New Mum Series - 'You can't pour from an empty cup'
This week I launched the New Mum Series. Over 8 weeks I cover what shows up regularly in the early postnatal days.
Each week will be themed, and you’ll see the content spread across social platforms & this blog.
Week one is all about ‘You can’t pour from an empty cup’.
A saying I use a lot when I meet women to describe how we should be building up new mums in the postnatal space. If mum is running on empty, feeling drained, she has nothing to give.
As a postnatal doula my focus is the mums. How can the support best serve her? With recommendations, personalisation and flexibility, mum is support through the fog and the haze, coming through the other side feeling brighter, confident of choices and assured.
There are different ways we can build up new mums. If you have one in your world; consider some of these –
Give new mums time – leave superwomen at the door and give her the time to rest, recover, adjust and shine.
Food – food is a key postnatal pillar. We know nutrition can heal different ailments, boost energy, maintain good health. Supplements such as B12 in the mornings will help with tiredness. Make sure rainbow-coloured food for the mum in your life.
Sleep – we know sleep deprivation in the postnatal period can be a contributing factor to anxiety and depression. At the every, least it will make emotions heightened, perspective gets lost, lack of clarity reigns.
When visiting rather saying yes to a cup of tea and sitting on the sofa, offer to mind the baby and let mum take 40 winks.
Mental wellbeing – if mum has experienced mental health issues previously, it might be an idea to get support in place whilst mum is pregnant. Source local groups and speak to medical teams to find the type of therapy that works best for mum. Keep chat open and free flowing.
Assurance – we do not often hear what a good job we are doing as mum so when it does come it can feel amazing. It’s can be all we need to power on and make us feel appreciated, confident in our abilities as a mother and that it’s been recognised. She your new mum with love and assurance.
And lastly, listen…. Be a good listening ear. Chatting and talking things through helps processes feelings, events and helps make sense of them a little more. How is your new mum is OK? And properly listen to the answer.
So that’s a few ideas on the idea. On my biz page I have shared some of the support put in place for a women experiencing PND. This is coming from a doula’s point of view. I am not medically trained so we signpost to help that will make a difference.
In my free support I have set up for mums-to-be and new mums, on Fridays we talk about G Bombs – the G stands for gratitudes. Celebrating the big and small wins is the quickest way for you to feel ‘rich’ in your life.
Join the group and share your G-Bombs. Click here
Mine was having two birthday cards hidden under my pillow so I could open them first thing tomorrow!
Much love x