The 4-Minute Checkup: Why Postpartum Care Is Failing Moms

I spent more time sitting in the McDonald’s drive-thru treating myself to a Diet Coke after my postpartum checkup than I did in the actual appointment.

Let that sink in.

No shade to my provider — she’s kind, capable, and doing the best she can within the system. But that system? It’s broken.

This was my third baby, so I had some idea of what to expect. I knew the drill. I knew not to get my hopes up about this appointment being anything more than a quick box-check. But still, it stung. Still, I left feeling… invisible.

And if I feel that way — as a mom who’s been through it before — what about first-time moms? The ones who don’t yet know that this is “normal”? The ones walking into that office, raw and overwhelmed, expecting support, guidance, something — and getting a 10-question survey and a 4-minute once-over?

Six weeks after giving birth, we deserve more than a pat on the back and a “You’re cleared for everything.” We deserve care that goes beyond the surface. Postpartum is one of the most physically and emotionally intense times in a woman’s life — and the fact that our standard of care is a single short visit weeks after birth? It’s not just inadequate, it’s insulting.

Babies get seen within days of being born. Then again. And again. As they should — they need that care. But so do moms. So do the people healing from labor and delivery, managing hormones, learning how to feed a baby, and trying to hold themselves together on very little sleep.

This system doesn’t ask enough, listen enough, or support enough. And it shows. We’re sent home to “figure it out,” and too many of us do it while silently struggling.

It’s time for a shift. For care that centers the mother just as much as the child. For more time, more questions, more listening. Because four minutes isn’t enough — not for a new mom. Not for any mom.

We deserve better. Every single one of us.