle Eastern cultures also observe the 40 days of rest, and Israel recently welcomed a postpartum care facility, a “baby hotel,” called Baby Lis. Most of these cultures have similar protocols for the new mother, such as eating healing foods, avoiding cold environments, belly binding or wrapping, and getting rest through massages and various therapies, all while having a support system to help care for the newborn.

In most European countries, postpartum care is an essential part of the healthcare system. In France, for example, the healthcare system emphasizes perineal health and abdominal muscle rehabilitation post-birth. New moms get home visits by one or two midwives in the first week after birth, followed by 10 sessions of pelvic floor and abdominal muscle rehab—all of it covered by national insurance. In The Netherlands, a kraamverzorgster (maternity nurse), comes to a new mother’s home typically for 24 hours total throughout the first postpartum week to help with everything from newborn care and breast feeding to light housekeeping and mental health care.

In the U.S., meanwhile, postpartum care generally means one checkup six weeks after a woman gives birth, and according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, nearly 40 percent of mothers miss it.
 

But this is starting to change—at least, for people who can afford it.

Boram Care in New York opened in 2022 and is considered one of the first postpartum retreats in the U.S. It’s located within the Park Lane Hotel and offers hotel suites outfitted for new moms, along with 24/7 support from trained postpartum doulas, nutritious meals, and wellness services like abdominal therapy and lactation support. Over the past few years a handful of retreats have opened across the country, including The Village Postnatal Retreat Center in San Francisco, Fourth Trimester in Chicago, Haven Postnatal Retreat in Atlanta, and Yuzi in Seattle, among others. Typically each retreat costs near $1,000 per night, with rates fluctuating depending on length of stay (the longer the stay, the lower the nightly rate). Most new moms or parents check in for a minimum of three nights.

When I read about Ahma & Co, I knew it was the retreat for me—and not just because it’s located in one of my favorite hotels. It was founded in 2024 by Esther Park, a Harvard Business School grad who has trained as a doula. “Growing up in South Korea and having spent the beginning of my adulthood there, where postpartum care is a cherished tradition and recognized rite of passage, I realized that the reality for mothers here could very well be different if we could introduce the model of the postpartum retreat to the U.S.,” Park told me. “It made me wonder—how could I ever envision becoming a mom in this environment? Ahma & Co is my love note to mothers, and to my future family that my husband and I hope to build.”

I booked my stay with Ahma & Co about three months before my due date. They recommend expectant mothers book three to six months in advance and stay in touch throughout their pregnancy. I had a call with a care coordinator (Gigi, a doula and community lead), who conducted a thorough intake interview and helped set up tentative dates based on my estimated due date.

Ahma & Co takes no more than five newborns at a time and always has at least two doulas working (more depending on the number of babies). They transformed a designated hotel room to be their lounge and main hub, using it as a community room and nursery for the babies. The suites surrounding the lounge are regular hotel rooms that are outfitted with products for retreat guests. Mothers are welcome to come alone or with a guest (usually a spouse, partner, parent, or friend). As this was my second baby, I opted to go solo while my husband stayed home with our toddler.

When I checked in with my one-month-old baby, my doula Joselyn, who goes by Yose, was waiting for me in the valet and helped unload my car. The room was fully equipped with everything a new mom would need: a station with pillows and a pump (the Spectra S1, the same one I have at home), a monogrammed bathrobe for my son (more for a photo op than practical use), a Keekaroo diaper changing station, Coterie diapers and wipes in the bedside bassinet, a Tomarion II infrared heating pad for low back pain, sanitary pads, and packs of Earth Mama herbal sitz bath. My itinerary, printed out and waiting for me, included a welcoming herbal foot soak, a full-body massage from a postpartum specialist the next day, and a baby reflexology course.

I took a moment to enjoy a welcome snack, rose-flavored energy balls by Chiyo, known for their hormone-supporting ingredients and women-focused nutrition rooted in Eastern food therapy, that were in a small basket alongside herbal teas and tonics, before Yose came and asked if she should call for my dinner of warming foods: seaweed soup and spicy beef short ribs on a bed of black rice. She shared that she became a postpartum doula following the birth of her first child. “I connected with my Mexican Indigenous ancestry and learned about traditional birth and postpartum practices passed down through generations,” she said. For her this included belly binding, a traditional practice of wrapping the abdomen tightly to promote healing following childbirth.

Yose asked if I wanted her to take my son to the nursery, located just a couple of doors down, so I could get some rest. She pointed out the in-room tablet which had access to a Nanit camera stationed above a bassinet in the nursery. I felt uncertain handing my newborn over so soon and opted to take care of him for the night.

Overnight, even being alone, just knowing that there was someone down the hall who could help take care of my baby gave me a sense of calm. Surprisingly my baby ate and slept with ease, perhaps picking up on my tranquil energy.

The next day, I handed my son to the doulas for some rest while I enjoyed that much-needed massage. Following lunch (they provide three meals a day, plus snacks), I joined a workshop on baby reflexology and met a couple who had checked in for five days. They were first-time parents from Florida and Sydney, who, with little family nearby, decided to stay at Ahma & Co. straight from the hospital, for guidance on newborn care.

Park told me they see a lot of guests who are first-time parents needing this kind of support. It’s almost like a crash course in taking care of babies—what the hospital tries to teach you while you’re in a post-delivery haze, but with a much more expansive and supportive approach. “Maternal care is focused on pregnancy and the birth—there is such a significant gap in postpartum, when mothers and parents are often left with very little support or guidance for not just newborn care, but their own recovery,” said Park of the current U.S. healthcare system. “We get to see firsthand how much of a difference the right support can make—families arrive exhausted and uncertain, and by the time they leave, they’re more rested, more confident, and better equipped for this new chapter. It's humbling to see that what we’re building is giving parents a stronger start, and we're grateful to play a part in normalizing postpartum care and redefining the motherhood experience.”

For me, the experience provided extra quality time to spend with my son and take care of myself—something I truly relished. I was given the space to heal and recalibrate post-birth. Even just a couple of nights at Ahma & Co helped me learn how to slow down and focus on myself while I also bonding with my baby.

As I merged onto the freeway heading home—an hour drive I had initially dreaded before my visit to Ahma & Co—my son began to cry. But I knew he’d be OK, and so would I. After my stay, I found myself in a different mental space: calm, grounded, and ready to embrace my new role as a mom of two under two with confidence and peace.

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