Anxiety and menopause – how to improve your mental health
Menopause is something every woman will go through in her lifetime, but it isn’t often talked about and many of us can feel unprepared for what menopause will be like when it happens. Anxiety and menopause can sometimes go hand in hand during these changes. So this article will look at some self help tips to improve your mental health during menopause, including incorporating simple diet and lifestyle changes that can help.
What to expect during menopause
Menopause is when your hormone levels change and your periods stop. In most women, this will happen between the ages of 45 and 55, but it can happen earlier or later. You may experience menopause anxiety symptoms for several months or years before your periods stop, which is known as perimenopause. Symptoms can also continue for some years after your periods have stopped, which is known as being postmenopausal.
So, what does it feel like to go through menopause?
Menopause and anxiety – Are anxiety and menopause related and what is menopause-related anxiety?
So, what causes menopause-related anxiety? Well, as your hormonal balance changes during menopause, this can impact your mental health, not just your physical health. As a result, anxiety, stress and even depression can become a common side-effect.
What does menopausal anxiety feel like? Why does Menopause cause anxiety?
Anxiety with menopause can be a byproduct of the hormone imbalance (that’s the oestrogen and progesterone hormones) that occurs during menopause. When this imbalance happens, then you may experience a myriad of symptoms. Anxiety symptoms include a foggy brain, mood swings, sweating, tense muscles and broken sleep.
Is anxiety linked to any particular stage of the menopause?
Anxiety can happen at any stage during the transition, i.e. it can start in the early stages of perimenopause before your periods stop and it can be so slight you may not realise it’s even a symptom. If you notice any form of anxiety creeping in and you’re not sure why, then consider menopause as a reason. Unfortunately, as our experiences during menopause are so different, it’s challenging to diagnose menopause with anxiety alone. Look for other symptoms like your periods changing too and consult a doctor if you’re struggling with daily duties.
Menopause and anxiety at night
Sleepstation.org says:
“During menopause, levels of cortisol have been shown to be elevated at night-time, which can lead to increased feelings of stress and anxiety. Additionally, cortisol levels spike just after a hot flush, which can leave a woman feeling ‘on alert’ during the night and can make it difficult to fall back asleep.”
Can menopause cause extreme anxiety? Will anxiety get worse?
It’s possible because of the fluctuation of hormones that your levels of anxiety could rise too. You may experience menopause and panic attacks (or even panic disorder) unexpectedly, and it may feel like you’re having a nervous breakdown or even a heart attack.
It’s important at this stage to find out what’s causing the anxiety and speak to your doctor to help you manage your anxiety symptoms.
Does anxiety from menopause go away?
Once menopausal symptoms reduce, then you may find your anxiety decreases too, but it’s important to note that there may be other factors that can cause anxiety during menopause and not just the hormonal imbalance.
For example, if you’re suffering with more physical symptoms, it may impact on your day-to-day life as you are less functional and therefore may experience social anxiety. These are additional stressors that can contribute to anxiety, but no matter what is causing it, you should find ways to manage it and ask for specialist help if you cannot do this yourself.
Perimenopause anxiety in the morning
Anxiety in perimenopause is common in the morning because, generally speaking, cortisol levels are higher to help you wake up from sleep, as before the perimenopause, the oestrogen helped you control this cortisol spike. But due to low oestrogen and anxiety in menopause, you will feel the effects more in the morning.
How do you manage menopausal anxiety? How can anxiety be treated?
So, are there any treatments for how to deal with anxiety and the menopause, and is there a way to manage menopausal anxiety symptoms so that you can lead a more fulfilling life during this menopause transition?
There are possible treatments that can reduce anxiety-related symptoms, and these include:
Hormones
Hormone Replacement Therapy (which has been known to be more effective at reducing anxiety symptoms than antidepressants)
But there are some natural ways to treating severe anxiety disorder as well as minor anxiety symptoms, and this is by aiming to reduce menopausal symptoms as much as possible. We’ll go through these below.
Your eating habits
What you eat can have a direct impact on your body, and consuming (or avoiding) specific foods can help alleviate your menopause symptoms.
Eating a well-balanced and healthy diet is vital. You should ensure this contains enough calcium, as it helps maintain bone density. Postmenopausal women are more at risk of osteoporosis due to the reduction in oestrogen. You’ll also want to eat plenty of iron-rich and high-fibre foods. Taking supplements is a good idea, but it’s best to get as many nutrients as possible from your diet, as these are often easier for your body to absorb.
That said, exploring the best menopause supplements can be especially helpful if you find it difficult to get what you need from food alone, particularly when managing symptoms like anxiety, fatigue or hormonal shifts.
Try to avoid fatty and high-sugar foods, as these can exacerbate symptoms. Spicy foods can trigger or exacerbate hot flashes. A glass of wine now and again is fine, but be sure to only drink in moderation as excessive alcohol can also increase symptoms of depression and anxiety and interfere with your sleep.
A good bedtime routine and sleep hygiene are also important, as many women often struggle to sleep during menopause. Create your own relaxing night-time routine, such as having a bath and reading a book with a warm drink. You may also want to consider switching to lighter bedding and installing a fan in your bedroom for use during hot flashes or night sweats.
Regular physical exercise can help prevent excessive weight gain and improve your overall well-being. Exercise is also vital for reducing symptoms such as anxiety and depression and can help you sleep better too.
If you don’t already exercise regularly, start with something simple, such as taking a long walk outside or trying other weight-bearing activities like jogging or dancing, alongside relaxing activities like yoga, tai chi, or swimming.
Other coping methods for menopause and anxiety
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) has been known to be useful to help women with their menopausal symptoms. CBT helps women connect their thoughts and feelings so they can learn how to modify their behaviour to reduce symptoms.
Do the symptoms of menopause ever go away?
When you’re in post-menopause state, then symptoms may ease or stop entirely. For some women, it may continue for longer but the change in your body’s hormones is a sign to listen to your body and continue to look after your physical and mental health to maintain a long and healthy life.
FAQ
How can I stop menopausal anxiety?
See above for tips on how to deal with anxiety and menopause and reduce symptoms as much as possible.
Can perimenopause cause anxiety?
Other questions asked were:
Does anxiety caused by menopause go away?
How long does menopause anxiety last?
Does anxiety cause menopause symptoms?
Does menopause affect anxiety?
Anxiety and perimenopause can become synonymous with each other when hormonal fluctuations disrupt the balance. See above for more information on what to do when you experience anxiety.
Can anxiety be caused by menopause?
“Changes in your hormones during menopause can impact your mental health as well as your physical health. You may experience feelings of anxiety, stress or even depression. Menopausal symptoms may include: anger and irritability.”
Can menopause cause anxiety and heart palpitations?
Can menopause cause anxiety and panic attacks?
Does menopause affect mental health on women?
Does menopause cause anxiety symptoms?
Does anxiety cause menopause symptoms?
Does menopause affect anxiety?
See above for tips on how to help your anxiety during menopause.
What does menopause anxiety feel like?
Panic attacks and menopause can occur hand in hand when you’re unsure of what’s going on in your body. As a result, you can also experience depression, a foggy brain and tense muscles.
Does menopause cause severe anxiety?
Other questions asked were:
Can menopause cause severe anxiety?
Can anxiety make menopause worse?
Does anxiety make menopause worse?
Can menopause cause severe anxiety?
Menopause can cause severe anxiety, especially if symptoms are strong. See above for tips on how to reduce your anxiety in menopause.
Menopause – What is the physiology behind the anxiety that precedes hot flashes for some women?
This article talks about anxiety being a risk factor for hot flushes during menopause, i.e:
“This study showed a strong predictive association of somatic anxiety with the risk of menopausal hot flashes. The temporal associations suggest that somatic anxiety is not simply a redundant measure of hot flashes but predicts the risk of menopausal hot flashes and may be a potential target in clinical management of perimenopausal women.”
Can a woman go crazy during menopause?
Other questions asked were:
Do women experience personality disorders during menopause?
“The very first thing you must realize is that no, you’re not losing your mind. You may be acting crazy, feeling crazy, thinking crazy thoughts — but basically, you’re OK.”
“Menopause can cause many changes in your body. The symptoms are the result of a decreased production of estrogen and progesterone in your ovaries. Symptoms may include hot flashes, weight gain, or vaginal dryness. Vaginal atrophy contributes to vagina dryness.”
I have been postmenopausal for 2 years and I started spotting today with terrible cramping more exhaustion and moody. This isn’t normal right?
“The most common causes of bleeding or spotting after menopause include: Endometrial or vaginal atrophy (lining of the uterus or vagina becomes thin and dry). Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) (estrogen and progesterone supplements that decrease some menopausal symptoms).”
“Changes in hormone levels may influence neurotransmitters in the brain. The drop in estrogen levels can also lead to hot flashes that disturb sleep, which can then lead to anxiety and mood swings. If you experience symptoms of depression nearly every day for two or more weeks, you might be depressed.”
“During menopause, some females experience tingling in the hands, feet, arms, and legs. This symptom results from hormone fluctuations affecting the central nervous system and typically only lasts for a few minutes at a time.”
Having a baby is a wonderful, life-changing event, but it comes with a huge learning curve and a whole heap of emotions. If you’re feeling constantly down and you can’t shake it off, you will need to seek treatment from a professional to feel better. But there are natural remedies for postpartum depression that can help with the recovery process.
In this article, we will go through the nine ways to care for postpartum depression with natural treatments that can be accessed easily and affordably, so you can continue to look after your newborn and take care of your physical and mental health too (because you count as well, don’t forget that while you’re knee deep in nappies and mess!)
The baby blues vs postpartum depression
Amid the newborn cuddles, you’re feeling anxious, tired and fed up, with fluctuating mood swings that could rival any major roller coaster. Baby blues are quite common after birth and are mostly down to the peaks and troughs of hormones and broken sleep. It’s normal to feel down, especially if you’ve experienced birth trauma and you’re struggling to feed your newborn while dealing with uncomfortable lochia. But how do you know if the baby blues are a more serious case of postpartum depression?
Baby blues happen two to three days after birth and the postpartum period should subside after a couple of weeks, but postpartum depression sticks around for up to a year or longer if left untreated and can lead to postpartum psychosis, which is a serious mental illness. National data shows that 1 in 10 women each year suffer from postpartum depression and without support, these symptoms may impact you, your family and your baby. Postpartum depression cannot be treated alone, but with the right help, most sufferers can make a full recovery. If you are ready to seek help, reach out to residential mental health services in Florida to learn more about what kind of treatment is available.
What causes postpartum depression?
There can be several causes of postpartum depression, but it may be difficult to pin it down to one distinct cause because there isn’t a singular test for depression. Some factors can include:
A difficult pregnancy
A stressful/negative event that’s happened, like loss, domestic violence or illness
A difficult/stressful childbirth and problems with baby
Unplanned/unwanted pregnancy
Lack of support
Substance abuse
Chemical imbalance in the brain
Postpartum depression symptoms
As mentioned before, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all symptom that makes it clear you are suffering from postpartum depression, but some depression signs can include:
Severe mood swings, I.e. feeling angry one moment and then sad the other – but not feeling any joy
Extreme fatigue – unable to bring yourself to do anything because you’re too tired, but you can’t sleep
Severe change in appetite
No interest in activities which you’d normally enjoy
Feeling withdrawn from people around you – unable to socialise
Low self-worth
Having thoughts about hurting yourself or the baby
Rejecting the baby
Persistent physical problems, like tummy ache or headache
How does postpartum depression affect the infant?
One study found that postnatal depression has negative consequences for both mum and baby up to three years because of the impact on interaction with the baby. Depressed women are caught in a vicious cycle of becoming sadder and angrier, which means their personal development as well as child development is effected. The health of the mother is associated with the health of the child, both indirectly and directly.
How is postpartum depression typically treated?
Understanding why you have postpartum depression is the key to treatment, resulting in a full recovery, although it can take time. There are three main types of treatment which are:
Self help – this involves talking to family and friends about feelings and taking the time to do the things you enjoy
Psychological therapy – this involves a GP referring you to a self-help course or therapy, including cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)
Antidepressants if your depression is more severe or the other two treatments haven’t helped
Your GP can go through the pros and cons of each treatment, but in this article, we will concentrate on the self-help aspect of treatment which you can do at home.
What will happen if postpartum depression is left untreated?
In some cases, mild postpartum depression can go away on its own or if treated via self-help or psychological therapy. But more severe postpartum depression cases require treatment and if left untreated can continue for a long time or become more serious and impact mum and family.
Can natural remedies help? Nine natural remedies for postpartum depression
As mentioned before, postpartum depression needs to be treated professionally, but there are ways to help ease symptoms. Here are nine tips on how to ease symptoms of postpartum depression with natural treatments.
Keep your immediate living area organised
‘Me’ time is achievable and important
Take care of what you eat
Get some form of exercise in daily
Fresh air does wonders
Watch your lifestyle
Surround yourself with a support network
Get your sleep where and when you can
Get professional help (including complementary and alternative medicine)
1. Keep your living area organised
This may not have been a remedy you would have considered because, let’s face it, who has time to do the dishes when you’re feeding around the clock and living on broken sleep? But, in an otherwise turbulent environment, regaining order, however small, will help you feel you’re more in control of what’s going on around you.
Even something as simple as where you have situated yourself for the first six weeks after birth, whether that be in bed or on the couch, keeping that area tidy and organised can help you feel you’re not living in a chaotic world. For example, try to keep your living space/bed/sleep area tidy – whether it’s investing in space-saving furniture like fitted wardrobes or beds with in-built storage, or having a makeshift corner where you can keep things you use daily close to hand. It might not be a tidy home – and that’s ok, you and baby come first – a tidy production line can help you feel you’re staying on top of things each day.
2. ‘Me’ time is achievable and important
Me time? What’s that, I hear you ask.
It seems a long way away when you threw away those birth control pills and your social life went with it.
While having a baby is a joyous event that marks a precious new chapter, the initial period of adjusting to a new arrival can be stressful and overwhelming, especially if it’s your first time. To maintain your physical and mental health in the weeks and months after giving birth, it’s important to practice self-care and take some time for yourself.
‘Me’ time is that all-important time to do something for yourself that makes you happy or keeps you sane. It can be five minutes of quiet time in your bedroom, or it can be a quick trip to the shops, or even the hairdressers.
Balance your mind and body through mindfulness and relaxation
Take this moment now and say ‘STOP!’ Put whatever it is you’re doing down (unless you’re in the middle of a feed) and close your eyes. Any thoughts that come to your mind about your body after birth acknowledge them and then wave them away. Focus on how you are feeling at that moment. If your baby is feeding, focus on what you are doing to feed your baby. What does she/he smell like? What does your breast milk or her bottle of milk smell like? Are you hungry? Are you thirsty?
Focusing on the present moment is called mindfulness and it allows you to push unnecessary thoughts away so that you can concentrate only on the here and now. Now breathe in and exhale deeply, blowing the excess air away through your lips. The action can bring balance instantly when there is turmoil around you. Do this every day for just five minutes (longer is better) and you find you can tackle the world around you once you’ve given yourself a break.
Practice yoga
Utilise rare silence and get some Zen back into your life with yoga. You can find some free YouTube videos, from beginner to advanced, to help you wind down and relax after a hectic day of kids and to-do lists!
Yoga is proven to be one of the most effective ways of keeping the mind and body young and happy.
Meditation
If you can’t or won’t do yoga, then consider meditation. When you’ve had a physically and mentally exhausting day and you haven’t clocked in enough sleep hours, then taking time to be alone, even if it’s just five minutes, is an even more important thing to do.
You may think, wait, I haven’t got time to do that; I have a new baby!
Find five minutes.
In those five minutes, you want to maximise your breathing efficiency as it’s the best way to calm your body down and lower those stress levels. You don’t have to lie down, you can sit up too, but the point is to stop the world for five minutes and concentrate on your breath.
The trick is not to overthink it (ha!) Either sit on a chair or cross-legged on the floor, so your spine is straight and upright. Either open or close your eyes, whatever makes you feel more comfortable and softly focus your mind on your breathing. Breathe in and out naturally, gradually trying to make the inhales and exhales longer and deeper. If you’re having trouble with this, you can count each exhale.
Then concentrate on breathing in for four, holding your breath for seven, and then breathing out slowly for eight. A few times doing this and you’ll notice that your mind and body are more at peace and when you check back into reality you are more focussed on the tasks ahead. You can also end up being more productive too and this 4-7-8 breathing technique, if you continue to do it every day, multiple times a day, can actually aid digestion, sleep and the respiratory system. You can find more mindfulness and meditation techniques here.
Obviously, it’s impossible to switch off the brain completely, but taking the time to be with yourself and meditating is a powerful tool to strengthen the mind and body and, ultimately, de-stress more successfully. Meditation aids spiritual growth and reduces stress exponentially, ultimately increasing overall health and providing your body with stronger immunity to stressful situations.
Total body stretching
Have you ever placed your arms above your head after being in one position for a long time, stretched your body, and heard your spine creak and moan in response? It’s amazing how we don’t take time out to stretch our bodies and how knotted our back becomes during the day. A lot of stress comes from the extra pressure we add from bad posture, or we are bending our backs and not our knees to lift heavy objects off the floor. These movements have harsh, long-term effects on our body.
When cats wake up from their catnaps, they stretch their entire body out before they pounce about nimbly like ninjas. Stretching like a cat when you wake up, coupled with long, deep breaths, not only stretch out your muscles and realign your bones, but the instant rush of oxygen through your body wakes you up faster than a double shot espresso.
Try it. As soon as you wake up, inhale deeply as you stretch your arms above your head and elongate the legs so you are as straight as an arrow. Then exhale deeply through pursed lips as you enjoy the stretch. It feels so great afterwards!
Just as a bonus point, if you inhale through the nose and exhale through pursed lips, you are increasing your breathing efficiency and enhancing your tolerance for exercise. That means you can endure longer, tougher workouts.
Take care of your skin
From the late-night feeds to the infrequent meals and lack of time to shower, your skin will experience a whole myriad of attacks and may look dry, patchy and older. It’s essential to find a few minutes twice a day (generally morning and night) to hydrate your skin with a good natural skincare routine. I swear by Infinatura Cura Oil which is a serum that contains eight 100% natural elements and hydrates the skin very well. You will notice a massive improvement in your skin after only a few applications. Coconut oil* is also great for the body and hair and saves you time and money looking for other skincare products.
Don’t worry about that post-baby body in the pictures! Capture the memory forever with your newborn and book a family shoot that immortalises those precious first moments. If you have other children, they’ll be grateful for the memories later when they look back at how young and free they were once upon a time.
Get online
Nowadays most of us have smartphones, tablets and laptops, and if you want a quick break, or to do something in betwen those long feeding times, these devices can be a great means for a fun time. There are different types of games for mums which you can enjoy online.
Mind Games
Keeping the mind alive helps you stay attentive when looking after your child. There are tons of great apps on smartphones, desktops and tablets that are designed to train your cognitive skills and achieve optimum brain fitness. So, if you have an app-worthy device, then take five minutes to download one and test those skills. As we get older, we become less likely to indulge in the computer games that we used to play when we were younger.
Although some people still play on their PS4s well into their thirties (my husband) we just don’t have that much free time to allocate any more. I am a huge advocate of brain training games and have even noticed my brain speed increasing after playing many a Solitaire Bliss, Sudoku, crossword and IQ type games.
However, if you fancy something that really tests the brain cells, then intellectual games such as Chess or the oriental game of Go is ideal. And, there are plenty of opportunities to play free chess games online with real people. Whatever your level, from beginner to master, you will always find people to play with.
A little night-time facial massage ritual
About twenty minutes before I intend to go to bed, I start my night-time beauty ritual. I take the time to cleanse and wash my face, but when I moisturise, I perform a mini facial for a few moments to massage the stressful day away. I try to incorporate a lymphatic drainage massage, which helps drain any blocked sinuses and tension headaches. I then massage the top of my head, which encourages the blood circulation and natural oils to the hair (also helps to thicken the hair too!)
Just doing this for a few minutes every evening immediately calms me down, relaxes the brain and refreshes my skin. Plus, I’ve noticed my hair and skin looking softer and smoother too.
Reward yourself with things that are just for you
Be kind to yourself and reward yourself from time to time after you have achieved the goals you have set for yourself. These can be anything from a long bubble bath to a new hairstyle.
Another great example could be to reward yourself for getting in some exercise and allowing yourself to invest in a designer pair of sneakers. You can find some gorgeous Gucci sneakers and other high-end designer training shoes at luxury designer retailer SSENSE that will make you want to spend as much time working out as you can just to wear them.
Order a takeaway
Sometimes it’s better when someone else cooks! But, if you don’t have that luxury at home, then you can enjoy the finer things in life. Grab a takeaway and tuck in! It may only be for a few hours, but such an evening will help you relive the blissful early days – better still, if you can enjoy some adult time with your partner too, that’s two birds and one stone!
Treat yourself to some new clothes – even if they’re a couple of sizes bigger!
The consensus on losing weight after pregnancy is that it takes nine months to grow a baby, so it will take nine months to lose the post-baby belly. But, even after the nine months have been and gone, you may still struggle to lose that extra weight. The entire process seems to take forever and you’re too tired to exercise.
Please allow yourself a break and embrace the weight gain after pregnancy. Your body just delivered a brand new baby, which is pretty darn amazing, so give yourself the chance to heal and recover naturally. You could always look for a post-pregnancy workout to try when you get the opportunity and you could try a belly band to hold in the stomach and keep things tight around your waist.
However, if the changes to your stomach have a big impact on how you view yourself and your confidence, then the option of surgical enhancements is available as a last resort. What exactly do surgical enhancements mean? What is abdominoplasty? Click the link for further information, but chances are your partner hasn’t even noticed the extra few inches on your after-pregnancy body.
So why don’t you use this chance to treat yourself to some new flattering post-pregnancy clothes, which will not only help you feel better in your post-baby body but make you feel well enough to spark that road to recovery? Here are some ideas for what you could wear:
Colourful outerwear
When the season changes and the temperature cools down, you may be thankful for the opportunity to hide those new lumps and bumps in an oversized coat. But wearing what may resemble a tent may make you end up looking bigger overall. Opt for a light wearing bright mac, like the Packaway Mac from Bonmarche, which works perfectly to protect you against the rain and drapes over the post-baby belly without making you look like The Hulk. A Gilet can also cover you in colder weather without making you look frumpy.
A flowy top that drapes over the waist
A flowy top like the above Butterfly Print Top with Side Tie allows the top to fit over the shoulder and arms, creating a smaller frame while falling to the side, so it doesn’t cinch at the waist. The side tie allows for more flexibility, so as you slowly lose weight, you can tighten or loosen the tie according to how you feel that day. Flexibility is kind to your post-baby body!
Layered clothes can create vertical lines and disguise the belly
Layering is very effective at elongating the body, as it creates the illusion of vertical lines that distract the eye from your stomach. Try adding a shrug to a flowing dress like the above 2 in 1 Dress with Shrug or a double-layered top* accessorised with a flowing necklace, which creates a classic and versatile look that lengthens the body with an elegant chiffon overlayer.
Team up with some comfy leggings that hug at the waist lightly, and you can shed inches off your overall body without needing to hit the gym. N.B – Don’t forget that those celebrities who look amazing with a baby after birth employ personal trainers, chefs and nannies to get that toned stomach because they have the money to spend on these luxuries, which, is what they are – luxuries!
You would look like them too if you had that kind of money – and time. Eventually, you will get your mojo back and you will feel human again – but it takes time, so give yourself the luxury of time.
Make sure your undergarments are comfortable and supportive
You may not be in the mood to strip down to your unmentionables anytime soon, especially when you still have those lingering hormones after pregnancy, a wobbly belly, and drooping boobs. But, getting yourself measured for a well-fitting bra will not only make you feel better about yourself, but it will also reduce the back pain after pregnancy and from prolonged wear of ill-fitting bras.
Investing in some supportive post-pregnancy underwear that holds everything in will make you feel tighter and more confident. You could lose a dress size by just holding that post-pregnancy stomach in with some Spanx or a belly support band! There are loads of excellent tummy shaping underwear in the shops these days, so it’s worth getting measured up and then browsing the stores.
You may find it easier to shop online while your baby sleeps, but make sure you go in and get your bra size measured, as you may not receive an accurate reading using just online tools.
Dance or listen to music
Remember, before you had kids when you’d go out to clubs and dance the night away? Pour a couple of drinks, turn up the music and enjoy a little rhythmic exercise! Go contemporary with music choices or pop some tango or salsa music on for a little Latin passion!
If you can’t or won’t dance, then at least pop in your earphones/headphones and crank up your favourite tunes on Spotify. Music acts as a great therapy for a stressful day as it allows you to forget about your problems for a moment or two and engross you into the melody.
Do absolutely nothing
Do absolutely nothing? How is that possible when you have a newborn? When they’re asleep, just leave the toys on the floor, take a seat on the couch and put your feet up. Close your eyes and banish all thoughts from your mind. Do the mindfulness ritual I mentioned above. Remember, five minutes is enough to lower the blood pressure and unwind after the day’s busy events. If you’re anything like me, you’ll do nothing for twenty minutes instead.
Write without thinking
Few people understand the healing benefits of writing how you feel. So, grab yourself a pen and paper – or a laptop – make yourself a cuppa and write the first thing that comes to your mind. Soon your creative juices will flow and you’ll be surprised at what comes out on the other side. The next J.K. Rowling maybe?
Avoid blackhole behaviour
Blackhole behaviour is when you have spare time on your hands (shocking!) and you choose to sit around doing nothing for longer than the five minutes I mentioned earlier. You might watch a show, scroll through social media, or play a game on your phone. Eventually, you realise several hours have passed by and you’ve done nothing productive.
Stop throwing time into the black hole of the abyss and make the most of your rare occasions of ‘me’ time that last longer than a mere moment.
Speak to an adult about anything unrelated to kids
We sometimes feel that because we speak to children all day, our brain cells are slowly dying on us. I’ve been guilty of not being able to switch off the baby talk when an adult speaks to me. And, constantly repeating, “No, don’t do that,” or “Put that back!” can put a drain on your brain.
So, call up a dear friend or family member and just spout meaningless nonsense to them about nothing in particular that has nothing to do with your children. Or, ask them how they are and just listen. You’ll be surprised at how talking about something that is not related to your day can supercharge you into picking yourself up in the morning and grabbing that routine with bare hands.
Plus, you may realise that some other people’s lives can be more mundane or difficult and you will go to bed feeling lucky that you get to wake up in the morning and see your beautiful baby’s smiles every day.
On an aside, a friend of mine has just come back from New York on a business trip, so I like to live vicariously through her travels while I sit at home with four kids and manage my workload. I can at least feel like I’m there with my friend and it takes my mind of my to-do list!
Get your mojo back
We are guilty of forgetting our worth and not having the energy to bother with your health and wellbeing appearance.
Give yourself some time to breathe after birth an then get that mojo back! Do you remember what you were like before you had kids? Do you remember how it felt to dress up? Take time for yourself and do a mini up, personal fashion show just for yourself or for that lucky partner and just be silly. When the kids are in bed, get out your makeup and simply experiment.
Do up your hair and take lots of pictures. Then, when you’re feeling down and troubled, or simply drained, take out those pictures and remember what it felt like to be a real person and not just a mum.
Get away from what you’re doing and completely take your mind off it
Stop what you’re doing (if you can) and walk away, or leave the room. Just the act of taking yourself away from a negative situation stimulates your brain cells and allows you to approach your task with renewed vigour. For example, if your baby is screaming and the noise is boiling your blood, put the baby down somewhere safe, like the cot, walk out of the room, take 30 seconds, breathe in and out deeply and then walk back in again to the screaming.
What’s the screaming for? What have you tried already? What can you try to stop the screaming? It’s that act of walking away from the immediate picture, even if it’s for a moment that helps you keep going.
Read more
We can be guilty of telling ourselves we will read more… and then never open up a book. It happens, but reading is a great way to improve your mental health development and boost your emotional wellbeing. Make it a goal to read a little every single day, or even twice a week, and you will see just how much you can learn from a book. Whether it is nonfiction or fiction, reading is a great way to boost your mental health. You can also read on an electronic tablet, which will make reading every day easier.
Manage your stress
Life is stressful, there is no denying that. We can’t always stop the stresses from happening in our lives, but we can do things to relieve them.
Stress can encompass you through various forms in your life, especially during parenthood, when you are faced with extreme situations affecting your children daily.
A 2010 study by the American Psychological Association (APA) surveyed over 2,000 adults and children, with some very interesting results. The study showed that almost 70% of parents believed their own stress barely affected their children – but when speaking to children, this was not the case.
90% of the children who were surveyed stated they could tell when their parents were stressed; because they witnessed their parents arguing or because their parents failed to spend time with them. Many of these children said they felt frustrated, worried and sad as a result, and almost a third of the children complained of stomachaches or headaches because of stress.
So, what to do? These results seem to suggest that postpartum anxiety and stress can be contagious – meaning that when you’re suffering mentally, you may affect the mental health of your children too.
So, it is even more important to divide and conquer all the stressors in your life and keep them as far away from your children as possible. For example, work-related stress can be left at work and discussed with your partner when your child is not around to hear it. Any stress that you may have at home or with your partner can be discussed with them alone and not in front of the children.
Of course, it is better to have an honest outlook on life with your children, so if the stress involves them try to find some common ground where you are not shouting at or ordering your child.
There are tons of things you can do to de-stress, like taking a bath, cooking, or using a weighted blanket. A weighted blanket can help with anxiety and improve the quality of your sleep. Look at this weighted blanket guide to finding one that will help keep you relaxed when you are feeling anxious.
The World Health Organization published an illustrative guide on stress management where you can spend just a few minutes a day on stress techniques to help you with everyday anxiety.
Practice gratitude every day
It is easy to focus on the things that are going wrong in your life, but if you find you’re in a rut, then now is the time to practice gratitude every day. Buy a journal and write down the things you are thankful for, from being able to move your body to having a family who loves you. Journal writing can be very therapeutic which in turn can boost your spiritual wellbeing.
3. Take care of what you eat
It’s easy to neglect your health when all your focus is on caring for the new baby, but it’s essential that you eat regular meals and try to follow healthy lifestyle habits. If you’re struggling to keep up with a schedule or cook regularly, consider batch-cooking and planning your meals weekly, as well as taking postnatal vitamins and supplements.
Don’t worry about counting calories or actively watching what you eat. As long as you are adopting a healthy post-baby diet and eating everything in moderation, i.e. plenty of fruits and vegetables, protein, carbs and even fat (good fats) then you’re probably doing the right thing and the weight will fall off naturally.
When you’re a new 24-hour Supermum, it may be easier to graze on snacks throughout the day, but make sure you’re keeping your energy levels up by eating from all food groups. If you want to have a chocolate bar, then have it. Just don’t have ten in one go because it will hinder your chances of losing weight. It’s a good idea to stock your house with lots of snacks like fruit bars, nuts, dried fruit, dark chocolate and popcorn.
Don’t forget eating right also aids in natural weight loss too – two birds, one stone! I have had a subscription with Graze since they launched in 2007 because they make it so easy to snack on healthy delicious goodies every week. There are tons of different boxes to choose from and you get a healthy selection of nuts, raisins, fruit and even biscuits with a teabag in the box!
It’s such a lovely treat to get through the letterbox, especially when you’ve just had a baby because it feels like a special present for yourself to enjoy while you’re feeding baby. I love Graze and will continue to subscribe to a box that is only £2.99 (I’m old school, so I pay old school prices).
Your baby will stop you from eating a proper meal, so if you’ve missed dinner, eating the above high-protein snacks will help you feel better and reduce your chances of over-indulging on the bad stuff until you have time to eat later. The trick is to take care of your post-baby body and your baby’s so that you have the strength to get through those tough first few months relatively unscathed.
Make sure you start with the right mindset about food
I know how difficult it is to get out of that vicious cycle of eating bad food once you’re in it and how depressed you become when you turn to more food to make you feel better, even though you know it will only just make you feel worse.
You don’t have to remove everything you enjoy, just think about cutting back on sugar and starch. These foods stimulate insulin, which is the hormone that encourages fat storage. When insulin reduces, the body finds it easier to burn fats instead of carbs. The kidneys also work better and reduce bloating and excess water weight.
If you are eating and drinking more calories than you are burning, then you will not lose weight.
It is a lot easier said than done. I was stuck in a rut, breastfeeding my second baby for two and a half years (not by choice!) and eating more than my fair share of sugar. I felt tired all the time, I was getting sick easily and then, one day, I got so ill (exhaustion brought on a cold, which progressed to flu and then, subsequently, a tummy bug) that I thought I was going to die from some weird virus.
Educating yourself on the importance of nutrients in your diet and what they do to benefit the body is paramount to changing your eating habits. Nutrients also help boost metabolism, which, in turn, aids weight loss.
You find that a lot of the healthy recipes are actually really simple to make and will put you on the road to a healthier mind and body. Plus, your kids will reap the benefits of a new and healthy (and less stressful) mum! You could join slimming clubs like Slimming World, if you need the extra support and nudge to fix your diet.
Start meal planning and working out what you’re going to make during the week
Healthy food, especially fruits and vegetables, especially when you’re buying for a larger family, can be quite expensive. I never really understood why the healthier stuff was always more expensive than junk food in the UK. So, on a modest person’s salary, the safest option is to meal plan, so you don’t buy in excess. I scour the net for recipe ideas all the time, but I generally keep to a non-exhaustive rule when I’m meal planning.
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so make sure you have cereals in your cupboard, like oats or Weetabix, which are great because they’re high in fibre and help you go to the loo. Eggs are also really versatile and perfect for breakfast meals, as well as nice wholemeal bread, toasted with a bit of Clover butter (which contains half the saturated fat as other butter).
You can afford to be versatile at lunchtime. Pasta salads are great and keep you full for longer. Even classics like jacket potato with baked beans and cheese are relatively healthy, considering how much cheese you add. You can even opt for sweet potatoes instead of normal potatoes, which are deliciously sweet and gorgeous.
For dinner, if you are a meat-eater, opting for small portions of lean meat and/or chicken as a side dish can drastically change your diet. My mum always used to say that vegetables should be the main part of the dish and not the side, so go for lots of veg with some protein (meat) and carbs (potatoes) to complement and you can’t go wrong with that formula.
Turkey contains half the fat of chicken, so you can even go one step further and replace chicken with turkey. Perhaps go for a nice sandwich with spring onions, spinach (instead of lettuce for that iron boost) and your favourite low fat sauce. I now replace any kind of sauce with either French Mustard or just plain lemon.
Build into the daily plan to eat at least seven portions of fruit and vegetables a day. You can work up some of these vegetables in classic meals like vegetable lasagne, salads and/or pasta dishes. Legumes are super important for your diet. My favourite at the moment is chicken and lentil soup, which the kids also love too. It’s also really low in fat!
I like grilling or roasting vegetables and having them around during the day for snacking. Drizzle on some olive oil or Clover butter and/or sea salt and they taste simply delicious. Other snacks can include carrots, celery and/or wholemeal pita bread slices dipped in hummus, mixed nuts and raisins, and whole-grain crackers with peanut butter (go for the reduced sugar kind and you should be fine).
My absolute favourite snack at the moment is wholemeal Krisprolls with feta cheese and apple slices. You must try it, it’s delectable! For full recipes and meal plans, head to Five for a Fiver where I document 5-ingredient recipes for £5 or less.
Eat when you are hungry and stop when you are full
Most of the time, we do not listen to our bodies and overeat to the point of bursting. Not knowing when there is an off switch can lead to becoming overweight because you haven’t given your body enough time to tell you it is full and that it doesn’t need that extra food.
When you find that your stomach is feeling empty, that is the best time to eat a nutritious meal, as the body can absorb all the good bits when it is not trying to digest other heavy foods. Therefore, they say to fill up on fruit at breakfast because you have an empty stomach when you wake up and the nutrients from the fruit can be absorbed by the body quickly and more efficiently.
It is also important to eat consistently, so your sugar levels are not fluctuating throughout the day. Have you ever noticed how much more you want to pig out on bad stuff later on in the day when you skip a meal? It is because your body’s sugar levels are down and it’s looking for sweet stuff to bring it back up. Don’t forget that sugar is only a quick high and you will soon experience that dreaded crash again.
Go for convenience
Another option would be to use a meal subscription service like HelloFresh which is not only convenient but it saves us money in our weekly shop too. Plus, you get everything you need to prepare foods that fit a calorie-controlled diet delivered to your door. You don’t need a restrictive diet, instead eat well and regularly throughout the day to maintain your sugar levels and if you keep it to whole foods, then you will lose weight naturally.
Check your diet and lifestyle
Ensure you are providing yourself with a nutritious balanced diet so you can keep up with vigours of motherhood every day. Consider food supplements to help you with any deficiencies you may suffer from, as we parents know it is difficult to offer ourselves the same time as we afford our children.
Hydrate!
One thing you may forget to do during those first few months, apart from eating, is to hydrate. When you’re dehydrated, you feel drowsy and your brain turns to mush. Having a large bottle of water with you at all times will encourage you to drink those cobwebs away. You may even need over eight glasses or two litres of water a day when you’re breastfeeding, so make sure you take that time to hydrate, because it will bring some life back into your mind and body when you need it the most.
You can find more tips on nutrition, relaxation and health during pregnancy over at Mommy Authority.
4. Get some form of exercise in every day
You want a fit body after pregnancy, but the thought of postnatal exercise when you’re still in recovery mode sends you running under the covers. Maybe you’ve suffered from diastasis recti after pregnancy (separated stomach muscles) and you’re suffering from back pain postpartum, so you do not know how or where to start on your post-baby body workout. Or you’re suffering from postnatal depression and you can just about crawl to the bathroom.
But, what does normality look like after having a baby? Exactly what happens to woman’s body after pregnancy? What do you wear to cover that muffin top now?
You’ll fit into your new normal over time, and it will be sooner than you think. There are tons of gentle exercises and simple diet plans to help you lose your baby weight naturally because, remember, as with any other situation, sudden weight loss is not the way to go and the swift body changes could leave you with nasty, unhealthy side effects which might make you feel worse.
Times have changed and the world is now wising up to those celebrities who claim to have sprung back into their pre-pregnancy clothes with no extra help. It’s not easy to lose weight that quickly without a personal trainer, a nanny or buckets of cash to throw at plastic surgery. A lot of women are even taking up to 18 months to lose weight.
Well, guess what? That’s ok! As long as you’re losing weight healthily, then it shouldn’t matter how long it takes. Your body will be ready when it’s ready. One thing not to do after giving birth is rush into weight loss before you can handle it because it may cause complications later on in life.
It certainly didn’t take me nine months to lose my baby weight. Try doubling that figure… and then adding four months… And, even then, I was still 5kg over my pre-pregnancy weight. In fact, I would say the first time I truly felt like I had hit my pre-pregnancy weight was three and a half years after the birth of my second son.
So, why did it take so long to slim down? I put it down to a lot of fad diets at the beginning and then a good telling off from my mum, who, rightfully educated me on eating right and exercising well. Fast fixes reap short-term benefits, but a healthy and steady weight loss can keep the pounds off for life. Below are some tips on how to lose weight effectively by working together with food and exercise:
Build in at least 30 minutes of exercise a day, every day
I believe the key to losing weight healthily is to exercise as well as you eat. This means not over or underdoing it, but getting the blood pumping for at least 30 minutes a day. Even if you walk for ten minutes, climb up the stairs rather than take the lift, run in place for a few minutes or take the stroller out anywhere and everywhere, these activities build up.
If you get your 30 minutes of exercise in a day, then you will slowly start the see the results. You’ll feel stronger, slimmer, and you’ll blow all those cobwebs away from the fuzziness after birth. Just be careful to not do anything strenuous for the first six weeks because your body is still weak and vulnerable. Even post-six weeks, if you feel like your body is not ready, just slow it down.
The natural highs you get from exercising will kick in soon enough and it will make you want to be out and about more. Click here for an awesome stroller workout by Kristen Horler, which should really get those legs moving. And, you get to do it with your baby in tow, so no excuses!
Go for regular exercise that gets the blood pumping
You don’t need to go all out and exercise yourself to exhaustion. In fact, continuously overworking your body is just as bad as not working your body at all. Go for the mantra of getting the blood pumping to the point of being just out of breath and feeling the sweat coming.
Go for a walk or a run
Thirty minutes of exercise is recommended every day and that could be a brisk walk in the park or a run if you’re feeling fitter enough to do more. I find cardio strength exercises are the best form of exercise, where you are increasing the heart rate and building muscle at the same time.
And you don’t have to take the kitchen sink with you when you’re exercising outdoors. Read more here for some great packs that you can run with.
Make exercise a personal priority
Starting a new fitness regime to help yourself meet your weight loss goals can be fun and exciting. But it is important to make sure you are mentally treating the time you spend at the gym or outdoors as an important part of your day, so you don’t skip it just because something came up – because a lot of things will naturally come up. A good way to do this is to mark your workouts in a calendar as if they are important appointments that you cannot miss without a very good reason, and without rescheduling them.
Don’t think ‘I will try and find time to go to the gym later’ – make it a hard date. It may even be easier to workout at home, so you don’t spend the time getting to the gym, showering and then coming back. If you’re busy at work, then a gym may work for you, but if you’re a stay at home mum, working out at home might be easier. If you have small children, then involve them in your exercise routine, like running with the buggy or using them as weights – just be careful not to drop them when you’re working out!
Move your body every day
Exercising does not mean doing an intense workout at 5 a.m. Exercising can be as simple as going for a walk or practising yoga. What is important is that you move your body every single day. Exercise is a great way to de-stress and clear your mind, so make it a point to move your body every day to boost your physical wellbeing.
5. Fresh air does wonders
Walking in the fresh air comes with a multitude of benefits: it’s good for your baby (they learn about the great outdoors), you’ll burn a few calories, and your mood will improve. Also walking after giving birth will help you recover much quicker too.
You can use that time to zone out the noise and enjoy a nice walk around your local park. You may find some of that peace you’ve craved for a while now (well, maybe not in some parts of London, but you’ll still feel miles better than when you were stuck indoors.)
Walking in the fresh air comes with a multitude of benefits: it’s good for your baby (they learn about the great outdoors), you’ll burn a few calories, and your mood will improve. Also walking after giving birth will help you recover much quicker too.
You can use that time to zone out the noise and enjoy a nice walk around your local park. You may find some of that peace you’ve craved for a while now (well, maybe not in some parts of London, but you’ll still feel miles better than when you were stuck indoors.)
How about picking up your best hiking shoes and heading to the hills to take a walk through open nature?
Even if you can’t make it outside because you have a little one who dotes on you 24/7, then use your time spent wisely by popping your head out of the window for five minutes or venturing to the garden. Breathe that fresh air into your lungs and regenerate. If you’re by a tree, breathe the fresh air around it. Trees use photosynthesis to turn our carbon dioxide into the oxygen we need, and fresh air boosts the immune system.
You may have noticed that getting the heart pumping and being out and about seems to reduce cold-like symptoms when you’re feeling rundown. I have done this many times and along with Vitamin D (your body makes this from the sun when you’re outside), water and Vitamin C (like oranges, tomatoes and strawberries) exercise helps bust colds and flu before they hit hard.
So if you combine fresh air with some exercise, i.e. taking a walk outside, you can kick-start that immune system and help your body fight those germs so you can tackle those parental duties with real vigour.
Fresh air boosts happiness too!
6. Watch your lifestyle
Physical health is important and your attitude towards your health will help to shape the attitudes of your children. Disease prevention is a key lesson you can teach your kids from an early age, by taking action on your health and managing a positive lifestyle. Make it a point to book regular eye and dental check-ups for the family. If I hadn’t done this myself then I wouldn’t have known that my then four-year-old needed glasses and my then two-year-old needed regular ear wax cleaning.
If you drink too much, then this will affect your mental wellbeing and your physical health. HARTMANN Direct brought out a guide which talks about the impact alcohol has on your bladder and bowels. Alcoholism can wreak havoc on your heart, your mind and your liver. But, what most people don’t realise is that excessive drinking can also lead to incontinence too.
Alcohol is a powerful diuretic, so even a few drinks can increase your urine production and make you feel you need to go to the loo more often than normal. This excessive urination can lead to dehydration and much more concentrated urine, which can lead to urinary tract and kidney infections. This is because the concentrated urine sits in the bladder and causes irritation and inflammation to the bladder’s lining. And, if you’re not careful, this can quickly spread to your kidneys.
The burning and painful feeling you get during a UTI is down to the urethra and bladder spasming, which can also lead to headaches, back pain, fever and general malaise. Cystitis is also one symptom of a bladder infection and you may feel a sharp pain and see blood in your urine. These issues can damage your quality of life and prevent you from carrying on with your daily tasks, which may impact your children, especially if the discomfort causes you to have erratic behaviour too.
Alcohol can also impair your brain, and this can become very dangerous when looking after your children. This is because your reflexes and brain functions are not as on point as when you are sober. Alcohol can also cause bowel problems like irritation and inflammation of the gut, which can cause diarrhoea.
Be careful to limit or eliminate alcohol when you experience diarrhoea as you are causing damage to your stomach lining and your body is losing nutrients. Have a full meal before drinking so the food can act as a buffer. Food and water can slow down the effects of alcohol and prevent bladder and bowel problems from occurring, as well as overall illness. If you are struggling to quit or you experience delirium tremens (severe form of alcohol withdrawal), consider extra support like alcoholics anonymous to help you break the habit of relying on alcohol to boost your mental state.
The same goes for drugs like crystalline meth / crystal methadone which alter your mental state and impact your ability to look after your kids.
Smoking can affect your health and wellbeing too
The same can be said for smoking. Second-hand smoke can have a huge impact on your baby’ health, which is why many parents now choose to “smoke” an electronic cigarette (you can buy some gourmet-style E-liquid at Redvape.com). Vaping can help to kick the habit and ensure you are working towards creating a healthy home for yourself and your children when you finally stop inhaling anything for good.
Improving your physical and mental health can not only ensure that you live longer, but it also sets an example for your children to lead a healthy life too. So if you have any form of addiction that is harming your health, it needs to be treated ASAP to help yours and your family’s mental state.
7. Surround yourself with a support network
Various studies and controlled trials around the world show that a strong support network around new mothers, especially during the first week, reduces the chances of postnatal depression and that dreaded feeling of burning out. Postpartum care is essential. Ask for help and take it when they offer you the opportunity, whether that means allowing someone else to cook the dinner, tidy up your home or take care of the baby for a couple of hours.
Surround yourself with people you love
If you hang out with people who are toxic and bring bad energy into your life, your personal wellbeing is going to reflect that. You should surround yourself with people you love and people who want the best for you.
Don’t be afraid to seek external help
You can’t do everything by yourself as a full-time parent. Call the grandparents, hire a maid, or consider an au pair while the kids are learning their schoolwork at home or need some entertaining. It may cost money, but peace of mind is priceless. Plus, if you’re able to hire extra help, you may start that business you always wanted to create or go back to work if you haven’t done so yet.
8. Get your sleep where and when you can
It is an overused phrase and it’s guaranteed to make most new mums go mad, especially when you’re wondering, When else will I get the time to have a shower, watch TV, work, or simply make myself something to eat? But, there is a point to this. Sleep regenerates the cells and rejuvenates a tired body, so even an extra 15-minute nap during the day would be enough to make you feel better about yourself and reduce that dreaded onset of sleep deprivation. Sleep also boost your mood and makes you a more pleasant person.
If you’re still feeling the back strain from pregnancy, then look for a mattress for side sleepers with back pain to help with postnatal recovery. Make it a priority in your life to get enough sleep every night where you can, whenever you can get it, and your health will change for the better.
9. Get professional help (including complementary and alternative medicine)
While all these natural treatment for postpartum depression steps can contribute toward improved physical and mental well-being in the postnatal period, it’s essential that you investigate and seek mental health care and support through the NHS if you feel as though you’re struggling – don’t be afraid to seek professional help where it’s needed and remember that your mental health is a key priority for both yourself and your child.
Your doctor may discuss unconventional as well as conventional treatments for postpartum depression like light therapy, a low dietary intake with omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. Your doctor may also discuss common CAM therapies for treating postpartum depression, like aromatherapy and reflexology.
Some pregnant women may suffer from perinatal depression and so their doctor would have already laid treatment steps and monitored recovery during birth and the fourth trimester.
Key topics to discuss at postpartum visits
“The comprehensive postpartum visit should include a full assessment of physical, social, and psychological well-being, including the following domains: mood and emotional well-being; infant care and feeding; sexuality, contraception, and birth spacing; sleep and fatigue; physical recovery from birth; chronic disease…”
Bonus point – Look at your baby and remember why you’re doing all of this in the first place
If you are stressed and in a state of panic, especially if you’re losing yourself to motherhood because A, B, and C have not been done, stop what you’re doing (it’s only five minutes, remember, don’t worry) and just take a moment to laugh and play with your baby. It’s amazing how the simple act of smiling can boost your mood instantly. Babies seem to make you forget about your problems, especially when they’re giggling.
They don’t see your body postpartum; the bulge, your stretch marks, your dark circles, or that you haven’t been out of your pyjamas all day. Your body is the reason they are alive right now. In a blink of an eye, they’ll be all grown up and they won’t want those nighttime cuddles or extra attention anymore.
You are so selflessly sacrificing your life to ensure they have the best start in theirs, ready to flee the nest and live in their own exciting world. I know it’s hard, but enjoy the time while you can when they’re a big ball of love because time flies so fast when you have your amazing children with you.
The important message to take away from this article is that downtime and to take time for yourself are just as important as being busy and staying on top of all your tasks. There is no depression test, so if you are having negative feelings that are affecting the way you look after your baby, then seek professional help so you can start your treatment plan. Your doctor may prescribe antidepressant medication to help speed up that road to recovery.
FAQ
What is postpartum depression? What are its causes and cure? Why does it happen and in which situation?
Other questions asked were:
Can depression and anxiety be treated and cured with homeopathy?
Can homeopathy cure depression and anxiety?
How do I deal with postpartum depression? What are the symptoms?
What’s postpartum depression?
What are the symptoms of depression?
What are signs of depression?
What are the signs of depression?
Read the article above for more information on postpartum depression and what to do.
How is postpartum depression treated?
Other questions asked were:
What are the treatment options for postpartum depression?
“SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) are the most widely used and most researched medication for postpartum anxiety and postpartum depression. SSRIs work by increasing the level of serotonin in the brain.”
how to help postpartum depression without medication
how to help postpartum depression at home
Treatment recommendations for postpartum depression
Lifestyle and home remedies
How can I treat postpartum depression naturally?
“Build a secure bond with your baby. Emotional bonding is the secure attachment that forms between parents and children. …
Take care of yourself. …
Slowly reintroduce exercise. …
Build a support network. …
Try psychotherapy and medication.”
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/320005
What is the best Ayurvedic or homeopathic treatment for depression and anxiety?
Other questions asked were:
Which is the best medication available today for depression and anxiety, whether it is in allopathy Ayurveda homeopathy or others?
What is the best Allopathy medicine for anxiety and depression?
Can homeopathy medicine control anxiety and panic disorders?
“Several controlled and non-placebo controlled studies demonstrate that moderate to severe depression has been successfully treated with homeopathy, with efficacy superior to placebo and comparable to fluoxetine, and the safety of homeopathic treatment has also been demonstrated.”
Is lithium carbonate ever used to treat postpartum depression?
“Prescription lithium (Eskalith, Lithobid) has been used for decades to treat some mental health conditions, including bipolar disorder depression. Oral lithium (also called lithium carbonate) is derived from the natural element lithium.”
“Ashwagandha is also an good healing herb for postpartum support. It helps to produce mil, ease stress and rebuild physical strength. Studies show that ashwagandha has anti-inflammatory and immune-boosting benefits. The root is an adaptogenic herb, which helps the body adapt to stressors.”
https://www.mofga.org/resources/herbs/ashwagandha
What herbs help with postpartum?
“Antibacterial plants: Sage, Thyme, Rosemary.
Uterine Toners: Witch Hazel Leaf/Bark, Mugwort, Red Clover.
Anodynes: Rose Petals, Chamomile, Calendula and Lavender.
Anti-inflammatory plants: Yarrow, St. John’s Wort, Frankincense.
Epson salts also are a great addition to soaks & baths.”
“Riboflavin, or vitamin B-2, may also help decrease your risk of developing PPD. In a study published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, researchers examined this vitamin along with folate, cobalamin, and pyridoxine. Riboflavin was the only one they found to have a positive effect on the mood disorder.”
Many women experience postpartum fatigue and dizziness after birth, which can last for a few months. These symptoms could be an early warning sign of a serious health condition, but in most cases, they have common causes that are easily treatable. Birth takes a toll on the body, and treatment of these symptoms is important because they can make it harder for mothers to cope with the stress of caring for a newborn.
But as normal as it is to feel exhausted and maybe even dizzy, how do we cope with feeling so tired we can’t get up, especially when we have a tiny human to look after too?
One approach gaining attention for its potential benefits is exosome IV treatment. This innovative therapy works at the cellular level, with exosomes helping to stimulate your body’s natural healing process and regenerate cells, potentially offering a boost of energy. Combined with a balanced diet, adequate sleep, and regular exercise, it could be a part of a comprehensive strategy to manage persistent fatigue, ensuring you have the energy to take care of yourself and your little one.
This article goes through what you need to know about postpartum fatigue and dizziness and how to cope, so you can get back to feeling a little more like yourself sooner rather than later.
What is postpartum fatigue? Postpartum fatigue explained
Postpartum fatigue signifies a diminished capacity for physical and mental activity following childbirth, which could include consistent tiredness, trouble sleeping, difficulty concentrating, and being unable to feel rested, even after adequate sleep. This condition may stem from a combination of factors, including hormone level fluctuations (specifically estrogen and progesterone), iron deficiency, and the physical symptoms associated with recovery from birth, such as nausea. Understanding the role of prenatal vitamins and appropriate medications prescribed by a healthcare provider is really important to help you manage these symptoms.
What causes postpartum fatigue? How to cope with postpartum fatigue and dizziness
One study found some causes of postpartum fatigue to be anaemia, infections, thyroid disorders, mood disorders and cardiomyopathy and treatment of these conditions improved the medical care of women following delivery.2
But symptoms of postpartum fatigue can also include non-medical conditions, like recovery after birth, breastfeeding shortness of breath, and broken sleep. Below are some ways to help reduce postpartum fatigue and dizziness at home.
How to cope with exhaustion with a baby – Boost your iron levels
During labor, significant blood loss can lead to anemia, a condition marked by iron deficiency that can show up as pale skin, sudden dizziness, fatigue, chest pain, and headaches. It’s important to address iron deficiency through your diet or supplements, such as prenatal vitamins rich in iron. Additionally, speak to a therapist or counselor who can provide strategies for coping with the physical and emotional toll of postpartum recovery, so you can care for your newborn while also prioritising your well-being.
Intravenous iron therapy is a convenient and effective method for women to restore normal iron levels in the body. Drip Hydration, Injectafer, and Rockwell Medical professionals administer an at-home iron infusion, which quickly helps to relieve the symptoms of anaemia.
Another reason for dizziness could be the fact that you experience a drop in blood pressure after giving birth. This may happen because of a postpartum hemorrhage that depletes blood volume. The decrease in blood flow to the brain and other organs can cause dizziness, sweating, fatigue, a fast pulse rate, and other symptoms.
A blood transfusion may be necessary to increase blood and fluid volumes. Managing the symptoms of low blood pressure after going home may include drinking more water, making dietary changes, taking care when getting up from a sitting position, and getting enough rest.
How to deal with postpartum fatigue – Allow the anaesthetics to pass through the body after birth
An epidural anesthetic is often used for pain relief during labour and childbirth. It is a regional anesthetic that numbs the lower half of the body. If you’ve had a caesarian section and a general anesthetic where you were unconscious and unaware of the procedure, this could also be a cause of postpartum dizziness. Everyone has different reactions to anesthetics, and one of the side effects could be dizziness and feeling faint.
Side effects like dizziness and feeling faint that can occur after having anesthetics do not last very long and will usually pass within three to four days.
How to beat postpartum fatigue – How to sleep after giving birth
Fatigue is very common in the first few months after birth because of interrupted sleep and caring for your newborn.
You may be tempted to use the time when the baby sleeps to catch up on chores, but getting rest is more important. If only you could go to bed when you wanted to and follow a relaxing routine, like soaking in a hot bath! However, the reality is we have to get sleep where we can. Practicing good sleep hygiene involves paying attention to factors like caffeine and alcohol intake, exercise, bedroom temperature, light levels, and noise.
Exercising is often the last thing you want to do, but exercises geared towards mobility, for example, can help to reduce fatigue and give you more energy. You should try to get out for a walk with the baby every day, even if it’s a short one.
Loss of energy symptoms are worsened by stress, so you should try to relieve stress where you can. Asking others for help can be difficult, but it can help to reduce your stress levels. The phase when a baby wakes several times a night won’t last forever. Asking family members or friends to take care of the baby for an hour or two during the first few months can help you take a much-needed nap.
How to fight postpartum fatigue – Spot the signs of postpartum depression
Research3 indicates that women experiencing depression, anxiety disorders, sleep disturbances, and those breastfeeding face a heightened risk of postpartum fatigue. Recognising the signs of postpartum depression—such as feelings of sadness, loss of interest, excessive worrying, and panic attacks—is critical. Consult with a psychiatrist or look for psychiatry services for your worries, where treatments might include medications for heart palpitations and to balance hormone levels, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for postpartum anxiety symptoms, and counselling sessions tailored to address the unique challenges of postpartum mental health.
What is postpartum depression? Is it a disease?
If you feel tired all the time, you could have the baby blues. Symptoms might include insomnia, irritability, appetite loss, and difficulty bonding with the baby. If left untreated, the condition can persist for months.
It is important that you consult with a healthcare practitioner if you think you may have postpartum depression. Treatment for postpartum depression may include the use of antidepressants, hormone therapy, and counselling.
How to help postpartum fatigue – Dial up your nutrition
New mum exhaustion is very common as you tend to neglect your nutrition after birth. New mums are caught up in caring for their newborn and the fatigue makes it difficult to have the energy to make food. If you are an exhausted new mum, then it’s important to keep your blood sugar levels up, or it could contribute to feelings of maternal fatigue and not being able to cope.
It is hard to get in three square meals a day (or even five small ones) so prioritise a balanced diet of foods that are high in fibre, protein, iron and calcium when you can eat. You should also eat a rainbow of fresh fruits and vegetables and take a supplement in case you are missing out on valuable vitamins and minerals.
Having healthy snacks available, such as nuts, fruit, and vegetables, and constantly snacking throughout the day, can help maintain normal sugar levels. Drinking plenty of water throughout the day is also important, as dehydration can also result in fatigue and dizziness. Eating a bedtime snack can also help prevent blood sugar levels from dropping during the night. But if you experience extreme exhaustion after eating, it may be time to check whether there are other health conditions that may be the culprit. Consult your doctor to find out whether birth is the only reason for your extreme loss of energy.
Postpartum recovery takes time, and the postpartum period can be different for everyone. But when does postpartum fatigue go away? The answer is, it’s unclear. Your health, type of birth, and postpartum choices, as well as your lifestyle, all factor in when considering how to get rid of fatigue and weakness and therefore the below time markers are just a very loose suggestion.
Postpartum fatigue – 3 months
At 3 months postpartum exhaustion, “A small number of women develop inflammation of the thyroid gland called postpartum thyroiditis after giving birth. Sometimes this can lead to an underactive thyroid gland, also known as hypothyroidism. A lack of thyroid hormones is another cause of fatigue.”
“What causes postpartum fatigue? The rigors of labor and delivery, combined with too little sleep and the stress of caring for a newborn, can pack a powerfully exhausting punch and cause postpartum fatigue.”
“In the 6-month postpartum period, the level of fatigue was highest at 1 month and significantly decreased from 1–4 months postpartum. Primiparas showed a significantly higher level of fatigue than multiparas during hospital stay and their levels of fatigue more closely approximated the 1-month peak.”
“Fatigue is perhaps the most common form of impaired daytime functioning during the postpartum period. Between 40 and 60% of women report elevated fatigue during the first 18 months postpartum“
“Findings suggest that persistent fatigue may have a negative effect on performance outcomes for mothers and infants. Assessment for fatigue symptoms should be part of each nursing contact and interpreted as a pattern. Helping mothers choose methods of symptom relief and energy conservation can benefit both the mother and the infant.”
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9924869/
Postpartum fatigue and dizziness can be a common side effect of birth or it can be part of a health condition. Follow the above tips and if you are still suffering from postpartum fatigue and dizziness, then consult your doctor for a checkup.
FAQ
What can I do to cope with postpartum fatigue?
Other questions asked were:
How do you fix postpartum fatigue?
What can you do about postpartum fatigue and exhaustion?
NHS has some tips on how to cope with postpartum fatigue.
“Sleep when your baby sleeps. Try to rest when your baby sleeps. …
What if my postpartum fatigue isn’t getting better?
Please see the above for the general duration of postpartum fatigue and dizziness.
How long does postpartum fatigue last? I’m a breastfeeding mum 11 months postpartum. I feel tired for days, even the days when I do little housework. I work full-time outside the house. Is this common?
“Prolactin and oxytocin are two hormones that have everything to do with breastfeeding because they contribute to your breast milk production and letdown reflex. But you’ll notice that these hormones do more than just produce your milk. They might make you feel relaxed while breastfeeding — which can lead to drowsiness.”
“As a new mom, feeling tired is standard fare, but postpartum fatigue is a serious form of exhaustion that’s often coupled with a lack of energy and difficulty concentrating. It’s common, too: About 40 percent of new moms experience postpartum fatigue in the first week or so after delivery.”
I sleep and still feel tired. Waking up tired and no energy. Why?
“Plus add in the stress of caring for a newborn and the lack of sleep and it’s not surprising that the majority of women experience fatigue and exhaustion during the postpartum period. While some amount of sleep deprivation and fatigue is normal for all new parents, that doesn’t mean you have to suffer through it.”
What does it feel like to have postnatal postpartum depression, and how does one overcome it, especially when facing anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), or feelings of hopelessness?
Other questions asked were:
What are the signs of postpartum depression and how do you get over it without consulting a doctor?
What are some common postpartum symptoms?
“Depressed mood or severe mood swings.
Excessive crying.
Difficulty bonding with your baby.
Withdrawing from family and friends.
Loss of appetite or eating much more than usual.
Inability to sleep (insomnia) or sleeping too much.
Overwhelming fatigue or loss of energy.”
Overcoming these conditions often requires a multi-faceted approach, including lifestyle changes to manage stress and physical symptoms, engaging in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) with a certified therapist to address compulsions and excessive worrying, and possibly medication to adjust hormone levels and address iron deficiency. Understanding the risk factors, such as family history and previous experiences with miscarriage or stillbirth, can also guide treatment and support.
Is it possible to have postpartum depression immediately after giving birth while still in the birthing suite?
“Many cases of PPD do appear shortly after birth, due to the abrupt hormonal changes that take place once you deliver your baby — usually 4 to 6 weeks after birth. But for other women, symptoms of PPD can appear anytime within the first 18 months of their baby’s life.”
What will happen if postpartum depression is left untreated?
“Left untreated, post-partum depression can persist for months or years. Mothers with long-term undiagnosed post-partum depression may fail to connect with their babies, which can cause babies problems with eating and sleeping, as well as mental health and behavioral issues that can persist throughout their lifetime.
“Symptoms can include: hallucinations – hearing, seeing, smelling or feeling things that are not there. delusions – thoughts or beliefs that are unlikely to be true. a manic mood – talking and thinking too much or too quickly, feeling “high” or “on top of the world””
One study4 found evidence that high fatigue and postpartum depression remained separate but related experiences. Both depression and fatigue need to be carefully assessed to ensure accurate diagnoses. While depression intervention may improve fatigue, targeted fatigue intervention may also be required.
Can breastfeeding cause fatigue?
“It’s natural to feel tired in the postpartum period. Healing from childbirth, taking care of a newborn, producing breast milk, and breastfeeding every 2 to 3 hours requires a lot of energy.”
Factors associated with maternal postpartum fatigue: an observational study – BMJ Open medical review – https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/7/e025927
Related but different: distinguishing postpartum depression and fatigue among women seeking help for unsettled infant behaviours – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30253778/
*Collaborative feature post*
*Links marked with a ‘*’ are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you click through to buy, at no extra cost to you.
Top 5 cosmetic non-invasive procedures popular with mums
Motherhood can play havoc with your appearance, so mums look to cosmetic non-invasive procedures to help them feel good again. Not to be mistaken with invasive procedures like plastic surgery, non-surgical cosmetic procedures can be done quickly and safely with no need for going under the knife.
Beauty clinics like Absolute Cosmetics are just one place that offers these types of procedures so you can look and feel your best.
If you’re interested in undergoing a cosmetic procedure but are not ready for surgery, read on to learn about five of the most commonly requested non-invasive procedures at clinics today.
Soft tissue fillers
Dermal fillers are an effective way to reduce wrinkles by replenishing hyaluronic acid levels in the skin. They also help plump up areas where they have been injected by pulling moisture from surrounding tissues into the injection site. This can be done on both lips and faces and is a popular cosmetic treatment option for those seeking to reduce wrinkles and other signs of aging.
Botox
If you are looking for exceptional results, then other non-invasive methods of improving wrinkles are Botox injections, which are a popular cosmetic procedure among mums. Wrinkles around the eyes and on forehead are diminished due to Botox blocking muscle nerve signals.
Chemical peels
Chemical peels can offer some benefits, even though the name may not sound too appealing. With this procedure, a chemical solution is a non-invasive method to remove the outer layers of your skin to improve its texture and promote exfoliation. This is something that is often used by individuals who suffer from bad acne or those who want to achieve a more youthful appearance since it is much less invasive than other options that are available and don’t require a surgeon.
Cupping therapy
Another popular choice among non-invasive cosmetic treatments for mums is cupping therapy, which involves the use of suction cups to create a vacuum-like effect on the skin’s surface. Cupping therapy increases blood flow, promotes lymphatic drainage, and stimulates collagen production, resulting in firmer and smoother skin. Additionally, the benefits of cupping for cellulite reduction have made it a popular treatment option for those looking to improve the texture and appearance of their skin.
Hair removal
Getting rid of unwanted hair can be quite the hassle, but thanks to laser hair removal treatments, it’s now a breeze! Both men and women can get rid of unwanted hair quickly and easily, and with just a few visits to the clinic each year..
Liposuction
Liposuction has evolved over the years to become a less invasive treatment and more comfortable experience for patients. In the past, liposuction was a painful process that required anesthesia, pain management and a long recovery period with careful patient care. However, advances in technology have allowed clinics to replace traditional liposuction with a non-invasive medical procedure using non-invasive devices like laser liposuction, which is less painful and doesn’t require any recovery time.
Want to try something at home? Give yourself a mini facelift!
As you age, your skin will lose its elasticity in the lower part of your neck and face, especially when you experience that dreaded sleep deprivation and overall stress that comes with parenting. There are ways you can give yourself a mini facelift in as little as a few minutes per day. And, if you are considering surgery, make sure you consider some natural remedies that are not invasive to lift and tighten the skin below too.
What is a mini face Lift?
A non-surgical facelift is a non-invasive technique to firm, lift and tighten the facial skin and give your face a more youthful appearance through facial exercise, beauty masks, and various other facials. A surgical mini facelift involves techniques which are comparable to the Liftstyle Lift, S-Lift, Botox, eyelid surgery, or the Quick Lift. Additionally, booking an appointment with an eyebrows and lashes specialist through their scheduling system can really take years off your looks.
The main differences are that these surgical procedures are not as invasive or as expensive as a traditional facelift and use smaller incisions and stitches to minimise the scarring that appears.
Use a homemade natural face lift mask
Facelift masks may be the most natural, non-surgical way to get a natural lift on the face. Naturalfacecares.blogspot.co.uk list a range of Non-Surgical Face Lift Mask recipes you can concoct in the comfort of your own home.
Facial exercises
Facial exercises work to tighten the muscles behind the facial skin, just like working out your body makes you lean and toned. There are several internet sources that claim their series of facial yoga moves will help to tighten and firm up the skin. Danielle Collins, a renowned yoga expert, has come up with five facial exercises that claim to improve the face and neck after two weeks. After two to four months, you will notice less fine lines and tension on the face. The five exercises are:
1. The V – Good for dropping eyelids, crow’s feet, eye bags and puffiness
2. The Smile Smoother – Good for cheek lines and sagging skin
3. Smooth the brow – Good for horizontal forehead lines
4. The flirty eyes – Good for deep eye hollows and drooping eyebrows
5. The Giraffe – Good for lines and loose skin on the neck.
Is there non-invasive treatment to get rid of skin tags?
Skin tags, which are raised pieces of skin, are a common skin condition for many people. Some first-time moms discover skin tags on their breasts, although they don’t affect breastfeeding. Some people might have skin tags under their eyes, but the main places are under folds, including armpits, groin area and even on the neck.
Skin tags are harmless, but they may look and feel strange. The important point to note is that they aren’t cancerous or a sign of any other health problems, although people who suffer from obesity may be more likely to experience skin tags.
How do you get rid of skin tags?
You can’t just remove skin tags, but there are non-invasive and invasive ways to do it. Your doctor can cauterise the skin tag by burning it off with heat via electrolysis. Cryosurgery removes the skin tag using liquid nitrogen. Or you can use ligation, where you cut off the blood supply to the skin tag so it can be cut off.
If you’d rather treat it at home, you can purchase a skin tag remover. Most of these removers use natural ingredients that work well in sensitive areas.
More and more people are opting for the benefits of non-invasive procedures, and the demand for the above non-invasive procedure examples are increasing annually. As with anything, do your research and ask a professional questions to get the answers you need.
FAQ
What is the definition of non-invasive?
Other questions asked were, ‘What does non-invasive mean in medical terms?’, ‘What is non-invasive surgery?’, ‘What does non-invasive surgery mean?’ and ‘What does non-invasive procedure mean?’
The non-invasive definition means not involving the introduction of instruments into the body.
When was non-invasive surgery invented?
“The procedure was first performed in Britain in 1990. Its subsequent rapid diffusion throughout the profession signalled the entrance of minimally invasive techniques into general surgery.”
What is the difference between invasive and non-invasive procedures?
As you can define non-invasive as without the need for instruments in the body, invasive means using surgical instruments in the body as part of the medical procedure.
What is an example of an invasive procedure?
Other questions asked were:
What are some examples of invasive medical procedures?
What are non-invasive procedures?
What are non-surgical procedures?
Are there any non-invasive procedures?
What are invasive procedures?
What is non-invasive treatment?
Examples of invasive treatments include body contouring which aims to reshape an area of the body or hand surgery.
What is non-invasive imaging?
“Non-invasive simply means the body is not invaded or cut open as during surgical investigations or therapeutic surgery“
What is a non-invasive procedure for removing eye bags? I don’t want to go for blepharoplasty
“Non-surgical eye bag removal involves the use of a hyaluronic acid dermal filler, injected using a thin needle deep underneath the actual eye bag just above the orbital bone. With multiple puncture and threading techniques, the trough is then filled, lifting the under-eye area up.”
Is there a non-invasive procedure that won’t use implants to augment a woman’s breasts
“An auto breast augmentation lifts the breasts while simultaneously reshaping the breast tissue to create perkier and fuller breasts without implants. “The results are just as long lasting as a traditional breast augmentation without the risk of capsular contracture or rupture…””
“The non-invasive treatments get patients in and out of the doctor’s office quickly, with little post-op discomfort and minimal downtime. Even though you will not “go under the knife,” the anti-aging results from a non-surgical facelift are still significant.”
What is the best nonsurgical procedure to slim your face and turn it from round to oval
“Facial slimming is an effective non-surgical treatment used to help patients achieve a slimmer, more oval or v-shaped profile. It is ideal for people who want to reshape and slim down their face to help it look firmer and smoother.”
Which is better? Surgical or nonsurgical procedures?
Check this article for a good comparison between surgical and nonsurgical procedures.
Are there any nonsurgical procedures for tightening drooping skin that are actually effective
“Advanced ultrasound technologies like Ultherapy are highly effective at improving the overall strength and elasticity of aged skin. Ultherapy utilises harmless sound waves to restart the natural production and replication of collagen and elastin proteins.”
“In the cosmetic space, “non-surgical” treatments are otherwise known as “non-invasive”. Unlike “invasive” surgical treatments, these procedures do not involve the skin being cut or instruments being inserted into the body.”
Maternal childbirth injuries are a common occurrence, however, they range in severity from minor perineal tears through to serious complications such as prolapse and postpartum haemorrhage. Unfortunately, childbirth injuries are rarely talkemd about, meaning that many women are unprepared when it happens to them, which can have a severe impact on a woman’s mental and physical health. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the ways you can help to prevent tearing when giving birth, which is the most common trauma during birth.
How common is tearing during birth?
What are the chances of tearing during childbirth? And can you prevent tearing during birth? These are the questions that burn through pregnant women’s minds most if not during all of their pregnancy journey.
“Up to 9 in every 10 first time mothers who have a vaginal birth will experience some sort of tear, graze or episiotomy. It is slightly less common for mothers who have had a vaginal birth before. For most women, these tears are minor and heal quickly.”
I’ve had a tumultuous relationship with labour and birth. My first two were an emergency caesarean and a planned c-section so I didn’t experience any tearing. But, my third and fourth births were vaginal. I experienced a second-degree tear with an episiotomy with my third birth and no tearing at all (just grazes) during my 4th. And, yes, the aftermath is more difficult when you tear, but most of the time it’s fixable and even reversible. But, are there ways to prevent tearing during birth? And if so, how do you prevent tearing during birth?
I will lay down some tips on how to prevent vaginal tearing but first, we need to know about the differing levels of perineal tearing before we discuss how to prevent tearing during birth.
How many levels of tears are there?
There are four degrees of perineal tears which can involve the vagina, the labia, the cervix and the area between the vagina and the rectum. Most tears will heal without treatment but if you’ve suffered severe perineal trauma, you may experience prolonged pain and require treatment to heal.
First-degree perineal tears
A first-degree tear is the least severe of all the tears and involves just the perineal skin which is the skin between the vaginal opening and the rectum, and the tissue directly beneath the skin. First-degree tears heal on their own and during the healing process, you may experience stinging when you pee.
Second-stage perineal tear
Second-degree vaginal tears are when the skin and the muscle of the perineum tear during birth and may extend into the vagina. Second-degree tears generally require stitching and the healing process can last a few weeks. As with the first-degree tear, keeping the area clean and using a cold or warm compress to ease the stinging can help you to recover quickly.
Third-degree tear
A third-degree labour tearing extends into the anus’ muscle (anal sphincter) which requires an operation under anaesthetic. It may take longer than a few weeks to heal and complications such as faecal incontinence can occur.
Fourth-degree perineal tear
A fourth-degree tear during labour is the most severe of all perineal tears and extend right into the mucous membrane lining the rectum (rectal mucosa). Fourth-degree tears generally require a more specialised operation under anaesthetic and take longer than a few weeks to heal.
There are certain risk factors that come with fourth-degree tears like faecal incontinence and painful intercourse, therefore reducing perineal trauma as much as possible is a priority.
So what causes tearing during birth?
Vaginal tearing happens when the baby’s head coming through the opening is either too large for the vagina to stretch to accommodate or the vagina doesn’t stretch easily around a normal-sized head.
Is there any way to prevent tearing during labour?
9 out of 10 first-time vaginal births experience some tearing so how do women avoid tearing while giving birth? There are things you can do to reduce the risk of tearing and we will go through the most popular options now.
How to prevent tearing during delivery – getting your body ready to give birth
Giving birth is probably the most challenging thing your body will go through in your lifetime and deserves adequate recognition and preparation. Just as you wouldn’t turn up to the start line of a marathon with no training, ideally you don’t want to be turning up to the birthing suite of your local hospital entirely unprepared either.
While it’s true that your body and baby know what to do at each stage of labour, there’s a lot you can do to help your body and increase your chances of having a complication-free birth.
You should ensure that you’re in good shape before conception and throughout your pregnancy, by eating well and keeping up with your appointments and scans. Gentle exercises such as pregnancy yoga, walking and swimming can also help to prepare your body for labour and are one of the tried and tested techniques on how to avoid tearing during birth. You can also try doing gentle squats to help strengthen your muscles (but not if your baby is breech.) Breathing techniques, like those used in yoga, meditation or hypnobirthing can also help prepare you mentally, which has been shown to have an impact on birth outcomes.
How to prevent tearing during labour – get your baby into position
One of the major factors and probably a big part of what prevents tearing during childbirth is your baby’s position. For as smooth a delivery as possible, your baby should be in the occiput anterior (OA) position. This means that their head is down, and they are facing your spine. In this position, the smallest part of the baby’s head will travel through your pelvis first. This can help prevent issues such as the baby becoming ‘stuck’ and can reduce your risk of tears.
Many babies will get themselves into this position before birth without any help, however, there are a variety of things you can do to encourage your baby into the correct position. Towards the end of your pregnancy, try to ensure that when you’re sitting down, your knees are lower than your hips. So rather than sinking back into the sofa to watch TV, try sitting upright on a birthing ball instead, or kneeling forward with your elbows resting on a coffee table. Swimming is also great for this, as it tilts your pelvis forward, and gravity will do the rest!
How to give birth without tearing – get the correct aftercare
Unfortunately, even with careful planning in preventing tearing during labour, it’s still possible to suffer an injury during childbirth. If this happens to you, it’s important to remember that it isn’t your fault and you’re not alone.
Depending on the severity of your injury, you may recover quickly with proper aftercare and advice, or you may need input from other health professionals, such as a physiotherapist, for example. A small number of women may even require corrective surgery. If you feel that your care has been below standard and your injury was avoidable, then you may have a medical negligence claim and should talk to a specialist about what this might involve.
No matter what type of birth you’ve had or whether you sustain a birth injury, it’s possible to develop birth-related trauma. If you think this might apply to you, organisations such as the Birth Trauma Association may be able to help you on your path to recovery.
FAQ
Do all women tear while giving birth?
No, not all women tear but most do. So make sure you take the steps above to reduce your risks of tearing during birth.
I’m scared of tearing during birth. What can I do to overcome my fear?
It is quite normal to be fearful of tearing during birth due to the high statistic. But when asking yourself, can you prevent ripping during birth, look at the tried and tested techniques above and try them for yourself.
Listen to your body and push when your body wants to push, but also be mindful when your midwife tells you to stop pushing as they’re trying to prevent you from tearing too. If you can’t overcome your fear and it’s impacting your daily life, it’s important to speak to your midwife who can put you in touch with a specialist. They can talk through the process of birth and what to do to avoid tearing. Do not leave it alone.
How can you avoid tearing during a natural birth?
Another question asked was, ‘How can I prevent tearing during delivery?’ Please see the above advice which will help to reduce the risks of tearing during birth.
How can I avoid tearing during labour with a perineal massage?
Some hospital caregivers advise a perineal massage during the third trimester when discussing how to avoid tearing when giving birth. A perineal massage is a massage to the perineum, the skin between the vagina and the rectum to help strengthen and keep it intact during birth.
Do you know what to eat to prevent tearing during birth?
Giving birth to a large baby can increase your chances of tearing during birth, so it’s important to stick to the right foods when considering how to prevent perineal tearing during birth.
Are there any home remedies to prevent tearing during birth?
Yes, please see above for more information on these home remedies.
Are there any exercises to prevent tearing during birth?
“During pregnancy, pelvic floor exercises help with muscle control during labor and pregnancy and recovery afterward. Not only that, but women who paired perineal massages with a consistent kegel routine increased their chances of no tear at all from 6% to 17%.”
It is advised by medical experts that using olive oil to prevent tearing during childbirth can have successful results but can oil prevent tearing during labour when used by itself? The answer is not exactly. When used during a perineal massage it can become an effective and inexpensive way to help strengthen and improve your perineum so it is more able to tolerate the vigour of birth.
Can I use coconut oil to prevent tearing during labour?
Does coconut oil prevent tearing during labour? Massaging the perineal area with any moisturising oil, including coconut oil is effective when considering how to prevent tearing in labour.
What are your recommendations to prevent tearing during childbirth? I want to learn how to push during labour without tearing.
Read trusted resources on how to prevent tearing during birth, so you are fully prepared before you go into labour. This will help put you in a strong position to do the best you can to make it a positive birth for you. As mentioned above, it’s important to listen to your midwife/doctor during the pushing stage who will advise you when to breathe and when to push. And, if you do end up tearing during birth, know that you have a lot of aftercare out there to help you recover quickly and efficiently so you can concentrate on building a new life with your baby.
*Collaborative feature post*
The risks of bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 1 million women get bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy each year making it the most common cause of vaginal complaints in pregnancy. But its prevalence is low and most women are asymptomatic.
So why is it so common? This article will discuss bacterial vaginosis (BV) while pregnant and how women who are pregnant with BV treat this common pregnancy health issue. We will also talk about symptoms, treatment and disease control so you can enjoy a healthy pregnancy free from vaginal problems.
What causes Bacterial Vaginosis?
Bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy is caused by an overgrowth of the bacteria Lactobacillus and especially Gardnerella, which also play important roles in maintaining healthy vaginal flora. Bacterial vaginosis is characterised by a fishy or sour odour, frequent discharge, and a thin fluid-like yellowish film on the mucous membranes.
What is the risk of developing bacterial vaginosis during pregnancy?
The risk of developing bacterial vaginosis during pregnancy is low (at around 20%), but it is not clear how much the risk has changed now that douching is no longer recommended.
Douching is the process of intravaginal cleansing with a liquid solution to prevent or treat an infection. One study looked into the risks and benefits of douching because the act has been associated with many adverse outcomes including pelvic inflammatory disease, BV, cervical cancer, low birth weight, preterm delivery, human immunodeficiency virus transition, sexually transmitted infections, ectopic pregnancy, recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis and infertility.
The study found that more research needs to go into whether douching is a causal factor in diseases like BV or whether it is more common among those who are at risk of STDs. Perhaps there is an increased risk of adverse effects associated with douching if certain solutions are used.
How can you lower your risk of bacterial vaginosis during pregnancy?
Bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy is the most common cause of vaginal complaints, but the complications associated with untreated BV can be serious. Therefore, it is important to understand the risk factors, symptoms, and tests for the condition. Improving hygiene, reducing stress, and making lifestyle changes are the best ways to reduce the risk of BV.
BV while pregnant – symptoms
Bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy is characterised by a fishy or sour odour, frequent discharge, and a thin fluid-like yellowish film on the mucous membranes. The most common symptom for women in bacterial vaginosis when pregnant is a vaginal odour that differs from normal vaginal discharge.
Bacterial vaginosis discharge can be described as “fishy” or “sour.” It may also have a mild to strong salty or acidic smell. Other symptoms of BV in pregnant women include increased vaginal discharge, itching and burning during urination, and pain during sex.
Tests for bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy
The diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy is made by a thin, watery, yellow-green or grey discharge and a fishy odour. There are several tests for bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy: wet mount, vaginal pH, Gram stain, and KOH prep.
Bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy – treatment
Treatment for bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy can be treated with antibiotics. But this treatment will depend on the severity of the symptoms and the gestational age of the foetus. In most cases, there are no adverse outcomes associated with BV during pregnancy. However, if a pregnant woman does contract bacterial vaginosis, then treatment may be necessary to prevent complications.
If you are allergic to penicillin or tetracycline antibiotics then treatment should not be administered. If you have questions about bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy, you should consult your health care provider.
Overcoming any barriers to treatment
BV is treatable, although, there can be side effects from treatment methods. Therefore, it is important to research your options before deciding on one course of treatment and consult your doctor, as some treatments may work well for others with similar symptoms, but may not work for you.
Conclusion
Bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy is the most common vaginal infection in women of childbearing age. The symptoms are often mild and may not be noticeable. However, if you are pregnant, BV can pose pregnancy complications, such as preterm birth (having the baby before your due date). Thankfully, there are steps you can take to reduce your risk.
To reduce your risk of sexually transmitted diseases, maximise your prenatal care, including only having unprotected sex with your partner who has had a negative STD screening or uses birth control that does not contain hormones, such as an IUD or a NuvaRing. If applicable, reduce the number of sex partners, to minimise STD transmission.
Triclosan soaps and douching should also be avoided. In addition, always practice good hygiene by wiping from front to back and making sure not to wear tight-fitting clothes that may trap moisture. And if you are experiencing vaginal discharge, odours, or burning during urination, see your doctor as soon as possible to get treatment for bacterial vaginosis or other possible relevant issues.
FAQ
I can’t get rid of BV during pregnancy – what do I do?
Pregnancy bacterial vaginosis can be treated with antibiotics to kill off the bacteria. The antibiotic may be oral or a cream/gel that you put into your vagina. BV antibiotics are safe for your baby during pregnancy and they may help to reduce your risk for STIs.
How do you avoid recurrent bacterial vaginosis when you are trying to conceive?
To treat bacteria in the vaginal canal which may be pregnancy BV your doctor may prefer to prescribe Oral metronidazole (Flagyl for BV in pregnancy). Intravaginal metronidazole gel or intravaginal clindamycin cream are alternatives but less preferred.
What is the diagnosis for bacterial vaginosis?
Your doctor may examine the vaginal secretions to look for ‘clue cells’ which are a sign of bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy.
What could cause BV Bacterial Vaginosis?
BV results from an imbalance of ‘good’ and ‘harmful’ bacteria in the vagina. Having multiple sex partners and not using condoms can upset the normal balance of the bacteria in the vagina, which increases the risk of getting bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy.
Can birth control cause bacterial vaginosis?
“Hormonal birth control has not been shown to cause these infections, but for some women, it can change the pH balance of the vagina and make them more prone to overgrowth of yeast or Bacterial Vaginosis (BV.) Both can cause dryness, irritation and itching.”
“Although BV can be triggered by sex, having BV is not an STI (you can still get BV even if you have not had sex) and it doesn’t mean your partner is cheating or has passed something on to you.”
What antibiotics women should take during pregnancy?
The following antibiotics can be taken by pregnant women:
Penicillins, including amoxicillin (Amoxil, Larotid) and ampicillin.
Cephalosporins, including cefaclor and cephalexin (Keflex)
Clindamycin (Cleocin, Clinda-Derm, Clindagel)
Can men carry bacteria that infect women with bacterial vaginosis after they have been treated with antibiotics?
Men can’t get BV because the penis doesn’t contain the same delicate balance of bacteria, but they can pass on bacteria which can cause bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy because of a change in the vaginal bacteria balance and/or exposure to a new sexual partner.
I had an IUD inserted 3 weeks ago and my vagina has had an odour in the past week. Could there be something more going on than just the IUD?
“An IUD should never cause a weird smell, itching, redness, or other irritation. These are all signs of infection and should be checked out asap.”
Is bacterial vaginosis and a friable cervix that bleeds because of inflammation a sign for cervical cancer?
Friable means easily irritated, which makes the cervix prone to inflammation, bleeding, or tearing. BV can affect the cervix. It’s possible that BV and a friable cervix can clear up on their own, but if left untreated, it could lead to other health issues like infertility and possibly cervical cancer. If you have BV and a friable cervix, you should visit your doctor immediately for an accurate diagnosis and treatment.
What’s the best treatment for recurrent bacterial vaginosis BV?
“Antibiotics for bacterial vaginosis. Oral antibiotics are the first-choice treatment in pregnant women with BV. A full course of metronidazole tablets is the common treatment. Metronidazole is an antibiotic.”
Why would bacterial vaginosis symptoms persist through antibiotic treatment when doctors say I’m clear then later recur?
“Around a third of women who take antibiotic treatment for bacterial vaginosis (BV) find that the problem recurs within the next two to three months. Some strains of BV organisms may have resistance to some antibiotics. You should return to your healthcare provider and describe the problems you are having.”
Can the antibiotics of sulfamethoxazole treat bacterial vaginosis?
“Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole should be avoided, if possible, during the first trimester of pregnancy because of the antifolate effect associated with neural tube defects.”
What are the signs and symptoms of bacterial vaginosis?
Bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy signs include:
thin, grey, white or green vaginal discharge
foul-smelling ‘fishy’ vaginal odour
vaginal itching
burning during urination
How do I cure vaginal bacterial infections naturally without antibiotics?
Most women with BV can have a normal pregnancy and up to half of the cases resolve on their own. however, studies still show that having BV while pregnancy can increase the risk of preterm birth and having a low birth weight baby. There are some home remedies to treat BV but antibiotics can treat most cases. These are:
Use barrier protection when having sex
Urinating immediately after intercourse
Avoid scented vaginal products
Abstain from douching
Washing the vagina regularly
Wear breathable cotton underwear
Keep the vaginal area dry
Wash your hands before you touch your vagina
Taking probiotics like yoghurt, fermented foods, some cottage cheese and kefir
Garlic supplements
Please check with your doctor trying the above during pregnancy.
Can one treat bacterial vaginosis with dicloxacillin?
Dicloxacillin is a penicillin-type antibiotic and is used to treat a wide variety of bacterial infections. Dicloxacillin has been assigned to pregnancy category B by the FDA. It should only be given when need has been clearly established as there has been no controlled data relating to its use in pregnancies. Therefore, it is not recommended during pregnancy because it can affect tooth and bone development in your baby. Talk to your doctor about taking a different antibiotic for bacterial vaginosis.
How efficient are boric acid suppositories for treating bacterial vaginosis?
Please note Boric acid should not be taken during pregnancy and is toxic to the developing foetus.
“The cure rates with boric acid ranged from 40 to 100 percent.
This review, however, did not specifically focus on the bacteria that causes BV.
While these results are encouraging, more studies need to be done to confirm that boric acid is, in fact, an effective add-on treatment for BV.”
How should I take antibiotics to cure bacterial vaginosis?
A bacterial infection during pregnancy can be treated with antibiotic tablets or gels/creams to prevent preterm labour and ultimately premature birth.
Consult a medical professional for more information on BV in pregnancy and do not rely on the information in this article to diagnose yourself or someone else with BV.
*Collaborative feature post*
How to support your body through pregnancy with Mama Mio Skincare
*Sponsored guest post by Mama Mio*
Whether you’re trying, you’ve just found out you’re expecting, or you are preparing to push, you’ve definitely got lots on your mind right now, mama. From practical and logistical considerations to noting down questions for your next doctor’s appointment, or falling down those late-night Google holes… there’s so many questions, so much information, and so much to consider. Plus, every pregnancy is different – so where to begin?!
Here at Mama Mio skincare, we know how precious this time is, and whilst you’re preparing for your new arrival, we want to help you enjoy it. We’re committed to giving you one concern less – helping you take care of your skin during the 9-month str-e-tch. Whether you’re 8 weeks pregnant or in your 3rd trimester and about to pop!
We have over 15 years of pregnancy skincare expertise and unique, hydrating formulas to protect and support your skin throughout your pregnancy journey and beyond. From before bump all the way through to baby, Mama Mio skincare is here to support you every step of the way.
We’ll support your health as you’re trying for and growing your Miniwith Mama Mio Skincare
Are you ready to start a family, mama? We want to be there for you on your journey towards a healthy, happy pregnancy. Besides cutting out alcohol, too much caffeine and smoking, it is recommended by the NHS that you should take 400 micrograms of folic acid every day as soon as you try for a baby all the way until your 12th week of pregnancy. In fact, research shows that having a good amount of folic acid in your bloodstream during the time of conception can help to reduce the risk of your baby having neural tube defects such as spina bifida.
That’s why we created our Pregnancy Gummies, designed to support you when trying for a baby all the way through to bump! Our delicious, vegan-friendly and sweet-berry flavoured gummies are packed with 8 essential pregnancy vitamins and minerals including 400mcg* folic acid to increase maternal folate status, vitamin C and Vitamin D3*. Included in one super tasty, easy to take gummy, they are the perfect daily dose to give your baby the absolute best possible start in life!
*Recommended by the UK Department of Health to be supplemented when pregnant.
We’ll nourish and protect your body for the 9-month stretch and beyond
Trusted by mamas globally, we know that your skin can change a lot during pregnancy. From stretch marks to sore boobs, itchy legs and swollen ankles, we know pregnancy can be tough on your skin and we pride ourselves on providing it with the care it deserves, every step of the way. From our iconic, nourishing Mama Mio Tummy Rub Butter and Rub Oil to our soothing and cooling Lucky Legs Cooling Gel, we create products designed to support and protect your skin no matter how it’s feeling.
We use the highest quality ingredients and have packed all of our products full with 100% natural plant-based actives and our unique Omega Rich Skin Stretch Complex that deeply nourish, hydrates, elasticises and is clinically proven* to help prevent stretch marks. Our products have been specifically developed to be suitable for pregnant, post-partum and breastfeeding mamas and they’re also vegan, cruelty-free and use 100% natural fragrances.
Our mamas are at the centre of everything we do. Our pregnancy products are dermatologically tested and supercharged with soothing formulas and natural fragrances that are safe for both mama and baby. In our commitment to treading gently on the planet, we source our packaging sustainably and responsibly to help protect our future generations!
We’ll help you prepare to push
We know that birth can be daunting, but we’re here to help you prepare to push, push, push! In your 3rd trimester (from weeks 34-36 in pregnancy) mamas are advised to massage their perineum 1-2 times per week with an oil that is safe to use in this delicate area, to help make your perineum more flexible and able to stretch more easily during birth to help prevent tearing.
Our Push Partner (see what we did there?) Perineum Oil has been expertly formulated with a blend of 100% natural nourishing oils including Coconut Oil, Sweet Almond Oil, and Rosehip oil to help mama relax, making the massage process easier. Supercharged with our iconic Omega Rich Skin Stretch Complex, our Push Partner Perineum Oil is clinically proven* to help increase skin’s elasticity and help to keep your skin supple and ready to str-e-tch when the time comes to meet your little bundle of joy! Packed full of plant-based actives to deliver results you can both see and feel, this fragrance-free formula is perfect for mamas with sensitive skin and delicate noses.
*Independent clinical trial
We’ll create moments as you bond with your Mini
For over 15-years Mama Mio has nourished, supported, and protected Mama-to-be skin throughout the 9-month str-e-tch and beyond to give you pregnancy-safe support for strong, healthy skin. From breastfeeding safe nipple and boob creams to hydrating body lotions for dry skin, we have extended this love and care to your little ones with our new baby skincare range Mini Mio that brings parents and little ones together for moments of bonding. From connecting at changing times to building bonds and bedtime, we’ve designed each product to help you connect with your baby.
Made from premium ingredients derived from Mother Nature and our new Skin Nurturing Omega Complex, you can trust our baby skincare products to nourish, soothe, calm and protect even the most sensitive baby skin. Charged with plant-based ingredients and nourishing oils, Mini Mio skincare is vegan, cruelty-free, Paediatrician approved and safe for babies. From gently cleansing body washes to comforting bum balms, hydrating face and body lotions and sensorial Bath Bubbles, we have a product to help you care for every single mini moment in the day.
Whether you’ve just found out you’re pregnant, about to push or are looking for baby-safe skincare for your little one.
*Links marked with a star are affiliate links which means Motherhood Diaries may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you should you click through to buy the products
Pelvic floor exercises for pregnancy
You have probably heard that pregnancy and pelvic floor muscles (also known as your Kegels) go hand in hand but do you know where your pelvic floor muscles are located in your body and what they actually do? Do you also know why it’s important to practice your pelvic floor exercises for pregnancy – and any time in your life for that matter? Well, do not fear because below is all the information you need to make sure you have a super strong pelvic floor by doing your pelvic floor exercise in pregnancy, so you don’t experience any ooops moments.
What is the pelvic floor and how to find your pelvic floor muscles?
Your pelvic floor muscles are the banana hammock style layer of muscles that support your pelvic organ area and span from your pubic bone to your coccyx. The image below from https://www.continence.org.au shows your pelvic floor muscles in red.
The main reason why Kegel exercises are important is that your pelvic floor muscles help your bladder to retain urine until you can go to the toilet. In essence, your pelvic floor supports your bladder, bowel and uterus.
Why are your pelvic floor muscles important during pregnancy?
It’s important to know why performing Kegel exercises help to strengthen pelvic floor muscles, so you make time to do them every day. When you sneeze your inner ab muscles – or transversus abdominus – contracts involuntarily in a forward and backward motion, which then compresses the abs and helps you to push during labour. The main pelvic floor muscle – the pubococcygeus – lies in a figure of eight around the urethra, vagina and rectum.
Having a weak pelvic floor makes it hard for you to squeeze those muscles and sphincters at the bottom of the bladder and this is when you may accidentally leak urine during a cough, sneeze or exercise (stress incontinence). So learning how to do pelvic floor exercises when pregnant not only reduces the risk of urinary incontinence which is a common side effect of childbirth, but also increases your mental health, which most women who have a weak pelvic floor often say is in decline due to accidental leaks.
Your pelvic floor also affects your sex life because you end up feeling less sensitivity in your vagina. Doing just a few pregnancy pelvic floor exercises every day can keep your pelvic floor strong for the rest of your life, even during menopause when hormonal changes are known to cause a weak pelvic floor too.
What are Kegel exercises and how to do your pelvic floor exercises for pregnancy?
You don’t need expensive equipment or gym clothing to exercise your pelvic floor muscles. In fact, the best pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy can be done anywhere and, if done correctly, no one will know that you’re doing them! Here are some pelvic floor and stomach exercises in pregnancy that you can do at home, at work, in the car, or anywhere for that matter!
This pelvic floor exercises for pregnancy video below by HARTMANN Direct shows you how to how to practice Kegel exercises for pregnancy:
https://youtu.be/T4nITptaA78
Sit, stand or lie in a comfortable position
Squeeze and lift your pelvic floor muscles by imagining your are stopping wind from your back passage, then stopping the wee from the front
Pull these two points in and up together
Hold the contraction for 10 seconds, then relax for a few seconds
Do four sets of 10 contractions every day for best results and to create length Strength and balance in your pelvic floor
Hold your stomach in for stomach muscle exercises without putting strain on the baby
When should I do my pelvic floor exercises for pregnancy?
You will start to see an improvement in your ability to hold urine if you strengthen your pelvic floor muscles every day. Keep them up, and it will be possible to regain complete bladder control the more your pelvic floor muscles get stronger.
You can practice your pelvic floor muscles everywhere, including when you’re in the car. Just remember to do it everyday for maximum results.
FAQ
What happens if you don’t do pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy?
Other questions asked were:
Are pelvic floor exercises good for pregnancy?
Why should I do pelvic floor exercises?
Is pelvic floor exercises good during pregnancy?
Why do pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy?
If you don’t do your pelvic floor exercise during pregnancy then your pelvic floor muscles are under a lot of strain and become weaker. There is also a chance of pelvic organ collapse where organs in the pelvis bulge into the vagina and cause pain and discomfort. Pelvic floor strength is very important.
Sign up here to get your personalised pregnancy week delivered straight to your inbox and a FREE pregnancy pack!
Do you have any pelvic floor exercise tips for pregnancy?
Other questions asked were:
How do I do my pelvic floor exercises for a fitter pregnancy?
How do I do pelvic floor exercises for pregnant women?
What are the best exercises to lengthen and strengthen your pelvic floor?
How and when should I do pelvic floor exercises?
How to perform pelvic floor exercises for pregnancy?
Can you do pelvic floor exercises while pregnant?
Do you need to do pelvic floor exercises when pregnant?
Should you do pelvic floor exercises while pregnant?
How to do pelvic floor exercises for pregnancy?
Should you do pelvic floor exercises when pregnant?
What are pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy?
To do your pelvic floor exercises for pregnancy, you close up your bottom as if you’re trying to stop yourself from peeing and at the same tie draw in your vagina as if you’re gripping your tampon or period cup to stop the flow of urine. Do this exercises quickly at first, by tightening and releasing the muscles immediately and then do slow squeeze pelvic floor exercises and imagine pelvic floor like an elevator.
When is the best time to do pelvic floor exercises?
Other questions asked were:
When should you start doing pelvic floor exercises in pregnancy?
How many pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy should I do?
When to start pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy?
How do you prepare a pelvic floor for pregnancy?
Should I do pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy 3rd trimester?
The best time to do your pelvic floor pregnancy exercises is as soon as possible to prepare for labour. The sooner you do it the stronger your pelvic floor will be during labour, the less likely you will have leaky moments after birth.
You can also use a pelvic floor exercises pregnancy app which offers timed reminders to complete a Kegel exercise for pregnant women.
Have you got a list of exercises to avoid in pregnancy?
Avoid exercises exercises which carry a high risk of falling and causing injury to you and/or your baby, like gymnastics, skating, horse riding and cycling. Stick to gentle exercises like walking which is a favoured pregnancy exercise to stay fit and healthy.
How does pregnancy affect the pelvic floor?
Other questions asked were:
Do pelvic floor exercises help with pregnancy?
What are the symptoms of weak pelvic floor during pregnancy?
What do pelvic floor exercises do for pregnancy?
Can pelvic floor exercises affect pregnancy?
How can I strengthen my pelvic floor muscles?
What is pelvic floor muscle training?
Can I do pelvic floor exercises?
Are pelvic floor exercises safe during pregnancy?
Your pelvic floor muscles work harder during pregnancy which is why it’s important to do pelvic exercises for pregnancy. To strengthen the pelvic floor during pregnancy follow the tips above and start ASAP to prevent a weakened pelvic floor.
What are pelvic tilt exercises?
Pelvic tilts in pregnancy strengthen your abdominal muscles. You lie on your back on the floor and bend your knees. Flatten your back against the floor by tightening your abdominal muscles and bending your pelvis slightly. Hold for 10 seconds and then repeat.
I’ve heard that a tight pelvic floor can cause incontinence and diastasis recti. Is this true?
Tight muscles can cause too much tension in the pelvic floor which increases pressure on the bladder. This increase can lead to urge incontinence which is when you feel a sudden and very intense urge to go to the toilet and you can’t delay or urine will come out.
Does a strong pelvic floor help with labour?
Your pelvic floor should be strong to support the weight of the uterus during pregnancy. But it also needs to relax to let the baby through during delivery.
To relax the pelvic floor in preparation for labour deep squats can help to relax and lengthen the pelvic for muscles and stretch the perineum. Slowly squat down as far as you can go with your hands pressed together in front of you. Speak to your doctor about doing deep squats during pregnancy and before labour.
What is pelvic floor physical therapy like?
If your pelvic floor is very weak or damaged then physical therapy can help to restore or improve your pelvic floor through a series of exercises to stretch the muscles and improve coordination and mobility.
