Although the tradition is for mothers to undergo their confinement at home or in the home of their parents or in-laws, many mothers are breaking away from this practice for better quality treatment and services from postpartum or confinement centres.
SINGAPORE (Oct 28): According to most Asian cultures, mothers are required to confine themselves for a whole month after giving birth. This period, also known as the “sitting month”, sees mothers undergoing traditional recuperation practices and being confined to the house.
During this time, mothers will usually hire a live-in nanny or “confinement lady” to help with their recuperation and care of the newborn. A full-time live-in nanny in Singapore could cost up to about $5,000 a month, although most people pay an average of about $2,500 for a non-live-in nanny or opt for a part-time confinement nanny, who is not much cheaper than a full-time one and will require the parents to wake up in the middle of the night to tend to the newborn.
