Doing the Month and Asian Cultures: Implications for Health Care

I am a Taiwanese-born woman and came to the United States as a registered nurse in my late 20s. I still vividly remember an American postpartum client asking me to bring her “ice water ” 2 days after the delivery of her baby. Her request con-flicted with my traditional health beliefs that postpartum women should avoid “cold ” foods or drinks for 1 full month because they are in a “cold ” state because of loss of hot blood during childbirth. This restrictive practice in the Chinese cul-ture is referred to as “doing the month. ” You might like to know how I managed this conflict; instead of giving her ice water, I brought her ice cubes and a cup of warm water. I also shared my beliefs to her, so she could make her choice. Whether the Chinese traditional postpartum activities protect women’s health or not has not been fully understood; how-ever, knowledge of the different cultural beliefs and prac