Sitting the Month: Confinement Nanny Services Grow in Los Angeles

After giving birth, it is customary for Chinese mothers to practice zuo yue zi or “sit the month.” To restore their bodies after being pregnant, these mothers will stay indoors for one month and have a “confinement nanny” assist them through cooking special meals and caring for their baby. Confinement nannies have been widely used for postpartum childcare in East Asia and among the Chinese diaspora in the U.S. In this video, we spoke with a confinement nanny working in Los Angeles’ San Gabriel Valley to learn what her job entails and the market for postpartum services. We also spoke with two postpartum care providers, a nanny assignment agency and a postpartum meal catering service, to learn about their operations and customers.