A mum spent £1.4k on a two-week "retreat" with her newborn - being massaged and fed and says she "doesn't regret" leaving her husband and toddler at home. <br /><br />Mei Shields, 38, decided to check into a postpartum centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, after the birth of her second child, Anna, now seven months in April 2023. <br /><br />The mum-of-two had struggled looking after her son Aden, two, while also recovering from a c-section.<br /><br />She and husband Daren Shields, 42, an engineer, decided to do things differently second time around and when Anna was born Mei checked into the centre. <br /><br />The centre provides postnatal care for mum and baby and Mei had a private suite and was brought full meals and was given massages whenever she wanted.<br /><br />Mei had a "confinement lady" - an employee from the centre who continued to look after her and the baby - for six weeks when she did head home.<br /><br />Mei, a social media marketer, from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, said: “I have no regrets at all.<br /><br />“I would do it again.<br /><br />“I would highly recommend it.<br /><br />“You can recuperate properly.”<br /><br />Mei found raising Aden "hard" following the birth in June 2021 – as she had no to help due to the pandemic.<br /><br />She said: “Everything became so much harder than I had thought.<br /><br />“It was a shock.<br /><br />“I thought I was prepared.<br /><br />“The lack of sleep was hard.<br /><br />“My first month with the baby was hard.”<br /><br />When Mei fell pregnant with Anna in July 2022, she decided to look into centres for a different postnatal experience.<br /><br />She said: “We thought ‘I think this is what we need to do'.<br /><br />“My older boy is so clingy. I thought ‘how do I take care of a baby with a clingy toddler? It’s impossible’.”<br /><br />Postpartum confinement centres are common in Malaysia and mothers often stay for 28 to 48 days.<br /><br />Mei decided to opt for just 14 days - so she wasn’t away from her son for too long.<br /><br />Mei went straight to Esther Postpartum Care centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from the Pantai Hospital, three days after the birth, and was set up in a private suite with baby Anna.<br /><br />She said: “With my first child the experience I had was I had to care for him and no one was taking care of me.<br /><br />“My husband could feed me and get me a drink but he couldn’t help with anything else.<br /><br />“I’d never been away from my son but we both agreed it was a good idea.”<br /><br />Mei was able to have hands-on help with breastfeeding – when Anna was struggling with latching – and was brought five meals a day without having to ask.<br /><br />She was brought an array of food from noodles, soups, fish, desserts, and herbal tea.<br /><br />She could have massages when she wanted and was able to have a nurse take Anna when she needed to rest.<br /><br />The room had a fridge and bathroom attached and Mei’s husband and son were still able to come and visit when they wanted.<br /><br />Mei said: “I could rest. The food just arrives.<br /><br />“There was a nursery for Anna whenever I needed.<br /><br />“I had some time to myself – while feeding I could put Netflix on.<br /><br />“The lack of sleep is still quite bad.<br /><br />“I had one to one time with the baby for the first two weeks.”<br /><br />Mei still struggled being away from her husband and Aden.<br /><br />She said: “After the first week I started to feel like I missed them a lot.<br /><br />“But it’s two weeks away versus the whole of his life.”<br /><br />The centre cost £100 a day - £1.4k for the two weeks Mei was there - and provides constant care for the mum and baby with a paediatrician and nurses on hand.<br /><br />She said: “It does cost quite a bit but it’s the same as a hotel.<br /><br />“If you can afford it, it’s a good option.”<br /><br />When Mei returned home she had a ‘confinement lady’ who stayed for six weeks to look after her and the baby.<br /><br />Mei said: “In our culture there is a lot more emphasis on the mum.<br /><br />“She gives great massages and took care of the baby.<br /><br />“It was a pleasant experience.”
