Anxiety After Childbirth: The First Months Of Your Baby’s Life

It is important to know that postpartum anxiety is normal during the first months of your baby’s life and that you must be prepared to face it. Read on to find out what you can do if you experience anxiety during the first months of your child’s life.

Before you became a mother, how did you imagine what the first months of your baby’s life would be like? You probably expected a magical time filled with positive emotions. Overwhelming love, excitement over the new life that grows before your eyes, perfection, satisfaction…

This is the image of motherhood that is sold to us from the outside, and that is precisely why many women can experience enormous guilt when they feel fear and insecurity during the first months of their baby’s life.

It is true that those who have experienced anxiety in the past are more likely to manifest it even after childbirth. But those who have never had a problem of this kind can also develop symptoms due to the enormous changes they face.

In any case, it is important to know where this discomfort comes from and what resources you can use to alleviate it.

How to detect anxiety after childbirth?

Those who have previously experienced anxiety will easily be able to identify the symptoms when they occur. But for those who are experiencing it for the first time, it can be worrying. If it’s right for you, you may even think that something is physically wrong with you.

It is therefore important to pay attention to the biggest signs of anxiety:

• Physiological symptoms such as shortness of breath, chest tightness, muscle tension, rapid heartbeat or sweating. In addition, somatization can occur in the form of abdominal pain, headaches and other symptoms that have no medical explanation.

• Recurring thoughts that can not be avoided. These can be about the child’s health, how to cope with being a mother or some other problem. After all, it is excessive anxiety that gives rise to a great deal of discomfort that one cannot get rid of.
• Repeated behaviors without explanation may occur, such as repeated movements of the legs or biting the nails. It is also possible to start with some compulsive behavior, such as eating too much. In addition, mothers who experience postpartum anxiety may try to avoid certain situations. For example, they may distance themselves from their children for more than a few minutes to avoid their anxiety and worry.

Why does anxiety occur after childbirth?

There are several things that can cause anxiety during the first months of a baby’s life. The reasons are all related to the big change that happens – on several levels – when you become a mother.

The main causes of postpartum anxiety are the following:

• Concerns about the child’s health. The strong desire for the baby to be healthy and develop as it should can make mothers restless and on their guard. When the fear that something bad will happen to the child is disproportionate or affects your well-being, you may feel anxious.
• Fear of not being able to live up to the responsibility. Being a mother means taking responsibility for a life that is almost entirely dependent on you. The child’s well – being and joy are largely determined by your performance. It is something that can trigger great anxiety and fear because you do not know how to do it right.
• Fear of losing one’s identity. From the birth of the child, motherhood becomes one of the most relevant roles in a woman’s life. Therefore, it is common for women to fear that this new role will absorb them in such a way that it will prevent them from continuing to develop as women, partners or within their professional role. In short, they fear that their identity will be reduced to the role of mother.

What can be done about it?

The proportion of women who experience anxiety after childbirth is high. If you are in this situation, it is important that you are aware that you are not alone.

First and foremost, you need to let go of guilt and shame. All you feel at the moment are valid feelings, and your anxiety does not mean that you are a bad mother. At the same time, it is important that you lower your demands on yourself, because you do not have to be perfect for your child to grow up healthy and happy.

Try to examine your beliefs and thoughts and contrast them with reality. If they are not objective or realistic, replace them with more appropriate thought patterns.

It can also be very helpful to learn breathing or relaxation techniques to control your anxiety. More than anything else, however, you need to be empathetic with yourself and seek professional help if anxiety begins to disrupt your life. Your well-being is your child’s well-being!