The moment a child is born, a mother is born too. She never existed before. The women existed but not a mother. A mother is something completely new.
We all imagined what becoming a mum would look like, we have 9 months to do nothing but think right? Imaging that first encounter with our baby, what kind of mum you are going to be, all those things you will and definitely will not do as a parent, what your relationship with your partner, friends and family will look like.
Regardless of how many people we talk to, how many books we read or how much time you spend thinking about it, nothing will ever really prepare us for the rollercoaster that is to come – the rollercoaster of motherhood as I like to call it.
If we think firstly about the huge physical demands that are placed on a woman’s body throughout pregnancy and labour. Many women are left to cope with:
traumatic labour experiences
1 in 3 women will experience urinary incontinence after having a baby
50% of women who have had children have some degree of symptomatic or asymptomatic pelvic organ prolapse. (Hagen & Stark 2011).
1 in 10 women will have pain during sex after childbirth.
These physiological stressors on the body can have a huge impact on our mental health, particularly as there is currently little after care provided to new mums to deal with these issues.
If we then throw sleep deprivation, hormonal and emotional changes into the mix, caring for a new baby can be pretty tough. It can leave you:
· Feeling Overwhelmed – Why can’t I handle this?
· Feeling Isolated – Am I the only one that feels like this?
· Feeling Insecure – the fear of failure – of not being a good mum
· Feeling a loss of sense of self – Who am I?
We are here to tell you that you are not alone, however without the right support and without some vital self care it can often feel impossible to cope. Self-care is not selfish, it is about survival. We can all feel guitly for wanting to take a little time for ourselves.
I love my baby so much but why am I longing for just a little bit of my old life back
I love that my body just grew and nurtured a new life but why am I so desperate for my old body back.
I love my new life, I love being a mum but why do I feel so lost?
Any of these feelings resonate with you? It's no suprise that the physical and emotional changes we go through in becoming a new mum can affect so many of us mentally, leaving us feeling lost, sometimes fllled with anxiety and feeling down.
What if there was something that could help you to alleviate this? Exercise!
Researchers from the University of Birmingham examined data from 13 trials including 1,734 women.
Their study, published in the British Journal of General Practice, concludes that exercise - either in group sessions, or individually - is effective in reducing postpartum depressive symptoms.
Exercise is one of the most effective and quickest ways of improving mental health. Prioritising some time for your own health is just as important as prioritising your baby’s health as after all, a happy mumma = a happy bubba.
Consistent exercise will:
· Relieve stress
· Reduce feelings on anxiety
· Help clear your head
· Help you to feel more energised
· Help you to regain body confidence
· Help you to feel strong and happy in your body again
· Give you the opportunity to challenge your body and mind particularly if trying something new
· Give you a social outlet and some mental sanity
· Give you an hour to just be you – not a mum, not a wife/partner, not a work colleague – just you!
Exercise and getting back into a regular training regime helped us both enormously after the birth of our children and without it we wouldn't be where we are today and in a career that we absolutely adore. It's become our mission to help other mums just like us.
Torz & Sarah x
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