“Like the Chinese, Vietnamese have confinement traditions, centred around keeping warm and resting after birth, although they have slightly different traditions around the healing process,” Jiang said.
“But postpartum services in Vietnam were fragmented, ad hoc and unregulated. There were no confinement centres. Most people get relatives to help.
“Although there are home spa services where a masseuse or a nurse will come to your home for two or three hours to massage the mum and baby, a lot of these are either freelancers or small local companies,” she added.
The duo partnered with Oakwood Residence Saigon in Ho Chi Minh City and launched The Joyful Nest in January 2025.
A COCOON FOR NEW PARENTS
“The reason we have a centre is so that the mums and dads can make a really gentle transition into parenthood on their own terms, supported by professionals.
“That way, they can do so not in their homes where there may be external pressures, people offering advice or doing things for them that they may not want, but somewhere where they are pretty much by themselves and can control who gets access – a cocoon for mum, baby and dad,” Jiang explained.
Rates start from 195 million dong (S$9,533) for a two-week stay, and mothers get their own suite, two personal nannies to look after them and their baby in round-the-clock shifts, 24/7 nurse and lactation consultant support, and a paediatrician and obstetrician on hand.
The centre also offers daily facial and body treatments such as breast massages to stimulate milk production and clear blocked ducts, abdominal massages to support healing, and lymphatic draining massage to reduce water retention.
