motherhood

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The Impact of Mental Health Disorders During Pregnancy and In the Year Following

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The Impact of Mental Health Disorders During Pregnancy and In the Year Following

Mental health disorders can make it extremely difficult for new and expectant mothers to get through the day, let alone manage during pregnancy, respond to the needs of their infant or attend to other children. 

Research outcomes from Beyondblue have revealed that many depressed mothers describe feeling no joy. Instead, they feel like they are down a black hole, numb, detached, alone and/or unable to cope or interact with their baby or their life. The sense of hopelessness can often feel overwhelming.

"All I wanted to do was to just crawl into bed and stay there, on my own, and everyone to go away - including my baby and my mum."

The Force of Motherhood: A letter from a seasoned traveller

The Force of Motherhood: A letter from a seasoned traveller

Motherhood has made me more resilient, less self-focused, more patient and, frankly, a little like a lioness protecting her cubs… so don’t mess with my kids! I used to be a mild-mannered, non-yeller who embarrassed easily and apologised a lot.

But that was before I was toughened up by the experience of growing and expelling a human being. Is there anything more fortifying than bringing life into the world? Whatever was left of my modesty vanished; I was too busy mothering a squishy, red-faced baby into a spirited, defiant toddler to concern myself with much else.

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Expect a Change in Your Relationship After Having a Baby

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Expect a Change in Your Relationship After Having a Baby

Mostly couples are unprepared for the reality of life with a new baby, despite googling, reading books, talking to other parents or family members and attending antenatal classes. The exhaustion, the 24/7 reality, the relentlessness of dependence and general lifestyle adjustment for any couple takes some time to negotiate and fine-tune. The resultant shift in relationship dynamic is often not an easy one. 

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‘The Complexity of the Unsettled Infant… what I’ve learnt’ : Part 2

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‘The Complexity of the Unsettled Infant… what I’ve learnt’ : Part 2

In more recent years it has become evident to both parents and healthcare professionals alike that the incidence of intolerances to varying components of our diet and/or chemicals in our environment has escalated exponentially. This, along with, alteration to gut microbiome, is considered by many to be the root cause of many an unsettled infant. 

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Becoming a Parent: the bits we don’t talk about

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Becoming a Parent: the bits we don’t talk about

The first few months after having a baby is a period of time like no other. It is life stage that arrives after many months of growing a new life inside of you and constantly adjusting to all the biological and psychological changes that brings. The arrival of your baby is a powerful event, regardless of delivery style.

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Strategies for Behaviour Challenges in the Child aged 2-4 years: A positive response to strong emotions

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Strategies for Behaviour Challenges in the Child aged 2-4 years: A positive response to strong emotions

Preliminary Checklist

  1. Check for any changes in daily program, environment, family, instigation of punishment/discipline regimes
  2. Assess child’s sense of connection to primary caregivers. Ie. any exaggerated imprinting behaviours evident; separation anxiety symptoms; tantrums/ sensory meltdowns; has time out been commenced?

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Does our Childhood Affect the Way We Parent?

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Does our Childhood Affect the Way We Parent?

Most parents look into the eyes of their newborn baby and see a clean slate. Yet attachment research tells us that the biggest predictor of how we will parent our child is how we’ve been able to make sense of our own past. So, whilst many of us don’t give much thought to our own childhood when we become parents, we should do so if we want to remain informed regarding our parental responses.

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Cry…

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Cry…

There are people who don’t mind hearing babies cry. They ignore a baby in distress, won’t pick the baby up ‘so as not to spoil him’, think nothing of leaving babies crying alone for hours in a dark room. I know these people exist because I read articles about them all time. But seriously, who are they? In my 26 years as a mother, 12 years as a parent educator and 3 years blogging, I’ve never encountered a parent like this.

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Could Your Infant's Diet Be Keeping Them Awake?

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Could Your Infant's Diet Be Keeping Them Awake?

Yes, it’s true: our baby or toddler’s sleep patterns can be affected by diet. Restlessness can be caused by allergies or food intolerance, sometimes to foods passing through your breast milk (your baby is never allergic to your milk), a specific baby formula or foods eaten.

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Parent-Infant Attachment

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Parent-Infant Attachment

Newborns have changed very little in evolutionary terms since we emerged as a separate species when we became upright. As our pelvic shape altered to allow us to stand on two feet, and our brains grew larger from using our hands more, babies needed to be born much earlier to be able to fit through this new shaped pelvis with their now large head. This meant that our babies are born very prematurely: probably about nine months prematurely. 

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10 Ways to Connect with your Child

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10 Ways to Connect with your Child

Being deeply connected to our children is the key to emotional health, cooperation, influence, and peaceful homes, but staying connected in the hustle and bustle of daily life can be challenging. We have to be intentional about our relationships with them now if we want these relationships to flourish for years to come. Here are 10 ways to connect with your child.

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Imprinting… Unravelling an Over-Processed Approach to Parenting

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Imprinting… Unravelling an Over-Processed Approach to Parenting

The lifelong journey of parenting is one of the most relentless and rewarding you are likely to ever experience. This is an exciting, exhausting period where life’s experiences can be enjoyed and at times dismayed over. At times it may feel like a large exercise in troubleshooting, frustration and experimentation

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The Complexity of the Unsettled Infant... What I've learnt

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The Complexity of the Unsettled Infant... What I've learnt

In more recent times I have been asked to write down or, at the very least teach, all that I have learnt regarding infants, their behaviours and responses, what works and doesn’t work with regards to settling, the common health compromises and developmental challenges of infants, effective treatments of same and those with less suitable outcomes… no small task!

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Adjusting Your Outlook… and become a more confident, effective parent

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Adjusting Your Outlook… and become a more confident, effective parent

1. Don't take it personally

When your child fails to comply with a request, it's easy to feel disrespected. It's easy to feel targeted when your child flies into a rage. But these emotional reactions, however natural, are not helpful.