Posts Tagged ‘Mother’

Giving birth to a child is one of the most wonderful moments in a woman’s life. One look at the newborn and the mother knows that the pain and hardships of the pregnancy were not in vain. It also means that life must return to normal with new responsibilities of bringing up the child.

Soon after the child birth, the mother starts thinking about how to lose weight gained during pregnancy. Many young mothers resort to quick fix diets, diet pills or cardio programs to lose weight.

However the weight loss will be gradual. After all you didn’t gain the weight in a day! So don’t expect to lose the excess weight in few days.

Plus it is now a medically accepted fact that the body and metabolism of a woman who gives birth undergoes a number of changes that can sometimes make losing those extra pounds more difficult. And some mothers do not lose the last few pounds till the breastfeeding continues.

In order to lose weight after pregnancy both safely, and effectively, you should undertake a program of slow and steady dieting along with exercise that will produce long-term benefits.

You should concentrate on the health of your child and your own health and diet. After all now you have to think about how to regain your lost strength as well as provide good nutrition to your baby.

An ideal diet for a new mom would consist of:

* 2000 calories per day
* Small amount of fiber
* About 50 percent intake of Carbohydrates
* 30 percent intake of proteins
* 10 percent intake of fats

And you can start taking your favorite foods again that you may have stopped during pregnancy. But remember, do not indulge too much as you are looking to knock off the extra pounds gained during pregnancy. And before trying any quick fix diets or diet pills, make sure the diets and pills are absolutely safe because what you eat also becomes the food for the baby.

Combined with a healthy diet, exercise is one of the most effective methods for weight loss after pregnancy.No doubt you will be busy as a new mom, but exercise is still important especially at the early stage as it will help build up your stamina and return the muscle tone you lost during the pregnancy.

Exercise is also a good way to improve moods providing it is not overdone and will help to ensure you do not begin to see it as a chore. The idea is to reduce the overall body fat while improving muscle tone at the same time although this should be a gradual process.

It must be re-iterated that the loss should not be looked upon as something that must be done as quickly as possible as it should really come off about the same sort of pace it was put on.

With a good nutritional program and with moderate exercise, you can expect to lose the weight you gained during pregnancy within a reasonable time rame.

Taking proper care after pregnancy can never be overemphasized. In the postpartum period, which begins immediately after delivery and ends with your body getting back to your pre-pregnancy state, mothers go through a plethora of emotions, adjustments, responsibilities, etc. In the hectic pace of new life, they even forget to take proper care of themselves.

The first most priority of every new mother after the pregnancy period is over should be to take good post pregnancy care of her self. Therefore, for the first six to eight weeks, you should focus on taking complete rest, eating a balanced diet, and getting others to help you out with the newborn baby.

Rest

A child usually wakes up after every three hours and needs to be fed, changed, and comforted. This means that it would be a while till you get your uninterrupted eight hours’ sleep. Meanwhile, you will have to catch sleep whenever you can. It is best to sleep when your child is sleeping. Have your child near you during night so that you do not have any problem feeding him/her.

Nutrition

During pregnancy, your body will go through lots of changes. Therefore, your first priority should be to allow your body to heal. Taking a proper balanced and nutritious diet will help a lot in taking care after pregnancy. Your diet should consist of whole grain foods, fresh vegetables, fresh fruits, milk and milk products, lean meat, lentils, beans, and of course plenty of water. Avoid taking caffeine, alcohol, fatty foods, and sugars. Read a good book on nutrition after pregnancy to get an idea about what and how much to eat. You can even talk to your doctor about proper post pregnancy diet for you.

Helping Hands

A new baby is a lot of work and one can never be too prepared for the task ahead. So if it is possible have someone to help you around with household chores so that you and your partner can focus on the baby. You can depend on friends, family members, or paid caretaker providers for the task. With lesser pressure on you, your chances of fast recovery increase.

Taking care after pregnancy also means making all efforts to look good after pregnancy. So first of all you will have to lose all or almost all of your weight gain during pregnancy. This means your going on an exercising program. Do light exercises initially. As your body recovers you can take up strenuous exercises. Talk to your doctor or a fitness trainer about the best exercise regime for your body.

One can never actually completely prepare for motherhood, but reading books, checking out websites related to pregnancy, etc. will give an idea as to what to expect. This knowledge will help you in taking proper care after pregnancy of your body and also of your child- the most precious person for you.

All us of take good care of ourselves during pregnancy, have you given a thought to the importance of care after pregnancy? It is essential for the woman to receive proper care so that she comes out of it healthy, happy and content- ready to take care of the child and her family to the fullest.

Importance Of The Care Given After Pregnancy

You undergo lots of changes in your mental state, your appearance, your feelings and thoughts. There is lots of weight gain and other changes in the body. This can all be taken care of by giving proper care, support, guidance and information to you about after nine months care.

Post pregnancy care includes helping you recover from the pain and discomfort of giving birth, helping you to mentally adjust to the new role as a mother, helping you look good after pregnancy. To achieve all this, a well balanced diet and a well executed exercise regime is necessary.

Who Is Fit To Give You Post Pregnancy Care

The same person or persons who gave you medical care during those nine months are good enough for the care after pregnancy too. If you have gone through a caesarean section, post operative care will be given to you by your doctor. If you have given birth through normal delivery, your physician, mid-wife or obstetrician will help you recover and will care for you in your initial stages after nine months period.

You must decide on your caregiver after considering the following points:

How much does your caregiver listen to your concerns, rather than giving his/her advice?

Is he or she comfortable with your ideas about child-birth and medical care?

Are you comfortable in discussing all your queries and concerns with your caregiver?

Is there a back-up person or alternate arrangement, in case your caregiver is not available on the due date?

If you find the answers to these questions satisfactory, you may go ahead.

Other Dimensions Of Care After Pregnancy:

When we talk about care given after pregnancy, its not only about medical care. You will also need loving care and support of your family, especially your partner. Someone close to you who has this experience, like your mother, sister or a close friend will understand your situation better and her guidance will help you take care of yourself and your baby better. Family members are responsible for the balanced diet you take.

To get back in shape and to gain strength, a regular routine of exercise is also very necessary. You may ask your doctor about it or hire a physical trainer who will help you with the exercises to keep your mind and body in shape. Care after pregnancy must consist of all these aspects, for a fast recovery.

A weekly pregnancy calendar is a manual that records the journey of the fetus from conception to birth. It expounds in detail, the pregnancy week by week development that the fetus should achieve in the mother womb. The pregnancy calendar also gives the details about the changes that occur in the mother body and tells how to cope with these changes. This information can help the would-be-mother to ascertain that the fetus is growing in a healthy manner and her pregnancy is safe. Hence, every mother-to-be must possess a pregnancy week by week calendar to keep track of the milestones that the growing fetus achieves every week. Nowadays, there are numerous websites from where you can download these pregnancy calendars for free.

A Look At The Pregnancy Calendar

A weekly pregnancy calendar generally follows a forty week schedule. The calculation of the calendar is very simple. The LMP i.e. the last menstrual period date is the first day of the pregnancy calendar. Forty weeks from the date is the due date. Here, it has to be noted that only in very few cases, the baby is delivered on the due date. Generally any day after the 37th week is safe, because the baby would have attained full development by the 37th week.

A pregnancy calendar generally makes the following information available.

1. The growth and development that the fetus must achieve in each week of pregnancy,

2. The physical and the emotional changes that the mother-to-be undergoes and coping with these changes,

3. Nutritional requirements and exercises for a health pregnancy,

4. The do and do not during the nine months.

In a nutshell, a weekly pregnancy calendar is an excellent reference guide for every anxious would-be mother. It helps her to understand every change and emotion that she would be undergoing through the forty weeks of the pregnancy wheel. It helps her to keep track of what is going on in her womb every minute. The calendar helps in alleviating her anxiety and comforts her.

Maintaining Your Own Weekly Pregnancy Calendar

You can also make your own pregnancy calendar. It is very simple. Once you know your LMP and due date, you can yourself start maintaining the physical and emotional changes that you undergo on a weekly basis. You can compare this with any standard pregnancy calendar to assure yourself that everything is well.

Advantages Of Maintaining Your Own Pregnancy Calendar

In addition to the above mentioned benefits, maintaining your own weekly pregnancy calendar has some apparent advantages.

1. You can use the calendar as a jotting notepad to record your queries, doubts and apprehensions. This will be useful in future appointments with your doctor.

2. The pregnancy calendar is particularly useful in the third trimester of pregnancy (week 26 to week 40). In this final trimester, there are many changes happening in the mother body. The would-be mother will then find the pregnancy calendar handy. With the help of a good calendar, she can identify if her contraction are true or false and if there is a need to consult the doctor.

3. A religiously written pregnancy calendar will be very useful for the doctor in case any emergency arises in the course of delivery.

4. You can use your weekly pregnancy calendar to understand your future pregnancies better.