It seems that lately I've changed from the "Every Stranger is a Friend You Haven't Met Yet" kind of person into a "Get Away from Me and My Baby; I Have Pepper Spray" kinda gal. My husband recently remarked, "It seems like overnight you became scared of everything."
Why yes, I did, and I'm pretty sure it was the night our daughter was born.
In the last six months, I have definitely felt vulnerable. But am I really -- as he suggested -- scared of everything? I decided to keep a running list of every single fear I had last week. Maybe some of these will sound familiar to you, too. Maybe you have your own list.
Things That Scare Me:
I almost felt too embarrassed to share this list after I saw it in black and white. But then I realized there was no way I could be the only one feeling this way, so I sought out some professional perspective. Leah Bloom, a staff therapist at The Family Institute at Northwestern University in Chicago, spoke with me earlier this week.
"There is this constant tension between what we can control as parents and what we cannot control. It's being okay with the latter -- what we can't control -- that's very hard for some parents," Bloom explained. "You can get really overwhelmed and caught up with all of those What-Ifs."
What's Going On?
In Bloom's own practice, she finds that "a lot of parents really want to 'get it right.' They've taken the same approach that found them success in their career into being a parent, and that's a part of the learning curve. Just because you buy the right organic baby food and the right car seat and the right stroller, and you're in the perfect school system, things happen. Things go wrong, and there's a lot of opportunity for great unexpected things to happen, too."
Bingo. I'd been attempting to use my former-life television producing skills to create a 24-hour-a-day live "Mommy Show," where there are no commercial breaks, everything's on the teleprompter, and nothing ever goes wrong. Definitely not reality TV.
So how do we slow down the constant mommy-worry?
3 Ways to Ease Your Anxiety
Sleep
When your child is sleeping, sleep. Don't use that time to cook, clean, or check out your old boss's Mexico pictures on Facebook. Bloom stresses, "When you don't sleep, the irrational thoughts start to become amplified and the stress tends to increase." So let things get messy. Let some things get out of control. Just put on your ocean waves sound machine right now and drift off to a more rational place.
Breathe
Find one physical activity that you enjoy, and stick to it. Doing jigsaw puzzles doesn't count. "It should be something physical," Bloom says, "because you mainly want to decrease stress, and to do that you need to breathe. With walking, running, or taking a yoga class, you have to focus on the breath. Anything that feels stressful or insurmountable -- if you you just breathe through it -- you can start to problem solve in a more rational way and break down the reality." So exhale out that nagging guilt that your child will never be on "Jeopardy!" Teen Week because you're not breastfeeding... and breathe in the fact that your baby is gaining weight, happy, and healthy.
Stretch Yourself
Bloom suggests you stretch physically and mentally every day. "When we become new parents, we become ravenous for information, and too much information about parenting can feel overwhelming. Keep stepping back into that adult world. There are things that adults normally do that you enjoyed doing before." For me, writing and blogging have not only helped me stretch my creative muscles, but have also allowed me to connect with other parents. I've found that the more I reach out to others during a time that can be very isolating, the more happy and fulfilled I feel.
When to Seek Help
When facing day to day activities and new situations, "if the first word that flashes in your mind at any turn is no," Bloom recommends you start talking about your anxiety. Constant worry may be more than new parent jitters, so please open up to someone, whether it be a therapist or a trusted person in your life.
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But while we're on the topic, I wonder if you had access to good support? Did you have a personal LC? Did you try domperidone and other galactagogues? Did you family and husband back your breastfeeding efforts 100%? Did you consider donor milk?
No judgements...just wonder about how supported women are, or not around their efforts.
We're totally not alone!