You can’t prevent what you don’t detect

This week I’ve been thinking a lot about how often mothers are told “it’s normal” and how confusing that can feel when something still doesn’t sit right. Not because something is necessarily wrong but because uncertainty is hard to carry alone.

Many of you may have come across my videos on TikTok, where I share reflections on maternal health particularly during the postpartum period and around the 6–8 week postnatal check.

Over recent months, I’ve been deeply concerned by the number of messages I’ve received from mothers about their experiences of this check. Stories of appointments being rushed, combined with baby vaccination visits, offered over the phone, or in some cases not offered at all.

This is worrying not because anyone is doing something wrong individually, but because the 6–8 week postnatal check is a crucial moment in a mother’s recovery. It’s one of the few opportunities for health professionals to understand how a mother is healing, to gather baseline information, and to notice early signs that support might be needed.

When this moment is missed, shortened, or deprioritised, small issues can quietly build. And when care relies on thresholds rather than early visibility, things can slip through the net not out of neglect, but because the system isn’t designed for continuity.

This isn’t about alarm.
It’s about risk management and about giving mothers the chance to be seen before problems escalate.

Motherhood is not a single moment, it’s a continuous process of physical, emotional, and psychological change. And yet, maternal healthcare is still delivered in fragments, often spaced weeks apart, and focused on specific milestones rather than the whole journey.

In between appointments, life continues. Sleep changes from one night to the next. Feeding evolves. Emotions shift. Questions arise quietly, often at moments when support isn’t easily accessible.

Many mothers tell me that this is where uncertainty creeps in. Not because something feels dramatically wrong, but because something feels different and there’s no clear place to sense-check whether that change matters.

Being unsure doesn’t mean you’re overthinking.
It means you’re navigating a system that isn’t designed for continuity.

When we talk about screening in maternal health, we’re not talking about labels or diagnoses. We’re talking about visibility.

Screening done well simply helps notice patterns, how sleep, mood, recovery, feeding, and emotional load are evolving over time. It creates space for questions before things feel overwhelming, and for reassurance when something is within a normal range.

For many mothers, the hardest part isn’t being unwell, it’s not knowing whether what they’re experiencing matters. Screening helps reduce that uncertainty.

It’s not about turning normal experiences into problems.
It’s about making sure small concerns don’t have to wait until they become big ones.

I created this guide after hearing the same concern again and again from mothers that feeling of being told everything is “normal,” while still feeling unsure.

The guide isn’t about telling you what’s wrong.
It’s about helping you understand what the 6–8 week postnatal check is designed to cover, what often gets missed or rushed, and what questions you’re allowed to ask.

Inside, we explore:

It’s designed to bring clarity, not overwhelm and to help you feel more informed in the space between appointments.

If any of this resonates, you’re not alone and you don’t need to wait until something feels urgent to seek clarity. This guide was created to support you in the space between appointments, to help you understand what the 6–8 week postnatal check is designed to do, and to feel more confident asking the questions that matter to you.

Click the link below to download your free copy via the Matresa waitlist.

With care,
Mari-Carmen
Founder, MatresaJoin the Matresa Waiting list