5 Tips for Daily Practice During the Perinatal Period

So as a new parent lacking in sleep and adjusting to all the changes in your everyday life, how can you look after your own mental and emotional wellbeing, to give your baby the best start, to develop their own healthy sense of self?

1. SELF-COMPASSION

Focus on being kind and gentle to yourself in thoughts and actions. Remember that you are doing the best you can in your current situation. Each time you catch your thoughts saying otherwise, remember to bring in self-compassion.

2. SLOW DOWN

Give yourself permission to take a few moments throughout the day to stop what you’re doing and to watch your baby grow. As you observe with gentle open curiosity, take note of the sense of awe that starts to emerge. Slowing down is the key to really seeing.

Created by Bronwyn Leigh, illustrated by Jess Racklyeft for the Centre for Perinatal Psychology.

3. CONNECT WITH OTHERS

Reach out to family, friends, and others in your support network to stay connected. It’s amazing how being in the presence of loved ones (even if only by phone or virtually) can ease the load of parenting. Sometimes, simply speaking and laughing with someone you trust can take away the pressures of life.

4. SLEEP

Exhaustion makes everything more difficult. So when your baby takes a nap, take a nap alongside your baby, even if only for 5 to 10 minutes at a time. Household chores can wait, whereas your own health and wellbeing cannot. Lying down beside your baby and simply watching them sleep and breath has enormous benefits in co-regulating the nervous system.

5. ASK FOR HELP

There is much wisdom in the traditional African proverb that translates to “It takes a village to raise a child”. Ask loved ones to cook meals that you can freeze; to look after your baby so you can have a long bath or shower; to hang out the washing; to pick up the groceries; or to mop the floors. It’s normal to need help with raising a child.

Created by Bronwyn Leigh, illustrated by Jess Racklyeft for the Centre for Perinatal Psychology.

If you would like more information and or support relating to mental and emotional wellbeing following childbirth have a conversation with your GP and check out the following online services and resources:

For more information on Amity Health’s mental health service options for parents and children, you can visit our website, contact us on (08) 98422797 or call the National PANDA Helpline on 1300 726 306.