Catherine Giudici Lowe Describes Worst Part of C-Section Recovery: 'I Can't Pick Up My Children'

Catherine Giudici Lowe is reflecting on the ups and downs of becoming a mother of three, including balancing recovery from her recent cesarean section with taking care of her two young sons and newborn daughter.

“I can’t pick up my children. I can’t go upstairs to put them to bed,” the former reality contestant, 33, tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue of her recovery from the surgery.

Giudici Lowe gave birth to her third child, Mia Mejia, in December via C-section. Giudici Lowe and her husband, Bachelor season 17 star Sean Lowe, also share Isaiah Hendrix, 20 months, and Samuel Thomas, 3½.

“The hardest thing for me is to tell [Isaiah], who doesn’t understand what’s going on, ‘Honey, I can’t pick you up when you’re crying’ and it really has broken my heart a couple times, knowing that if he gets hurt or something I’ll have to give him to somebody else because I physically can’t risk anything with surgery,” she adds.

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Giudici Lowe, who has partnered with dairy-free food brand Kite Hill, recently posted a shot of her and Mia lying together on a couch, writing in the caption that she and the baby had taken a “field trip” to “the sofa upstairs.”

Still, The Bachelor winner says “everything’s been a smooth transition” since she and her husband, 36, welcomed Mia, adding that he’s been “a really good partner.”

“Right now, Sean takes care of the boys and I take care of Mia, and myself,” she shares with PEOPLE. “So I think right now that’s just been a really great way to divvy up tasks and not feel like I’m doing more than he is.”

RELATED VIDEO: The Bachelor‘s Sean Lowe Dishes on His Wife: “Catherine Is Very Messy!”

In a Jan. 2 Instagram story, Giudici Lowe praised her husband for his support during her recovery. “This man is my partner for life,” she wrote atop a selfie of the pair. “I haven’t been able to help much with the boys while I’m in surgery recovery but he’s been dad of the decade already and it’s only day two of 2020.”

Lowe and Giudici Lowe got engaged on The Bachelor and tied the knot in 2014. When Mia arrived last month, they became parents of three kids all under the age of 4 — but Giudici Lowe says more could be in their future.

While she and Lowe have talked about adoption and are “excited about the process,” she’s not ready for another child just yet. However, “I think that I was just born to be [a mom],” she raves.

For more from Sean and Catherine Giudici Lowe, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday.