Four printable postpartum journals
The RISE Journals
For the year you become a mother, from pregnancy through the postpartum months. Four journals, one for each part of your life that is changing. Print them, take a pen and give yourself ten minutes.
Already have your journals? My Journals
Sound familiar?
The sentences nobody warned you about.
Many mothers carry these quietly, at 3am, with a phone in one hand. The journals help you catch them, test them, and write the next ones yourself.
“I should be back to normal by now.”
“I am adapting to a major developmental transition.”
“What is wrong with me?”
“I understand what is happening to me.”
“Missing my old life means I am ungrateful.”
“I can love my baby and miss parts of my former life.”
“I have lost the woman I used to be.”
“I can honour who I was while discovering who I am becoming.”
“A good mother should handle this without help.”
“I can ask for help, and let it in.”
“I do not recognise the woman in the mirror.”
“I am getting to know the woman I am becoming.”
A few months from now
Imagine knowing yourself again.
Ten honest minutes a day, one prompt at a time. Imagine if you could…
- Read your baby’s cues with growing confidence.
- Understand what your body and brain are doing, instead of wondering what is wrong.
- Speak to yourself the way you would speak to a friend.
- Honour the woman you were, without needing to go back.
- Know the three values you want to carry into motherhood.
- Feel like a team with your partner again.
- Ask for help, and let it in.
- Make choices about work that fit the life you have now.
What is RISE?
Four steps, in every journal.
Name what is changing in your body, your brain, your relationships and your sense of self. Matrescence is a recognised developmental transition, and the evidence is on the page.
“Nothing is wrong with me. I am changing.”
Catch the sentences that run underneath: the shoulds, the rules you inherited, the voice you would never use with a friend. Write them down and look at where they came from.
“That rule was never mine.”
Test each old belief against what you know now, and choose a more useful lens. Not forced positivity: a truer sentence you can actually believe.
“I can see this differently, and I choose to.”
Turn the new lens into small daily choices, guided by your own values. Come back three months later and six months later, and see how far you have travelled.
“This is who I am now, and I am living it.”
The four pillars
One journal for each part of your life that is changing.
Each journal follows the RISE path: Recognise what is happening, Investigate what you are telling yourself, Shift what you choose to believe, and Embody the woman you are becoming.
Part 1
Baby: see what is inside
Understanding your baby
Getting to know the new person in your arms: what your baby is experiencing, and how to trust what you notice.
Best for: Mothers in the first three months who want to read their baby’s cues and trust what they notice.
$12Buy Part 1Part 2
Self: see what is inside
Understanding yourself
What your body and brain are doing, the voice you use with yourself, and the values you want to carry forward.
Best for: Mothers who feel they have lost themselves and want to understand what their body and mind are doing.
$12Buy Part 2Part 3
Connection: see what is inside
Building your community
Your partner, your family, your friends and your village: who holds you now, and the conversations that bring you closer.
Best for: Mothers whose relationships have shifted and who want to rebuild the support around them.
$12Buy Part 3Part 4
Ambition: see what is inside
Aligning your ambitions
Work, purpose and the woman you are becoming: choices that fit the life you have now.
Best for: Mothers returning to work, or rethinking it, who want choices that fit the life they have now.
$12Buy Part 4
- Part 1, Baby: from birth to 3 months
- Part 2, Self: from 3 to 6 months
- Part 3, Connection: from 6 to 9 months
- Part 4, Ambition: from 9 to 12 months
Your baby’s age in months, as a guide. Start with the part you need now.
Part 1
Baby
Understanding your baby
Your baby has just moved worlds. This journal helps you see the first months from your baby’s side, so their cues begin to make sense and you can trust what you notice.
Inside
- What your baby is experiencing in the first months
- Reading cues and cries before they build
- A calm connection, one feed and one cuddle at a time
- Trusting what you know about your own baby
Part 2
Self
Understanding yourself
Becoming a mother reorganises your body, your brain, your relationships and your sense of who you are, all at the same time. This journal names what is happening, so you can meet the woman you are becoming with understanding instead of judgement.
Inside
- What your body and brain are doing, explained
- The voice you use with yourself, and a kinder one
- What you miss, what you keep and what you are discovering
- The core values you want to carry forward
Part 3
Connection
Building your community
Matrescence reshapes every relationship around you. Part 3 looks at who holds you now, and helps you build the village every new mother needs.
Inside
- Your partnership, and sharing the load as a team
- Family and friends, as everyone finds their new place
- Asking for help, and letting it in
- Your village: who you can call at any hour
Part 4
Ambition
Aligning your ambitions
Motherhood does not end your ambitions. It changes them. Part 4 helps you choose work and purpose that fit the woman you are becoming.
Inside
- What ambition means to you now
- Your return to work, or your next chapter
- Boundaries that protect what matters
- A plan made with your own values
Is this you?
Who the journals are, and aren’t, for.
Read both lists honestly. The journals are made for a particular kind of reader.
The journals are for you if…
- You are pregnant, or your baby is under a year old.
- You want to understand what is happening to you, not just get through it.
- You like evidence: studies and sources you can check.
- You think best with a pen in your hand.
- You can find ten minutes a day, even if it is during a contact nap.
- You want somewhere private to think: what you write stays on your pages.
They are not for you if…
- You are looking for a parenting manual or a sleep-training plan.
- You want to type your answers into an app.
- You want a quick fix to bounce back.
- You would rather someone else did the thinking for you.
- You are in crisis and need medical care first. Please speak to your midwife or doctor today.
The bundle
All four journals, together.
Baby, Self, Connection and Ambition: the whole year of becoming a mother, one part at a time. One link opens every journal.
How the journals work
Made to be printed, and written in by hand.
Choose
One journal, or all four together.
Open your link
Your personal link arrives by email as soon as you have paid.
Print
Save the PDF and print it at home, in colour or in black and white.
Write by hand
Ten minutes, one prompt, a pen. What you write stays on your pages.
Nothing you write is typed into a form, uploaded or stored. Nobody sees it but you.
Common questions
Your questions, answered.
What exactly do I get?
A printable A4 PDF for each journal you buy, with reflections, writing prompts, diagrams and the sources behind every fact. Part 1 is 51 pages. Your personal link arrives by email and opens a page where you save the PDF or print it.
Do I need to print it?
Yes. The journals are made to be printed and written in by hand, because the slower pace of the pen helps the thoughts underneath rise to the surface. They print well in black and white. They are A4; on US Letter paper, choose “Fit to page”.
Is anything I write stored?
No. Nothing you write is typed into a form, uploaded or saved. It stays on your pages, and nobody sees it but you.
How much time does it take?
Ten minutes a day. Choose one prompt per sitting: a single honest sentence counts as a full session, so there is nothing to fall behind on.
When should I start?
Whenever you are ready, in pregnancy or at any point in the postpartum year. In pregnancy you have quiet mornings and an unbroken train of thought. With your baby in your arms, a nap, a contact feed or the quiet after bedtime is enough. Each journal also asks you to come back three months later and six months later.
Should I buy one part or all four?
Start with the part that feels most alive for you now, or buy all four for $29 and save $19. With the bundle, one link opens every journal.
How long can I open my journals?
Your journals are yours to open for 24 months from purchase. Each emailed link works for 90 days from the day we send it. Lost your link, or has it expired? Choose My Journals at the top of this page and ask for a new one at any time. It arrives within minutes. Save the PDFs and they are yours to keep and print whenever you like.
Is this therapy?
No. The journals are a reflection tool, not a psychological assessment or treatment. If you are worried about your mood, or low mood, anxiety or intrusive thoughts last longer than two weeks, speak to your midwife or doctor. Read how matrescence differs from postnatal depression.
How are the journals different from The RISE Experience?
The journals are self-guided: you work through them at home, at your own pace. The RISE Experience is twelve weeks of mentoring with Mags and a small group of women walking the same path. Discover The RISE Experience.
Checkout
Choose your journal.
Payment is taken securely by Stripe. Your personal link arrives by email straight after, so check the address carefully.