The days and weeks following a birth often present a financial challenge for new mothers, as few women in the United States are afforded paid maternity leave through their employers (Gornick and Meyers 2003). These challenges were likely heightened during the Great Recession, when both corporate and personal resources were stretched thin for most of the country. In this paper, we explore whether the coping strategies of new mothers changed after the onset of the Great Recession – specifically whether the return to work following a birth was accelerated, as well as whether post-partum Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) uptake among disadvantaged new mothers increased.