hydration Archives - Hallowed Mama Doula

This hydrating postpartum lemon gingerade is the perfect beverage for helping new mamas feel refreshed and energized! There have been variations on this drink for centuries – Switchel, Haymaker’s Punch, and Shrub to name a few. The idea is to combine the right healing properties in one delicious spritzer. Who said postpartum healing can’t be a little glamorous?

A pitcher and glass of hydrating postpartum lemon gingerade next to a recipe book and lemon

The First Forty Days

I first learned about this natural remedy from a brilliant book by Heng Ou, “The First Forty Days: The Essential Art of Nourishing the New Mother.” This lemon gingerade is full of some of nature’s best gifts – lemons, ginger, apple cider vinegar and honey. When you pull these ingredients together, you’re gifted a powerhouse of electrolytes, antioxidants and energy. It doesn’t hurt that it offers a refreshing gentle sweetness, mild lemon tang, punchy ginger and a little bubbly to make it fun.

An up close picture of a jar of honey surrounded by ginger and cut lemon

How to make postpartum lemon gingerade

Okay, let’s get hydrated! As I mentioned, I started with the base from Heng Ou’s recipe but decided to play with it a bit to fit my personal tastes. For me, it’s all about the ginger! It is really such a simple little drink that you can easily make adjustments to fit your palate too!

Swap honey for cane sugar, monk fruit extract, or agave.

Boil some of the lemon rind in the water (before adding honey) to really infuse the lemon and give it a deeper flavor.

If you could use some help getting your digestive system moving, macerate some prunes, blueberries or watermelon in the bottom of the pitcher.

You probably know by now that one of the postpartum doula musts is warmth! Warm food, warm clothes, warm everything. This is one of the few areas that I’ll give you a pass. If drinking this lemon gingerade cold helps you get more hydrating fluids in, then by all means, drop some ice in that glass! Another selling point for drinking it on the rocks is that it has honey in it. If you follow the recipe, you will have already warmed it a bit to dissolve it in water. You want to avoid heating it too much and killing off all of the natural health benefits. If you can go middle of the road with it and have it at room temperature, that’s probably even better!