Having a baby is not all fun activities such as shopping for funny baby clothes or enjoying lunches with your babies and new mommy friends. Your sleep, disposition, lifestyle are all impacted at the same time. Together with the waves of change it can be tough to sometime know if the way you might be feeling are all just a part of adjusting to life with a brand new infant, or a indication that something is not quite perfect.
What’s normal?
It is common to feel emotional, frustrated and angry at times. It’s also quite clear to have some questions about the baby, how you are going to cope with the new demands and duties, and sometime just getting through the day can be a challenge in itself.There may be new issues that have risen within your day to day such as changing nappies and learning how to wash baby clothes , however try reduce some of these by asking your spouse for some guidance and help as this can reduce stress load on yourself.
However, if you are feeling sad, have lost interest or enjoyment in things that you once enjoyed or find yourself fretting over things to the stage it is causing you to feel stressed, this could be a sign of postnatal depression or even anxiety.
“I did not realise till I looked back that I was feeling abnormally anxious over the first year of my daughter’s life. Additionally, I had episodes of feeling teary, down and needing to escape. I think I set a lot of pressure in my partner.
Frequent Mental Health Symptoms
Sleep Disturbance
It’s perfectly understandable your sleep is influenced as you are reacting to the sleeping, feeding and settling needs of your infant. But, sleep disturbance — which includes not being able to sleep and wanting to sleep constantly — can be a sign of a mental health condition such as depression depression and/or anxiety.
Continuing lack of sleep may also negatively affect your psychological wellbeing and raise your risk of developing a mental health condition or worsen any ailments that you might already be experiencing.
Changes in Appetite
Another common symptom of a mental health illness which often feels like a physical symptom is eating less, being disinterested in food or, on the other end of the scale, using food as a source of relaxation and, therefore, eating more than before pregnancy.
Good nutrition is especially important for you, so that you can be strong and ready to provide to your infant (if you are breast-feeding or not). Whilst your desire may increase a bit if you are breast-feeding, it shouldn’t change too radically.
Consequently, if you are finding that your desire has changed radically, it can actually be a symptom that something may not be completely right with your mental wellbeing.
Ongoing Stress Leading to Distress
Whilst is it quite normal to know about your baby and be concerned for their health, if you’re always feeling stressed, having anxious ideas or worrying that something isn’t right or will go wrong, it may be an indication of antenatal anxiety.
This sometimes is not the case. If these types of thoughts and feelings continue for over two months, increase frequency, are starting to impact on your wellbeing or ability to enjoy life with your baby you shouldn’t ignore them. These stressing thoughts or feelings might be a indication of postnatal anxiety, which is a state that can be effectively managed and treated.
If you are finding yourself having ongoing mood swings which last for two months or more, this is not something to simply dismiss as relating to a change in your hormones or adjusting to your function as a mother. Instead, it could be a indicators of postnatal depression and you should speak to a health professional about it.
Something not quite right? Check it out early!
If you’re having any of the above symptoms in a way that is continuing and impacting on your ability to perform everyday tasks, it might very well be a sign that something is not quite right. It can be easy to be tempted to dismiss these symptoms, to attribute them to other aspects of adapting to life with a new baby or just attempt to ride them out. However, doing this will prevent you from identifying if something is not quite right and out of handling these symptoms together with assistance from a health professional.
So instead, try to pay attention to how you’re feeling, the symptoms you are experiencing and how long you’re feeling this way and deliver this information into your health professional who can best assess whether you are possibly experiencing the signs of a mental health illness.