The Fourth Trimester - by Julie Hammond (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Congratulations! You've created this amazing new being - but at the same time, your breasts are unrecognisable, your pelvic floor feels surprisingly untrustworthy, you're leaking from almost everywhere and you can't even contemplate the idea of resuming intimacy within the next decade.

The Fourth Trimester is for anyone navigating those special and uniquely challenging days, weeks and months after your first baby. For once, the focus is on you - and Dr Julie Hammond is your trusted friend, guiding you through this time of transition. Drawing not only on her medical expertise as a family doctor but also on her personal experience, Julie's book offers both reliability and relatability as she helps you to make sense of your changing body.

Whether recovering from a C-section, facing breastfeeding challenges, bladder and or bowel issues, or painful sex, no postpartum topic is taboo or too much, with special attention given to experiences as diverse as SCBU stays and neurodivergent parenting.

The Fourth Trimester is the best friend you need, answering the questions you can't quite bring yourself to ask, with compassion, authority and a reminder that both you and your body are doing your best.

Review Quotes

The Fourth Trimester is a powerful, honest and essential companion for new mothers. Julie Hammond shares her lived experience with authenticity, warmth and courage, offering comfort through the physical and emotional journey of early motherhood. Her empowering guidance reminds every mother that healing, hope and connection are possible and deeply deserved.--Juliet Abekah Amoa, Associate Director, DEI, London Borough of Lambeth

The Fourth Trimester by Dr. Julie Hammond is a compassionate and honest guide to postpartum life, effectively blending medical expertise with lived experience. Reassuring, practical, and deeply relatable, it empowers women to understand this transformative stage with confidence. Julie tackles often unspoken challenges with clarity and empathy, offering reassuring and practical advice.--Laura Spence, Midwife, CEO and Founder, Neuronal

The Fourth Trimester is an emotional and insightful read on postpartum life, blending personal stories with practical advice. Dr Hammond breaks cultural barriers around sharing emotions and addresses often unspoken topics like libido with honesty. Relatable, supportive and easy to understand, it felt like therapy - offering guidance, validation and a powerful message about healing, intention and thriving--Dr Catherine Benhura, GP and Founder MumsPride and the Community Health Hub

A clear, honest guide that says what most postnatal care doesn't. It combines clinical insight with real lived experience, helping women understand what's actually happening to their bodies and minds after birth. Practical, validating, and needed, this fills a gap that shouldn't exist in modern maternity care.--Gemma Poole, Midwife, CEO and Founder, The Essential Baby Company

The period following birth is an often-overlooked phase of recovery and adjustment with lasting impact on physical, emotional, and psychological wellbeing. In The Fourth Trimester, Julie thoughtfully explores this transition, drawing on personal experience with vulnerable honesty and clarity. An invaluable read for families and those who support them.--Dr Tipswalo Day, Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist

Women are often left feeling lost after having a baby; this guide by Dr Julie Hammond provides a step by step guide which walks you through the uncertainty of the first few months postpartum - the often forgotten 4th trimester. I will be recommending this as required reading to all my friends!--Dr Rumbi Mutenga, former midwife and rounder of Glacie Health

About the Author

Dr Hammond is a GP specialising in women's health, family planning, mental health and aesthetic medicine. She a passionate advocate for health equity, creating the Black Health Matters campaign as part of Black History Month in October 2023 to raise awareness of the common conditions which disproportionately impact the Afro-Caribbean population. Dr Hammond is a Health Governor for the Kent Community NHS Foundation Trust, NHS Clinical Entrepreneur, Core 20 Ambassador for NHS England, BMA EDI Advisory Group Member, North Kent Maternity and Neonatal Voices Partnership member, member of the Wellbeing of Women's Health Collective and the Kent and Medway LMNS Equity and Equality Oversight Group, Trustee of West Kent Mind and co-chair of diversity, equity and inclusion subgroup, Director of Events of Black Female Doctors UK and a UN Women UK delegate.

Dr Julie is happily married to her soulmate and is mother to an angel baby and two rainbow babies.