Megan Francis, a dedicated nurse practitioner residing in Falls Church, believes that new mothers deserve a level of care and rest beyond what they typically receive after childbirth. In response to this, together with her husband, Brent Boroff, she has launched the Fourth Trimester Postnatal Retreat, a unique initiative aimed at providing support and respite for parents during the crucial postpartum period.
The Fourth Trimester Retreat is designed to facilitate families in spending a minimum of three nights at The Watergate Hotel in Washington, D.C., where they can relish in a range of postnatal indulgences, including soothing massages and tailor-made cuisine. The menu features nourishing selections like lean proteins, vegetables, and comforting dishes, all of which are believed to aid in the post-birth healing process. Megan Francis, who herself became a mother just six months ago, underscores the inspiration drawn from Asian cultures, particularly South Korea and China, where mothers traditionally undergo a month-long confinement period during which they are relieved of all responsibilities, and assistance is provided with child-rearing.
“We’re basing our model off of Asian cultures—South Korea, China—where women actually go into a period of confinement for an entire month, and they are not expected to do anything,” she says. “Everyone helps with the baby. It’s all this time for mothers to relax, recharge, because I will tell you from experience, childbirth really does take a lot out of you.”
Megan Francis collaborates closely with families to tailor their retreat experience. The range of services includes baby care classes, consultations with lactation experts, infant CPR courses, and access to perinatal mental health counseling. Furthermore, clients have the option to arrange round-the-clock infant care.
“We just want to make sure that families are set up to go home and feel really good and confident about taking care of their little one, while also taking care of themselves,” says Francis, who also owns NM Aesthetics, a medical spa located in Ballston. “We recommend just coming straight to us from the hospital before going home. That way, we can really support you in any way that we can. However, we’ve gotten a lot of interest about people coming two months postpartum, three months postpartum, just to get a little bit of a break.”
Megan Francis cultivated her network of support professionals through her extensive nursing career. Since 2010, she has worked in various healthcare settings, including intensive care units, wound care, and home care. Following her nurse practitioner certification in 2018, she ventured into the world of medical spas with the establishment of NM Aesthetics.
“My ethos has always been to help people,” she says. “I got into skincare because regular health care, with all the death and dying, does take a part of your soul. It really does. It wears on you.”
During her challenging pregnancy, Francis struggled with a persistent cough for seven months, complicated by her severe asthma. Pregnant women often face restrictions on medication use, and her condition led to displaced ribs, necessitating multiple acupuncture and dry needling sessions each week to maintain functionality.
While on bedrest, she stumbled upon TikTok videos showcasing postnatal retreats, one of which was located in New York. “There is one located in New York, and I said, ‘Wow, I need to go there,’ and [then] I’m thinking, ‘Why do I have to go all the way to New York? We need this here,'” Francis recounts.
Recognizing the potential for this service in the Northern Virginia area, Francis reached out to The Watergate Hotel due to its reputation as a prestigious, five-star establishment situated in the heart of D.C. “Foggy Bottom is awesome if you want to walk around or you can even go to a show,” she says. “We will take care of your little ones. I just thought it was a perfect location and accessible to all of us in Northern Virginia.”
