Yuezi: a special month 坐月子

Hey Tony, I heard your wife is due next month. Congratulations!

嘿，Tony，听说你妻子下个月就到预产期了。恭喜啊！

Thanks, Lilian. To be honest, I'm so overwhelmed. On top of being a new dad, there're a lot of cultural differences when you marry a Chinese woman.

谢谢你，Lilian。老实说，我已经被压垮了。马上就要当爸爸了，除此之外，娶了一位中国媳妇，还要面临很多文化差异。

Oh, are you talking about "yuezi"?

哦，你是说“月子”吗？

Yes! I couldn't believe it when she told me she would have to stay in bed for a whole month after giving birth, without taking a bath or washing her hair!

对! 当她告诉我，生完孩子后要在床上休息一个月、不能洗澡、不能洗头的时候，我完全无法置信！

Yes, that's the Chinese tradition. Zuo Yuezi literally means "sitting the month". It's supposed to help the new mom recover and recuperate.

是啊，这是中国的传统。坐月子的字面意思是“坐一个月”。目的是帮助新妈妈产后休息、恢复。

I'm glad my wife doesn't want to go the whole nine yards. She only ordered special yuezi food and hired a specialized yuezi nanny.

幸亏我妻子没打算完全照做。她就是订了月子餐、请了专门的月嫂。

What about your mother-in-law?

那你丈母娘怎么说？

That's a completely different story! She insists that my wife follow the tradition to prevent any health problems down the road.

那可完全不是一回事！她坚持要我太太遵循传统，说会防止未来出现健康问题。

Well, your mother-in-law means well. And I'm sure once the baby arrives, those differences will work themselves out.

但你丈母娘也是一片好心。我相信等宝宝一出生，这些问题肯定都会化解的。

 Expansion | 知识拓展 

Postpartum traditions

产后传统

For many young Americans, “sitting the month” may seem like a foreign idea indeed. However, what many North Americans may not know is that colonial America had a similar tradition which was called “the lying in” period. Much like Yuezi, it required the new mothers to stay abed for four or so weeks.  Nevertheless, as America entered into the 19th century, postpartum traditions began to lose traction.

对许多美国年轻人来说，“坐月子”似乎是一个陌生的概念。然而，许多北美人可能不知道，殖民时代的美国有一个类似的传统，被称为“the lying in”时期，就像月子一样，需要新妈妈在床上待四周左右的时间。然而，进入十九世纪后，这个产后传统就慢慢消失了。