A resource for the moms who so rarely get this kind of guidance once they leave the hospital.
Mothering is a collection of occupations — and like any demanding physical work, it takes a toll on the body.
Feeding, changing, lifting, carrying, and moving baby equipment fill a new mother's day. These tasks involve repeated bending, twisting, reaching, and asymmetrical carrying that place real mechanical stress on the spine and upper body. Over weeks and months, that everyday strain adds up to very common pain in the low back, neck, shoulders, and arms.
Here's what surprised us most: this pain is nearly universal, yet almost no one is taught how to prevent it. A postpartum care needs assessment found that 97.3% of postpartum women experience musculoskeletal pain, while only 24% ever received any ergonomic or injury-prevention education (Adams et al., 2023). After discharge, postpartum education tends to focus on caring for the baby — maternal body mechanics rarely make the list.
Many mothers quietly normalize their own pain, putting their children's needs first and delaying care for themselves. Cultural expectations, limited follow-up, and cost can all stand in the way — especially for mothers facing socioeconomic barriers. Strain that could have been eased early can build into lasting pain that limits a mother's ability to do the very caregiving she cares about most.
ErgoMama is an occupational therapy–led educational resource that teaches new and expecting mothers proper body mechanics during common childcare tasks. It offers ergonomic strategies, low-cost adaptive equipment ideas, and simple recovery techniques like stretching — all aimed at preventing strain, reducing pain, and helping mothers stay strong and engaged in the occupations of caregiving.
ErgoMama is designed for postpartum mothers roughly 20 to 45 years old with children under four, with particular care for those at higher risk — including mothers recovering from cesarean delivery, mothers of advanced maternal age, and those who face barriers to accessing in-person preventive care.
Occupational therapists specialize in helping people perform the daily activities that matter to them, safely and sustainably. Caring for a baby is one of the most physically demanding daily occupations there is. Through task analysis, body-mechanics education, and environmental modification — core tools of the profession — occupational therapy is uniquely suited to close this gap.
ErgoMama is a doctoral capstone project by Erin Goodwin, OTD candidate at the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences, created to bring preventive, occupation-based education to the mothers who need it most.
Every part of ErgoMama maps to the Person-Environment-Occupation-Performance model. See the full evidence & framework →