Strategies For Coping With Stress During Pregnancy
Constant exposure to stress is harmful to pregnancy. Here are some strategies you can implement to reduce prenatal stress levels. Be sure to take them into account!
How Can I Cope With Stress During Pregnancy ? Undoubtedly, pregnancy is one of the most wonderful times a woman can have. Together, the couple can enjoy the conception and development of a child.
However, a pregnant woman will go through emotional and psychological changes that are more closely related to pregnancy. Getting pregnant is a roller coaster ride. Here we will discuss some of the stress management strategies at this stage.
Stress in pregnancy
The endogenous, hormonal or biological part has great power in pregnancy. But it is no less true that the psychological variables of a woman and her partner also play a significant role.
It is perfectly normal for a pregnant woman to go through different emotional states, and stress is no exception. In the beginning, a woman may feel her body as foreign and be aware of the upcoming changes at all levels, which may cause some stress.
As the months go by, expectation germinates more and more, and the body gets used to carrying another being within itself. The nausea, general malaise, excessive sleepiness, etc. will subside and the woman may begin to enjoy the experience. However, as we’ve pointed out in most cases, it’s still a tsunami of emotions.
Most important of all is managing your stress. We already know that stress is an activation state that disrupts human organic homeostasis and exposes it to dysfunction and disease. If coping with stress is important in itself for every human being, it is even more so for a pregnant woman.
Some strategies for coping with stress during pregnancy
Pregnancy itself is considered a factor that promotes biological activation and is prominent on the lists of stressful life events. Half of pregnant women report more anxiety and depression symptoms than they did before pregnancy.
There are many studies identifying associations between the experience of maternal stress during pregnancy and the presence of cognitive and language disorders in children (LaPlante, Barr, Brunet et al., 2004).
In addition, research also indicates that the developmental processes of the fetus are extremely sensitive to any changes in the emotional state of the mother, and intense stress in the fetus is not recommended.
To this end, we suggest several stress management strategies that you can put into practice today:
Meeting other pregnant women
Social support has been shown to be a great stress buffer for everyone. In relation to pregnant women, it has been observed that spending time with other women in the same situation significantly reduces the level of stress.
This is because satisfying social relationships allow us to share and live experiences, express ourselves emotionally without judgment, and obtain positive social reinforcement that naturally increases our serotonin levels.
Laughter therapy
Laughter and humor are also powerful anti-stress factors. Whenever you can, watch your favorite comedian perform, a movie that makes you laugh, or just laugh with your partner. You will see how in a few minutes your mood will improve significantly.
Mindfulness
Practicing mindfulness can also help with prenatal stress. It is about doing exercises that allow us to focus on “here and now” without making any judgments. It helps us get away from obsessive thoughts, guilt and worry, and connects us to our present reality.
Be realistic
Thoughts can be very harmful when we’re pregnant. Guilt is a classic. “Do I eat well?” “Maybe I shouldn’t have been up late …”. Try to reduce your expectations of yourself and be more lenient. Pressure will only cause anxiety.
Express your emotions
It’s very important that you don’t suppress your emotional states because of “what others will say” or because you seem weak. Pregnant women experience a lot of emotions, some of them a bit unpleasant, such as sadness.
If you feel like crying, don’t hold back. What is held inside only adds to the stress.
Summary of advice on coping with stress in pregnancy
A pregnant woman can do great work, but the environment must be favorable to her. It is important that the partner is more adapted to the emotional states of the woman, showing empathy and understanding. And that a woman would not attach so much importance to certain matters.
In this way, the pregnant woman will not be exposed to too much pressure, and this will relieve her to a greater extent from the possible stress of the pregnancy itself. It is not so much about “treating a pregnant woman as queen”, but about being more indulgent and, above all, empathetic.
