Medical providers define your recovery period as the first six weeks after birth – nicknamed “the fourth trimester.” This is because it typically takes the uterus six weeks to return back to its pre-pregnancy state, called involution. However, it’s normal to feel like you’re still adapting and healing well beyond the six-week mark. Physical and emotional symptoms of the fourth trimester include fatigue, soreness, bleeding – called lochia – mood swings, and a range of emotions from anxiety to baby blues.