By Sangeetha Saran and Faye Martins
What should you know about managing your stress as a new parent? Even the most practiced yoga enthusiast may feel a little bit of tension when welcoming their beloved new child into the world. After all, not only is this one of the biggest joys anyone can experience but welcoming a new member of the family is also a colossal responsibility. Some might say that if you didn’t feel a little nervous, you either hadn’t grasped the enormity of your life change or perhaps you’re much more resilient than most.
Either way, not only will learning the skills of parenthood now be relevant, but keeping your inner balance and peace, too. The practice of yoga is often a good parallel to this because the stretches and poses we undertake can provide tension to our body, through that stress we can learn to be still and mindful.
In this post, we believe that providing some healthy advice through those principles can potentially help free you of the stress of chronic worry in new parenthood. Of course, if it at all feels like the process is becoming too much, it’s healthy to speak to a medical professional who can more readily accommodate your needs going forward.
With that in mind, please consider this stress-free guide to help unlock your inner calm, despite raising a brand new and wonderful human being:
Find Your Morning Balance While Managing Your Stress
It’s true that one of the biggest lacks of any parent’s life is that if good quality sleep. But you may also find that waking up at the last possible moment of your morning and rushing to get everything done can feel just as dizzying. That’s why it’s essential to find some morning balance and peace if you can, though don’t worry if you struggle to do this perfectly on a daily basis.
Also, figure out what that means to you. It may just be about grabbing a quiet cup of tea while the house is still silent, or doing a few gentle stretches or yoga poses before the day kicks in. There’s often an idealized version of the parent we think we should be, but you don’t have to abide by that all the time. True enough, getting up just half an hour before the baby might sound tough, but it creates a little bubble of calm that can set the tone for the whole day and help you feel a little less fragmented.
Spread The Responsibility With Your Partner
Of course, it would be inappropriate for us to avoid telling you to share the load. Now, not all parents have partners to help them, so asking for help from your loved ones or friends can be important too. If you do, then sharing the load makes your morning and daily tasks more manageable.
What should you share? Well, everything, but especially related to sleep, for instance splitting the night feeds, while others divide up the day based on who’s good at what and who can provide time for a nap. The exact setup doesn’t matter as much as making sure both parents feel like they’re in it together. A quick chat now and then about how things are working will ensure you feel more connected and united.
Adapt To Your Circumstances When Managing Your Stress
If there’s one word that absolutely wouldn’t describe bringing a baby into the world, it would be “convenient.” You can almost kiss the concept of convenience goodbye the moment you bring your bundle of joy home from the hospital. This means that being flexible makes life so much easier with a new baby.
Keep in mind that every baby comes with their own little quirks and needs, so what works for one family might not work for another. Sometimes the house won’t be spotless, and sometimes dinner might be a takeaway or takeout, and that’s perfectly fine. Do what you can and where you can. You might have a decision tree, unwritten but still in your mind. First, your baby’s wellbeing, then your wellbeing, then the wider financial responsibilities you have, then perhaps your time back at work, then the house care and other chores.
This means that no matter what you’re up to that day, you always have that priority listing to keep you moving in the right direction and feeling your best, to the degree that you can.
Understand Potential Safety Hazards In Your Home and Manage Them Ahead Of Time
Of course, no usual residential household is going to be perfectly primed for a baby unless you deliberately make it so. Thankfully, babies aren’t mobile to begin with, it takes time for them to learn how to use their hands and legs to get around. But that doesn’t mean they can’t exert themselves or try to interact with their environment.
For example, putting in cabinet locks and covering outlets can be done during calmer moments, rather than rushing around when baby starts crawling. Going through one room at a time helps keep things manageable as you take them there, for instance, putting up a baby gate at the top and bottom of your stairs when they begin crawling can help. Also, looking for official parental advice such as asking when can a baby sleep on their stomach, will help you understand what behaviors to consider safe and which to gentle discourage.
Also keep in mind other household management needs and possible threats, such as cats, who have been known to jump into cots and sit on babies thanks to their warmth, which can be quite dangerous for the child. A door closer can be a good investment. Care for your home, and you won’t have to continually stress out about the hidden threat you didn’t see, which can be on the mind of parents dealing with somewhat higher levels of anxiety.
Prepare For Developmental Milestones, But Don’t Worry If They Take Longer
Babies often do things in their own sweet time, as some are quick to crawl but take ages to walk, others might skip crawling altogether and start sprinting around your household like a long-distance runner, or at least it feels that way.
The same goes for talking – some babies chatter away early while others take their time finding their words – often the more words are spoken in the household, from older siblings etc, the more quickly they can adapt.. Those milestone charts are just rough guides though and not strict rules. If something seems off, that’s what doctors are there for, but most of the time things work out just fine – so try not to overthink it.
Don’t Fret About Your Competence As A Parent
Any parent will tell you that they didn’t bring a child into the world as an expert on parenting already. Even carers, nurses, and teachers can find themselves woefully unsure when they have their own child because it’s just different being responsible for someone in this way.
As such, it’s healthy to remember that parenting skills grow naturally as you go along. Everyone starts out feeling a bit lost sometimes and it’s totally normal. Making mistakes is just part of figuring things out. If you spiral into worry or comparison about that, however, that’s when your peace is lost and when you begin to feel a little less comforted by the process. Just remember that each day brings new chances to learn what works best for you and your baby. The confidence builds up bit by bit, often without you even noticing.
So if it all feels too much tonight, maybe after a good (enough) sleep and room to think again in the morning, you’ll feel completely different. This kind of soft reassurance isn’t given to new parents enough, and so we hope this can provide something of a warm and heartfelt focus to you.
Options for Managing Your Stress
Stress is not easy to deal with, but when it becomes chronic, it can feel like you’re constantly drowning. Even treading water becomes difficult and you find yourself wanting to be tugged under, if only to stop having to fight all the time. Stress can drain you emotionally, physically, and mentally, but there are plenty of natural things that you could use to help you to get out of that hole.
We all know that stress is just part and parcel of life when you are busy and you’re working and you’re trying to make life better for yourself. There are also hemp and CBD products that are available to you if you need a way to dispel anxiety. Additionally, finding the most natural ways to stay calm isn’t always easy, and it can be very overwhelming to figure out what really will work for you. Below, we’ve put together a list of the most natural ways that you can help yourself to feel calmer.
1. Proper sleep.
If you want to maintain your brain health and reduce your stress levels, then you need proper sleep. It’s critical for your stress management and for your brain health. People who have insomnia tend to have lower levels of melatonin, and that plays a huge role in stress reduction. If you make sleep a better priority and establish a bedtime routine that doesn’t involve screen time but does involve uninterrupted sleep, you’ll feel much better for it.
2. Eat Whole Foods.
There’s plenty of evidence to show that a diet that is rich in omega-3 fatty acids and low in saturated fat can really help to reduce your stress. With a focus on consuming Whole Foods such as nuts, seeds and leafy greens, you’ll be able to fuel your body and your brain. These nutrients can make a big difference to your ability to calm yourself down.
3. Monitor your electrolytes.
When you’re working out in the gym, you need to stay hydrated, but you also need to replenish your electrolytes if you’re going to be sweating a lot. You can track your potassium, calcium, sodium and other magnesium intakes by knowing your health numbers, so speak to your doctor and find out what levels are at the moment and then you can work forward from there. Dehydration can exacerbate stress levels and you need your brain to function optimally, so you need electrolyte rich fluids to help to replenish any minerals that you lose.
4. Get personal with your exercise.
Speak to a personal trainer to see whether they can help you with a plan for yoga, hiking, weight lifting, or even just walking. Exercise is an absolute stress buster, so if you focus on finding an activity that’s going to work for you, you can personalize your fitness routine to include it. This will help to promote a long term commitment.
Feeling calm is not the easiest thing to do when you’re under an immense amount of stress, but with these tips, you should get there faster.
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Yes, self-care is important for new parents as a coping mechanism for stress management, particularly during the tumultuous early months of parenthood. The transition to caring for a newborn can be overwhelming, characterized by sleepless nights and the incessant demands of an infant. In this context, self-care emerges not merely as a luxury but as an essential practice that enables parents to replenish their emotional and physical resources.
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