Post-natal health

Although having a baby is a wonderful experience, for many it can turn your whole world upside down. It can be an exhausting and lonely experience, especially in those first weeks and months. Lockdown can accentuate these feelings even more.

So here are some tips on how to stay healthy after you have had a baby, pertinent to lockdown but valid at any time really!

NB these are general tips from my own reading and personal experience as a mother of two and a GP. They are not meant as personal medical advice.

• Sleep: sleep deprivation can be cumulative. It’s important to listen to your body and rest when you can. Nap while your baby naps (as long as she is in a safe place). Ask for help wherever possible to allow you to have a nap. It’s amazing how much a few hours good sleep can invigorate you! In the first few weeks after birth your body is still healing and recovering, so this is more important than ever

• Eat: feeling tired and breastfeeding can both make you feel more hungry than usual. This can make you want to reach for high energy snacks or junk food. Although breastfeeding requires 200-300 calories a day, which means you shouldn’t restrict your diet too much, eating healthy nutritious food is as important as ever. Eating well will also help boost your energy and mood. Lots of vegetables and whole grains in your meals, drink plenty of water (especially if breastfeeding) and avoiding too much caffeine or alcohol all help. It’s the basis of any healthy diet! Keeping healthy snacks to hand also helps stave off junk food cravings.

• My personal favourites include:

  • roast spiced chickpeas,

  • apple with nut butter,

  • dates stuffed with nut butter and drizzled in dark chocolate,

  • unsalted pistachios,

  • sugar free oat banana cookies,

  • homemade granola with yogurt,

  • air popped popcorn with your choice of toppings.

• Talk: being a new parent can be isolating. It’s such a change going from being independent and perhaps working or socialising daily, to looking after a small creature 24 hours a day who is completely dependent on you. Baby groups, children’s centres, baby classes, antenatal groups and friends and family all used to provide the essential support for new parents. During lockdown, this can be an especially challenging aspect of parenting. There is no help from relatives, no cups of tea with other sleep deprived mums, no comparing stories of midnight nappy disasters in the playground. However, keeping in contact with others, especially family and other new parents, can help you feel socially connected. Somehow talking helps it all feel more normal and feeling connected makes you feel less alone. Some examples of how to maintain social connections in lockdown include: check out your local council library for online nursery rhyme sessions, weekly zoom with an antenatal group, weekly FaceTime with a family member or close friend, WhatsApp group chat with close friends/family/other new parents, online classes for babies eg on happity.com.

• Move: after you have a baby your body needs time to recover. Everybody is a bit different in that respect, and so every individual’s body will take a different amount of time to be ready to be physically active.

However, there are some important steps to take from early on.

1. Pelvic floor exercises: if you have done these during pregnancy you might feel like a pro. Continuing with the new routine of a baby might seem daunting, but it is so worth it in the long term. There are apps available to help remind you what to do (eg squeezy), but like any healthy habit, getting into a routine so that they become a natural part of your day is a sensible goal. Health visitors and midwives usually explain what to do, after you have had your baby. You may have a physio assessment in hospital if you had a particularly traumatic birth, although it is quite rare. Assessment by a women’s physiotherapist, if you can access one, could help to teach you the correct skills and help prevent future problems with urinary incontinence. If you can’t, don’t worry, just keep practicing those pelvic floor exercises! If you have concerns, you can discuss it with your GP at your 6-8 week check and they may be able to refer you if required. If you have had major tears, you may be referred to a specialist clinic to assess your pelvic floor, from the hospital itself.

2. Exercise: after giving birth, your joints are very flexible for some months, due to a hormone called relaxin. Therefore, it is important to have a graded return to exercise, to avoid damaging any joints. This is also the case if you have had a Caesarian. Many new mothers ask if it is ok to return to exercise at the 6-8 week GP check. Although for many it will be time, it is very individual and different factors need to be taken into account. Starting with gentle activity in the first few weeks after birth, such as walking and pushing the buggy, can then gradually be stepped up. Post natal specific exercises can help build core muscles and protect healing diactesis recti. Again, in some cases a physiotherapist can help aid the transition with proper assessment and advice. Carifit is a great example, since they have free physio modules which they recommend you watch before doing any actual workouts. Postnatal yoga and Pilates are also good introductions to physical activity and cultivate an awareness of your own body, which is essential in protecting it during the many phases of change it had undergone through pregnancy, birth and child caring.

• Relax: it’s tiring looking after another human being. Taking some time, even a few minutes each day, can help unwind, recharge and boost energy to look after your family. For many this can seem a daunting thought. During lockdown, this might have more practical challenges since childcare outside of the immediate household might not be available. Therefore, now more than ever, relationships are under a microscope. Some of my personal tips include:

  • Nurture your relationships.

  • Talk to your partner (if you have one) about your feelings and how you want to raise your baby.

  • Practice mindfulness or meditation. A guided meditation (eg CALM) whilst feeding baby can be grounding and help clear your mind

  • Have a shower or bath with essential oils: for example, peppermint, jasmine or lavender

  • Yoga flows before bedtime

  • Drinking hot tea (while the baby is safely asleep or being held by a trusted adult)

  • Enjoy nature: whether that be smelling roses in the back yard or listening to the birds on a walk in the park, savouring the moments of calm with a connection to the natural world