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The First 30 Days

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I call it “the first 30” because it’s like a sentence given in a courtroom.  No matter how you try to avoid it, whatever plea you make to ease the verdict, every new mom must endure the first 30.  There are no lawyers at your side to cut you a deal, nor special treatment for good behavior. You can’t avoid it.

The first 30 days of a new mom’s life are a haze of pain killers, pads, diapers, breastmilk, bottles, catnaps, tears of joy and pain, and that desperate, unquenchable need for sleep.  No one mentioned you’d feel like you’d been hit by a truck as you negotiate your way through physical torture and a hormonal roller coaster.  No manual or guide can prepare you for this time.

Though you may never regain your memory of the first 30 days of delusion (otherwise, we wouldn’t keep procreating), here are a few tips to get you through this tumultuous time, naturally:

•   Go Fishing:  Pregnancy depletes a woman of her omega’s, potentially causing anxiety and depression.  Fish is the best natural source of DHA and EPA.  Salmon, cod, sardines, anchovies, albacore tuna, herring and mackerel are your best sources of these essential fats.  Omega-3 supplements will also increase brain and eye function, elevating mood and ability to focus.  Check with your doctor before starting any supplements while breastfeeding.

•   Support Staff: This can include a mother, friend, sister or hired help.  Plan your postpartum supports during pregnancy.  No man was designed to change diapers, get your water, cook for guests (god forbid the people who show up for a meal without bringing the food!!!), do laundry, soothe a baby and wipe your tears.  Even the best of husbands will fall short.

•   Waterworks: Not your tears, though there will be many, but drinking WATER, which along with your little bundle, is the gift of life. Dehydration causes decrease in breastmilk, trouble sleeping, and irritability...to name a few things. Grab a glass of purified water and guzzle whenever you get a chance.  Tip: Add lemon for flavour and to decrease inflammation (of all your bits).

•   Deep Breaths: Not to curb a tantrum - but real deep breaths of clean fresh air.  Even if you stand on your front porch and breathe, taking deep inhalations will calm your nervous system and increase energy. Yoga and meditation breathing provide both results and can decrease your chance of postpartum depression.

•   Yes, Yes, Yes: Now that’s what got you into this mess in the first place!  Accept help whenever it is offered. As mothers we try to be super heroes, but there is nothing to prove while you recover from your most heroic act to date.  When asked what you need from a giving friend or relative, tell them to pick up groceries, make you some tea... this will be the gift you remember most.

•   Zzzzzzz’s:  All the books say, “sleep when your baby sleeps”.  Sleep produces human growth hormone, which aids in bone and muscle recovery and enhances mood and energy levels.  Sleep also staves off cortisol, the stress hormone which increases fat storage.  Give the baby to your support staff and snooze.  Use calming essential oils, (i.e. lavender, chamomile, neroli, sweet marjoram) to improve your quality of sleep.

•   Babymoon: Remember your honeymoon? A time for you and your partner to cocoon, get to know each other, whisper sweet nothings?  Why should this be any different?  Get to know your baby.  Turn off the phones, ban all visitors and get cozy in your bed with your old and new babes.

•   Get Physical: Not the Olivia Newton John “Physical,” but the postpartum you physical.  Even if all you can muster is a walk around the block, endorphins produced by exercise brighten mood and increase energy.  Get the clear from your doc before engaging in any cardiovascular or strength exercises and abdominal work (especially for post C-sections). 

•   Let Go:  This is the best advice that a new mom can take.  Let go of expectations.  Let go of laundry piling up, tubs that need scrubbing and thank you notes that need writing.  Do not let go of the things that make you feel human, like a shower, clean hair, brushed teeth or a cup of herbal tea. 

Once the veil of the first 30 has lifted you will begin to see and feel the miracle of what you have accomplished.  Then all you have to get through is the next thirty...years!!


Julie Watson
~is the owner of AfterGlow Health & Fitness, specializing in Pre and Postnatal fitness. With 3 children to keep up with, Julie strives to stay helathy, stong and sane, naturally.
www.afterglowtoronto.com

 


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